United (H) | PL | Post Match Thread

BillyShears said:
The other side of that, for me at least, is that with Khusa, Dias, Josko, is we backed ourselves to defend in those moments and not panic or do anything stupid. We managed their transitions fairly well, even if we did cough the ball up in some stupid areas. Once that midfield rhythm comes back, we'll be close to back to our best.

You can see the influence of Linders increasing game by game IMO. We are getting better in attacking transitions, we are braver in making choices even if it means giving the ball up on occasion. The defensive line continues to be really aggressively high too.
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I wonder if the future is a flat back four of real defenders and with Rodri in front of them we can afford to let teams come on to us and then fast transitions using Erling, Phil, Doku, Cherki to attack at real speed. Instead of slow control, controlled havoc. If I'm honest that is much like how Liverpool play but so what. Its a huge change for Pep though and after two decades of winning everything by playing possession football, maybe it is simply him planning the rebuild with one eye on handing it over next season.
 
We are no way near the form from treble winning season but still job comfortably done.
Highlight from the match was Phil's back!
 
Stato said:
I feel like this is sign I'm getting old moaning about this but

These people need to get off their phones at the game and live in the moment FFS!
Players are celebrating right in front of you and you are looking at them through your phone screen
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It’s just like being there!
 
First off winning a derby is always brilliant. It always feels good. Especially as losing them stings so badly.

Thought there was a lot of good there yesterday. Phil, Haaland, Doku and the back 4 and keeper were great. Rodri is still getting back to it so he wasn’t his imperious best. Reijnders made so some great runs and Bernardo worked hard without really setting the game alight. Think we have room to improve but there are signs that we will.

I would prefer we didn’t have arsenal next weekend as I think we’re still gradually getting into our stride but it will take a while. Next two matches will be really tricky.
 
Dribble said:
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Flat Back Four & a Win! ​

As I've been lamenting since last season, it's not our players at recent fault, it's the inverted fullback system they've been forced to play which has been totally sussed out.

The setup against ManUre was exactly the same as the formations in our first three matches at the CWC. The result? It unleashed the unpredictable maverick Jeremy Doku & the Rags had few answers to the massive problems he posed to them.

Are we back to our swashbuckling best? No. Is this the progression I was hoping to see, even if we don't win a pot during this transitional season? Yes.

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Rodri looked well off the pace. I thought Silva was average at best in the first half, but he improved as the second half wore on. I feel for Bernardo. He's given his all for Manchester City, but you can see the effervescence & snap he once possessed in abundance is on the wane. Regardless, he'll always be a Manchester City legend for me.

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Starting at the back, Donnarumma was a revelation! He commanded his area like he owned the Etihad, & was to our manor born. He exuded a calm authority that I've never seen from a City keeper before.

His distribution will always be compared to Ederson's, but I've never seen an Ederson before Ederson, & I doubt I'll ever see an Ederson ever again. Eddie's a true City legend, but 26 year old Donna is our future.

At an early corner, he physically moved Vice-Captain Dias to exactly where he wanted him posted, & then he expertly marshalled the rest of his area with a firm authority. Our defence responded by exuding a confidence which has been missing for well over a season.

Our previous defensive confidence was built on our total control & attacking firepower. If teams were camped in their own box & terrified to venture out, that was our defence sorted by default.

We've lost that fear factor, so now our defence has to be a defence who will defend, & defend we did! Dias was totally dominant in the air & won everything thrown at us. Both Khusanov & Dias were brutal in the tackle, & when added to the footballing skills of Gvardiol & O'Reilly, our flat back four barely gave an increasingly desperate ManUre a sniff.

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Understandably, Rodri was off the pace, but more worryingly, Reijnders' form has seriously dipped for the third match in a row. The two clear chances he had, would've been buried in his earlier matches, but he side footed one at the keeper with the goal gaping either side & narrowly slipped the other one outside of the far post. Hopefully, this is just an early season blip in form, as he continues to bed in.

Foden was a revelation! He tore ManUre apart in the opening exchanges with his attacking play. He was seriously creative & rock solid defensively as he assumed a left-sided midfield attacking role. Boy, how we've missed him over the last 12 months, & you could see how much the headed opener meant to our Stockport Iniesta.

Haaland was supreme! Pre-match he said our performances had to improve & that he felt he now had to lead the team out of our slump in form, & he did just that.

I've never seen him put in so much effort in a match! He was closing down their keeper, pressing their defence & when under pressure in the latter stages, he was in our box reverting to a commanding defender! Fuckin brilliant!

The most pleasing part of the match for me was the performance of Jeremy Doku. Just like the first three matches of the CWC, he FINALLY had support from the LB, midfield & a more mobile Haaland & he tore ManUre a new arsehole as a result! If we can replicate this on the right, we're gonna terrorise defences across the Premier League & throughout Europe.

Old Toilet...

As for the Rags, they came setup expecting us to play an inverted FB, but when it was obvious that we were playing with a flat back four & weren't going to change, they strangely stuck to a system that was bearing little fruit.

However, I thought they played some decent football. Much better than they have when they sneaked several wins against us in the past. If they stick with Amorim, I can see an improvement in results as the season progresses.

We're now entering the meaty part of the season where games will come thick & fast, so the real football starts from now. Looking at our bench, I noticed Guardiola pointing at Lijnders after the opener as if to say "That's down to you". Lijnders also looked much more involved. He was evidently brought here to usher in a change of tactical approach, so it's no wonder he's looked disinterested & disconnected, when Guardiola reverted back to his failed inverted FB system.

Uncle Kolo is the conduit between the players & coaching staff. The way he encouraged & cuddled every player was so emotional & great to see.

It's early days, but I hope this victory will signal the end of Pep's failing inverted fullback tactic. It's been well & truly sussed out & judging by their recent comments, the players have lost faith in it.

Hopefully this is the beginning of the new Manchester City.

This emphatic victory was for you Ricky lad. Rest in Power our kid... )(

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Great summary and I agree with virtually all of it. The only thing I'd disagree slightly with is that I thought O'Reilly was much further forward in the second half, with Bernardo covering the space behind him. I think that suited both of them much better than the way we were set up in the first.

I'd also opine that the defensive solidity was down to us surrendering possession somewhat and therefore not playing the high line, which has been suicidal so many times. Our defenders were in positions to defend, rather than having to chase back in a disorganised way.
 
Stato said:
I feel like this is sign I'm getting old moaning about this but

These people need to get off their phones at the game and live in the moment FFS!
Players are celebrating right in front of you and you are looking at them through your phone screen
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Exactly I hate nothing more
 
Eamonn Holmes
Usain Boult
Tyson Fury
Rory McIlroy
Angus Deayton
Mick Hucknell
Michael le vel
Ashley from Corrie
Ashley Grimes
Rick Astley
Geoffrey Boycott
Rachel Riley
Merry from lord of the rings
Olly Murs
Greg Rutherford
Luke the puke littler
M S Dhoni
Steve Coogan (prefer you as Paul Calf)
Shaun Ryder
Terry the weedy weasel Christian
And the other 700 million rag cunts I’m not prepared to type

YOUR BOYS TOOK ONE HELL OF A BEATING
 
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