United (H) Post Match Thread

[argyle]

Our formation relies on everyone running, pressing and playing close together in midfield-otherwise we can get overrun very quickly through the middle. The work rate and energy dropped noticeably soon after the restart and it was no surprise when they were able to get back into it. Gundogan disappeared and David was knackered.

Sadly, Gundogan goes missing far too often. Lovely goal though.

 

[K.Reeves right foot]

Chance to reflect on it after a crappy nights sleep and my mood is still in shreds after yesterday. Absolutely our season is not defined by what we do against man utd anymore. Those days are long gone thankfully. However yesterday's result has far wider ramifications than a mere loss which will be corrected v Swansea or west ham. Pep has worked wonders we all know and we've seen beautiful football we once could only dream about but in bringing in such a manager as Pep expectations are raised to new levels and quite rightly so. When a club brings in such a coveted manager what has happened in the last week is hugely disappointing to say the least. Capitulating against Liverpool in such a dire fashion is it acceptable especially given it happened once already. Capitulating yesterday is unacceptable given it happened 4 days earlier. A manager of Peps supposed standing should prevent it happening either by team selection, tactics, in game managment or the mentality he installs into the team. Beautuful football is only part of an equation to becoming a great side. It's blatantly obvious that when out under pressure this team is mentally and tactically weak. Elite sides don't cave in like that in the highest profile games. If Pep takes the plaudits when we play scintillating football against usually passive teams who are too scared to attack us then it's only right he should take some criticism when what has happened against Liverpool twice and yesterday. Its still my belief tnat yesterdays result was apalling considering what was at stake and how the first half went. No I'm not a Pep out merchant, love him for what we've achieved and the football I've witnessed but I'll criticise him if I feel it's warranted.
Allied to not winning the league when it was there on a plate, the chance of humiliation for them lot has been lost. The implications for them had we won as we should in that manner would have been great. Now theyve had a massive lift which they will take in to next season. That can't be underestimated. Yes we will still win the league which is great obviously but now we are supposed to be dining at the top table and Pep was brought in to make sure capitulations like that are a thing of the past when we had poorer managers and players.
I'll be there on Tuesday willing them on screaming like a lunatic. Maybe Pep and the players can pull it off? Just feels like a critical and high pressure part of the season where such a coveted manager was brought in to guide us through unscathed to achieve more than ever before has fallen flat. Tuesday night will tell us more.

 

[bert38]

Sad to see Raz panic in front of the keeper, repeatedly.
Too much pressure being English and all that title winning rag hurting derby talk didn't help.

A keeper always is in trouble if you hit the corner low. Raz didn't even hit the goal ffs.

Let him score and Pep was a hero, earliest title won, in a derby, players were flying, dippers were flapping.

Now we have the opposite scenario: lost a half 3-0 AGAIN, players bottled the historical chance,
and the premature schadenfreude "shite" chants were flying back in our faces. No support from the stands when they needed it. Shame.
We're fucked basically.

(But about all that I will never forget the influence of the coach attack pre Anfield and the corrupt derby ref "what was his name".)

I defend him to the hilt against everyone who swallows the dipper media crap. That said his misses were so costly. Not the one on his left foot, but the two on his right-seem to recall he hit the ball exactly the same way against Spurs...small adjustments and he will score those.

 

[hammocity]

I must be a football genius because when i heard the line up i knew we'd struggle. Then at half time i said i hope he changes it . It was as clear as day. Perhaps not to the likes of you but to a level headed honest fan it is.

So you admit you were wrong because the first half was the reverse of a struggle. I didn't hear anyone advocating a change in the second half and it was hardly the Manager's fault that a defensive lack of concentration cost us. As for your other post, I didn't start the abuse, Tom called Pep a twat, I was replying using the freedom of speech, I refer you to another post and suggest you listen to John Cooper Clarke's "Twat" that describes people with, shall we say, negative attitudes, their opinions rub off on other people, a bit like this forum. My life isn't perfect but I like to take the positives of day to day stuff, City winning the League and watching us win in style gives me a boost. I went to my first game in 1969 and have been going since then so if you want to call me a super blue I will gladly take it, you should say the same to yourself.

