Spurs (A) | PL | Post-Match Thread

[JewelZee]

Can't argue with much of this.....

Bigga, pete73, any thoughts?

 

[Dribble]

I think the speed of our play is the problem. It's extremely risk averse ( except for In the one area when it should have been). So we spent an inordinate amount of time making safe passes sideways and backwards. Overtime, it becomes predictable to anyone.

The opportunities are still there Mahrez missing an open Greosh and Haaland, Bernardo slowing the pace down while Haaland makes a run. etc.

And these were there despite our pedestrian play.

Quicker more aggressive play is needed. Get the ball near the final third and take risks with skilled players. Grealish, Kevin, Haaland, Gundogan Alvarez and co. Then get the ball to Haaland in space early.

All I hear is criticism that we continuously fail to slide the ball in to Haaland. No one passes to Haaland.

Haaland is ONE player. As I stated earlier, have we become Haaland FC? Is our only means & mechanism to score, a through ball to Haaland?

If we win & Haaland doesn't score, the headline is Haaland didn't score, not the City win.

What we lack is the speed & unpredictable jeopardy that Sterling & Sané provided us. If skill & trickery wasn't working, then dropping back & forcing the opposition to come out therefore creating space in behind for Sterling & Sané to run into, became another option which we no longer possess.

As you've mentioned, our tempo has also become a concern. City ALWAYS had additional gears to shift into if needed, but this season it's like our gearbox is stuck in third!

This is the most concerning factor that I've seen. Arsenal lost on Saturday, but fought to the very last, LITERALLY! You could see how much losing was hurting them. Until this season, this was City but right now it's like that emotion is suppressed.

Something is very wrong & it needs sorting lickety split... )(

 

[JewelZee]

I fear we're watching the beginning of the end of a manager. And I should know, I've followed enough.

Unless he finds a new assistant, one who'll actually challenge him on things and bring in their own ideas, we'll continue to deteriorate until either the manager, the board or the fans have had enough.

I was wondering if Klopp might go in summer and take a break, but I'm starting to feel like Pep might be joining him. I don't see the fire in him anymore, he just looks frustrated yet none of us have a clue what he's actually trying to achieve with the tactics.

The signings are equally baffling, not that they're bad players, they just don't fit. Haaland is one of the best strikers in the world, at the start of the season it looked like we were forgetting he was there after playing without a striker, now it looks like we're actively ignoring him. Grealish is a good player when running at defenders, making them commit so we make him stand still and run into congestion, same with Mahrez.
Bellingham can be world class, could be an incredible midfielder, but I just don't see how he fits in our system, especially this current system, so I don't see why we'd pursue him. And, if I was him, I'm not sure why I'd come.

Great post!

 

[Bluemoonadam]

What an awful season it's turning into, we could be fucked here.

 

[Dribble]

Yeah, was a worry when we signed him that it would be hard to utilise his greatest asset due to parked busses but there were a few clear examples in those 2 games where it was on. Half wonder against utd if it was due to fear of losing the ball. Very odd though as over hit it and the worst thing that happens is the keeper gets it. Get it right and good chance he scores.

As you say the lack of creativity in general is a big worry. KDB seems the only one allowed to take risks and despite his assists his general form has been average at best

KDB's like Gerrard. A good player, but what made/makes them great is that Turbo Boost button that they had/have which would add 10% to their game to turn them into world class operators.

When was the last time we saw a run of matches where KDB grabbed games by the scruff of their necks, forcing significant change?

Even at the World Cup KDB couldn't raise his game when needed, like we've become accustomed to? Will we EVER see KDB dominate high level matches again, the way we've become used to?

These are some of the serious questions we need to be facing up to...

 

[HypnoticBlue]

When we attack teams we are frighteningly good, but we just don’t attack anymore, it’s just pass, pass, pass, which is very hard to be enthusiastic about, summat’s gotta change quickly.

 

[KingGeorge]

I was wondering if Klopp might go in summer and take a break, but I'm starting to feel like Pep might be joining him. I don't see the fire in him anymore, he just looks frustrated yet none of us have a clue what he's actually trying to achieve with the tactics.

This is a bizarre comment. He clearly isn't lacking "fire". His rant after the first Tottenham game shows he clearly is passionate about the task at hand.

 

[jimharri]

I know many were upset with my comments in the match thread—and I have followed up with a few directly to explain my posts after the match thread was locked—but I wanted to clarify them:

I wasn’t criticising others critiquing our performance or players or Pep. Absolutely nothing wrong with that.

I was commenting on the vitriolic posts that have unfortunately become a hallmark of match threads, with them becoming more and more toxic this season, which seems to be spilling over in to the forum in general.

So many seem to be so reactionary and so angry when we don’t play well now that they seem to lose their heads and post completely OTT comments that set the tone. It then snowballs from there.

And it’s honestly very sad to see.

I was even told I am not fit to moderate the forum for speaking out against it.

Which, fair enough, if people genuinely feel that way, I’ll hang up my mod boots.

But I hate to see the place I have spent so much time on for the past 13+ years, on which I have created so many great relationships, and which has served as my connection to home as my community has shrunk substantially these last few years, sliding in to a more hostile place, despite our best efforts to prevent it.

