The Title Race - 2024/25

[supercity88]

We're still trying to find the right balance. It happens every season. Lots of gung ho attacking leading to counter attacks that have us scrambling. The positive is, we're winning games despite this. Both Fulham and Brentford had excellent spells against us, at the Etihad too - which is very unusual. The balance is lacking without Rodri and Gundogan isn't helping things.

It's good that Ake is back and Foden should be in a position to start. De Bruyne shouldn't be far from a return either.

But those big games without Rodri will be tougher than ever this season. The dippers and tarquins have a tough run so hopefully we can start to pull away now and find the right blend of attack and defence. Doku and Savio give us lots of attacking threat but the end product hasn't been there and we're looking vulnerable on the counter. Having Bernardo and Grealish wide to retain the ball and be more patient but with De Bruyne and Foden providing a more creative edge and energy centrally should help.

It may be that in those tough games, away from home, we have to look to play a more defensive shape but unleash Doku/Savio/Haaland on the counter and pick teams off.

 

[BlueAnorak]

It may be that in those tough games, away from home, we have to look to play a more defensive shape but unleash Doku/Savio/Haaland on the counter and pick teams off

Totally agree.
Liverpool and Villa away for sure.

 

[mancboy]

these stupid international breaks have negated teams getting into any sort of rhythm when the last one is done then a different picture will emerge.

 

[mancboy]

We're still trying to find the right balance. It happens every season. Lots of gung ho attacking leading to counter attacks that have us scrambling. The positive is, we're winning games despite this. Both Fulham and Brentford had excellent spells against us, at the Etihad too - which is very unusual. The balance is lacking without Rodri and Gundogan isn't helping things.

It's good that Ake is back and Foden should be in a position to start. De Bruyne shouldn't be far from a return either.

But those big games without Rodri will be tougher than ever this season. The dippers and tarquins have a tough run so hopefully we can start to pull away now and find the right blend of attack and defence. Doku and Savio give us lots of attacking threat but the end product hasn't been there and we're looking vulnerable on the counter. Having Bernardo and Grealish wide to retain the ball and be more patient but with De Bruyne and Foden providing a more creative edge and energy centrally should help.

It may be that in those tough games, away from home, we have to look to play a more defensive shape but unleash Doku/Savio/Haaland on the counter and pick teams off.

I think the end product not being there may have something to do with haaland to some extent, plenty of balls are going into the box and he doesnt seem to be attacking them as well as he might.

 

[M23 Citizen]

I get the physics and all that but what would you call it if you found an unused winning lottery ticket on the ground in the middle of the high street?

A nice coincidence of me being there at the same time the ticket was unattended by chance.

And, no, I wouldn’t admit I’d found it and it wasn’t mine haha

 

[MadchesterCity]

Arsenal v liverpool next week.

Draw would be ideal but wouldn't be against a liverpool win to create a gap to arsenal

Draw is best result for City

 

[SebastianBlue]

Scoring last minute is luck mate, on another day VAR rob us of victory. We did nothing that deserved us the win. A keeper is paid to make saves. We got away with another one today.

We currently look absolutely nowhere near a team that's going to win the title. We've played Brentford, Fulham and fucking Wolves and scraped through all 3.

Early days and City are known to be slow starters and like I said Arsenal & Liverpool don't look good enough either. All to play for.

We also had to come back from behind or “barely scrape by” to beat QPR, Aston Villa, Brighton, and Inter to win the league, league, league, and champions league.

Are those games signs those teams were bad?

 

[SebastianBlue]

We’re unbeaten, second in the table, a point (and two goals) off the top, eight games in. We lost one of our most promising young talents right before the first match, one of the best players to ever grace the pitches of England hasn’t been available for our last four matches, including against Arsenal, we lost in my opinion the best player in the world for the rest of the season four games in, and the best player in the league last season hasn’t gotten back in to top form.

Given most were warning we are notoriously slow starters and were coming off the back of the Euros, so most of our players effectively got no meaningful break from football, you’d think most blues would have bitten your hand off if this position was offered before the season started.

But I guess anyone thinking that would be wrong?

 

[Gone for a Burton]

Concentration affected by fatigue, sharpness and agility/strength in the legs affected by fatigue, players switch off, make mistakes, find themselves out of position after a game of having to be right on it against an attacking team having to defend and concentrate fully all game.

That’s why I’d always like to have an attack-minded coach first and foremost. Whoever ends up replacing Pep (hopefully in about 2028!), I’d like to always be attack first.

City ran wolves to distraction yesterday.

5 players down with cramp, 3 substituted.

Heads spinning, vision blurred, breathless, concentration gone.

Doc and Sav ran them to a stand still, Jack & Phil dismantled them.

They conceded 6 corners in the last 10 minutes !!

 

[M23 Citizen]

City ran wolves to distraction yesterday.

5 players down with cramp, 3 substituted.

Heads spinning, vision blurred, breathless, concentration gone.

Doc and Sav ran them to a stand still, Jack & Phil dismantled them.

They conceded 6 corners in the last 10 minutes !!

I think we had four corners in a row in the final minute of stoppage time. We always fight til the end, like John Stones said, it’s a belief in us that we can always win.