 

[Millwallawayveteran1988]

Well train delayed and did not get until 1.20am. Reds taking the piss on the train what a day. As I am sure others did I turned round and said we might rue those Sterling misses. Stones needs to be in Tuesday and Pep needs to start readying Laporte and Stones for next season. What makes it hard to take is the rags were shocking. I still don’t know how we lost that. The last two games hurt more after the season we have had.

They were as bad a side as we have played in the first half. What they do have though is a set of bollocks. They rarely give in and that’s twice they have come from 2-0 down to win in the last month. They also came from behind to beat Chelsea. They don’t lack fight that’s for sure. It’s why they are where they are in the league. Talent wise they are easily the 5th or 6th best side so they are punching above their weight results wise.

Our players need to find some of their own bollocks this week after these two shambolic performances/results. Anything less than a win Tuesday and Saturday won’t be good enough. They owe the fans the chance to see them win the league at home after that and beating Spurs is the key to that.

I hope they are hurting as much as the fans are today and it spurs them on.

 

[Neville Kneville]

It seemed like half the ground were late back to seats and it was silent when the second half kicked off.

After the brilliant atmosphere in the first half, that is a huge disappointment.

We can knock Liverpool out on Tues, if we get that atmosphere going & KEEP it going, especially with the added extra that those ****s deserve. I'm absolutely convinced of that.

Chances are, we don't need four goals, we may need five or six. Our defence is stupid, & unlikely to keep a clean sheet unless we're lucky.

But Liverpool are total bottlers & the crowd WILL affect them if we get on it & do it right. Utd should have been 6 down at half time & their defence is better than Liverpool's.

If we'd kept it up, imo we would be champs now & if we do it for 90 on Tues, we can get through.

 

[Roachy]

we bottled it, with a couple of players who have peaked this season and are struggling to the end. But hey, it's a timely reminder that we've achieved this position because of our brilliance without even having a LB most of the season, and the majority of this team is young and inexperienced and needs moments like that so they feel dejected and learn never to feel that way again and develop that ruthless edge, if we'd won yesterday and had the perfect end to the season, everyone would snap at our heels next season and we would be a bit too comfortable. Ferguson used it really well back in the day to motivate his players and give his side an edge, by making them determined to never feel that way again, which is why they jammied their way to their final title. Pep needs to do the same with this, make the players feel angry and disappointed with themselves for letting it go and make them mentally stronger and determined to never feel that way again. We need to develop a ruthless edge and we have to use this, otherwise Dippers and Rags will have one over on us from now on and will continually trip up.

So we should see that against Spurs then yes?

 

[Decepticon]

A combination of one misplaced pass by Fernandinho that led to the first goal, and Pogba deciding to show why Utd paid £90m for him by playing like a world class player for TWO MINUTES. Nobody would have stopped him scoring that second, it was a phenomenal header. Funnily enough, the second Ferna gave it away I thought "this is where it all starts to go wrong"- and I was right.

And Sterling missing two sitters..

 

[SamBlue]

I feel very negative and I've braced myself now for two very bad weeks. I cannot believe I took a gardening holiday for this bullshit. But hey, as my wife says, 'you decided to support City when there are 10 clubs in London'. woman!
I am not sure why some people try to blame it on Pep, he is trying everything not to sound negative in order not to affect players even more and aggravate their low fucking moral fiber.

 

[mad4city]

The uncomfortable truth is that we've bottled it twice in the past week.
It's not nice to annoint scapegoats but Sterling - who wasn't trusted to start at Anfield and also fluffed two (arguably three) golden opportunities yesterday - has a shit load of improving to do, if he wants to keep his job.
Likewise, Gundogan has now gone missing twice when the pressure was on, and for all of his improvement this season, Ottamendi simply isn't up to the required quality.
Sure, we've had some shitty luck in the past two defeats but, in truth, we need to remember that you make your own luck.
I don't expect us to turn the tie around on Tuesday but it would be encoragienc if we at least gave it a proper go.
Who knows, we might get lucky if we do?