As I said, if I am no longer fit for purpose, I’ll step down.

Brilliant post Seb. You're an excellent mod. As Norman Stanley Fletcher said many moons ago; "don't let the bastards grind you down".

 

[bluesince76]

This is a bizarre comment. He clearly isn't lacking "fire". His rant after the first Tottenham game shows he clearly is passionate about the task at hand.

After a 2nd half when we suddenly looked like our old selves, bring aggressive especially without the ball. I thought that was going to be the thing that got our session going.

We had it for the first 15 minutes yesterday as well, despite missing obvious good passes, we looked up for it and were far the better team. One goal and the ref could have blown up there and then. It's a team without balls, without belief, without leaders.

 

[fitzy blue]

What an awful season it's turning into, we could be fucked here.

Awful?
In a relegation battle, out of the Champions league and out of both domestic cups could be considered as awful, but being out of only one of the four at this stage of the season is far from it.

 

[IcriedwhenTueartleft]

I note that we are now at the stage where a whole lot of true “City fans” think that if you don’t want Pep to stay until he is 98 then you’re clearly not a “City fan”…blind loyalty is so healthy

 

[don84]

Look at Liverpool!

It is very odd - well not so odd if you think about it...... with modern dietry advice and medicine and physiological stuff, players should be having longer careers (not shorter) than in the past. But the trouble is, because of the ££££s thing - the amount of games - the opposite is happening.

Ok - you get the odd exception, like Messi winning the WC at 35, but you could say

I'll give you some clues:
1) He's tall
2) He's Norwegian
3) You get fined a week's wages for passing to him

Grealish is pretty quick too

Haha, I knew it !!

 

[Lavinda Past]

He needs someone with their head in the real world. Someone to be pragmatic when he dreams up another of his avant garde art projects

As I suggested earlier, he's going 'a bit Malcolm' in my opinion. He needs a Joe Mercer type to steady the ship.
Problem is... would he accept someone as his equal, or (like Malcolm) stab them in the back?

 

[Joekmcfc]

Akanji should be the DM option alongside Rodri.

He's not strong enough as a central defender, certainly in the air, but he is quick enough and certainly has the passing technique to help us higher up.

I would than go Walker, Dias, Laporte and Ake as the back four until Stones is back.

I'd drop Mahrez for Kev wide right, have Walker doing the donkey work foil overlaps.

Gundo in the ten and Phil can decide if he wants to fight it out with Jack on the left for now.



...............Ederson........
Walker...Dias...Laporte...Ake
.........Akanji....Rodri.....
De Bruyne...Gundo....Grealish..
... ............Haaland.........

Very worrying looking at that being potentially our best team, so so far off the team of silva fernandinho, kompany, aguero, sterling, sane etc.. have to say im not feeling Haaland at the min either, not a great presser and not really good enough to be involved in the build up play which is having an affect on the whole team. But yeah very worrying in every aspect at the min. Left back, and a pacey winger was really needed at the start of the season.

 

[Lavinda Past]

All about opinions but our one "genius" continually over thinks things... Martin Samuels said so himself when I spoke to him at Porto Airport the morning after the UCL final.. He said "one day he'll tinker so much that he gets it right"

Shameless name drop but I thought it was relevant

It worked for Claudio Ranieri at Leicester... Eventually. Then he got the push.

 

[IcriedwhenTueartleft]

Yep we ain’t been at our best we are second! Hoping to win the fa cup or champs league and finish top four

I’d be delighted with that

 

[don84]

Bigga, pete73, any thoughts?

There's a lot of good points in the video.
It was said that only Gundogan and KDB are the players to provide fast and precise through balls to the attackers. However, oposition have recently man marked these heavily. And this has paid off in the recent games. My thought why these two didn't start, was that maybe Pep wanted to confuse the opposition by using them later, off the bench. And before that, play it solidly and with low risk (low focus on pace forward), with an unformiliar formation. Riding the storm and holding back the move to introduce the best attack serving midfielders could have paid off, however, the early goal against fecked up this plan.
If it had succeeded it would have been called a master stroke. Just a thought.

 

[ancoats]

should be a good pre-match interview for the villa game this week by pep ? he may well need a yard stick to bash the questions away, that's before they get on to the villa game

 

[JewelZee]

There's a lot of good points in the video.
It was said that only Gundogan and KDB are the players to provide fast and precise through balls to the attackers. However, oposition have recently man marked these heavily. And this has paid off in the recent games. My thought why these two didn't start, was that maybe Pep wanted to confuse the opposition by using them later, off the bench. And before that, play it solidly and with low risk (low focus on pace forward), with an unformiliar formation. Riding the storm and holding back the move to introduce the best attack serving midfielders could have paid off, however, the early goal against fecked up this plan.
If it had succeeded it would have been called a master stroke. Just a thought.

Could be. At this point who really knows but Pep. It just appeared that neither KDB or Gundo looked the least bit happy being on the bench. I would think if there were such a plan they would be in on it?

 

[East Level 2]

If ours is crumbling what’s happening to Liverpools?!

Cold weather asthma and a shortage of Ventolin. Erm, allegedly.