Welcome Donnarumma!

[BlueMoonAcrossThePond]

Have to say for such a long post, the accusations are premature to say the least.

All this playing out from the back. City have not done it to an acceptable level now for 18 months with Ederson in goal.

Why don’t you wait and see how it unfolds before making such widespread statements that have no factual evidence to support.

Your opinion could and probably will look silly in a few weeks. Above all else, city need a goalkeeper who can keep the ball out of the net.

My assessment of Donnarumma and of the way we play aren't premature at all - it's based on evidence of how Pep has always played - and of how Donnarumma has always played. If Pep attempts to play out from the back with Donnarumma- as I think he will - then that will lead to far more errors than either Ederson or Trafford would commit - and unlike PSG - our backfield isn't nearly good enough on the ball to play without a keeper who is also good on the ball if we want to consistently build from the back. Sure we're always going to hoof it sometimes no matter who is in goal - the change though is that when we try to build from the back - we're going to end up in trouble far more often than we would have if we had Ederson or Trafford in goal because Donnarumma isn't good on the ball.

 

[jamielowndes]

James Trafford isn’t exactly like Pirlo on the ball is he? Not sure why everyone was so settled on Trafford being number one and writing off a proven winner/leader with tonnes of big game experience like Donnarumma. I’m sure Pep has a plan. Let’s see.

Couldn't agree more.

James Trafford has been given the usual "young and English" treatment where he's being treated as a superstar waiting to happen and the successor to Ederson as our sweeper keeper.

Except his passing is average and his decision making is suspect at best. He sent Stones into a corner under needless pressure more than once against Brighton, looked shaky under the press against Palermo and had a poor game against Spurs punctuated by a shocker of a mistake.

Donnarumma is a 10 year top flight veteran at the age of 26. And a UCL/Euro champion.

Ederson was one of our playmakers. Not one goalkeeper in world football, including Trafford and Donnarumma, would have been signed with that expectation. Playing from the defence doesn't rest on the goalkeeper being a central player of the ball. It just rests on him not hoofing it purely for territory the way keepers did in 1995.

 

[Nicholas van Whatsisface]

My assessment of Donnarumma and of the way we play aren't premature at all - it's based on evidence of how Pep has always played - and of how Donnarumma has always played. If Pep attempts to play out from the back with Donnarumma- as I think he will - then that will lead to far more errors than either Ederson or Trafford would commit.

Your assessment definitely is premature - the evidence is there in the fact you have to rely on an ‘if’ and an ‘I think’, because the reality is that all you’re doing - guessing - because as yet Donnarumma hasn’t played so much as a single minute for City, so there is no actual evidence anything you’re saying will be borne out when he does.

Do you not think Pep and the Club have considered the differences between Eddie and Donna, and how their respective games will fit how we want to play, before signing him?

If it’s so obvious to everyone that he won’t fit our style, then it’s absurd to think the Club are somehow blind to these differences and signed him expecting Eddie mk 2.

The reality is he’s nowhere near as bad as some are making out in terms of his ball playing abilities, but his signing to me suggests an evolution in our game which I’m excited to see play out.

After last season, I think we’d all agree our approach needs to evolve to stay ahead.

I’ll certainly give it more than a few games to see how we intend to use him before writing off one of the acknowledged greatest keepers of his generation before he’s so much as kicked/saved a ball for us, as some seem so desperate to do.

 

[JewelZee]

Don't think anyone has any agenda about the nationality of any player. Some have doubts about how we adapt our game to change from Ederson to Donnarumma,no big deal. I find it a odd one to get my head around, but Pep knows what he wants so I'm all good with it and looking forward to seeing how it pans out.Not one fan will be against it based on nationality.

I should have been more precise. I didn't mean on a personal level. I'm referring to the football they play. I've seen certain posters who regularly slag off every player from Serie A who is mentioned as a possible City target. Some opinions are valid but some hold absolutely no water yet are repeated continually with conviction.

 

[Gordyola]

My assessment of Donnarumma and of the way we play aren't premature at all - it's based on evidence of how Pep has always played - and of how Donnarumma has always played. If Pep attempts to play out from the back with Donnarumma- as I think he will - then that will lead to far more errors than either Ederson or Trafford would commit - and unlike PSG - our backfield isn't nearly good enough on the ball to play without a keeper who is also good on the ball if we want to consistently build from the back. Sure we're always going to hoof it sometimes no matter who is in goal - the change though is that when we try to build from the back - we're going to end up in trouble far more often than we would have if we had Ederson or Trafford in goal because Donnarumma isn't good on the ball.

My view for what its worth: Eddie's worth on the ball (his calmness and quick feet) has become less significantly and important as teams no longer press him. His passing is excellent, both long and short, but it's not significantly better than other keepers, including Donnarumma and Trafford. The GK's role in system of passing and building up from the back is to be the instigator and then be ready for a return pass, for me the most vital element is the first receiver of the pass from the GK who, will receive the ball facing the keeper with his back to play and must have the ability to protect the ball.
We have seen most clubs adopt the pass out from the back successfully and without a GK who has the ability of Eddie's feet.

 

[jamielowndes]

We've/he's been found out with the current style for over a season now so I'd prefer to think he's going to change the gameplan.

Exactly. His strength was never in adherence to a system that cannot be changed. People act like he's Marcelo Bielsa.

His strength is his pragmatism. He's an incredible analyst of the game and proven to be reactive to change. And he's banked more than enough capital to be given the "wait and see" here.

Especially since its not some random prospect we've signed and thrown in the deep end. It's fucking Gianluigi Donnarumma.

 

[Matt Diablo]

My assessment of Donnarumma and of the way we play aren't premature at all - it's based on evidence of how Pep has always played - and of how Donnarumma has always played. If Pep attempts to play out from the back with Donnarumma- as I think he will - then that will lead to far more errors than either Ederson or Trafford would commit - and unlike PSG - our backfield isn't nearly good enough on the ball to play without a keeper who is also good on the ball if we want to consistently build from the back. Sure we're always going to hoof it sometimes no matter who is in goal - the change though is that when we try to build from the back - we're going to end up in trouble far more often than we would have if we had Ederson or Trafford in goal because Donnarumma isn't good on the ball.

What read that online yeah

 

[JewelZee]

And yet if you conduct basic the most basic of research on Donnarumma you'd find that everything in my post is true.

Look - I get that you're a fan of City and want to support new players in our side no matter what - but I'm different. I support City just as much as you do, but I'm able to look at players and their performances independent of my pro-City bias.

We shall see. It's nothing to do with my pro-City bias. I support the Azzurri on the international level and having watched him for a decade I know what a presence he can be. Plus he made Saka cry...

 

[Sam69]

 

[JewelZee]

Huh?

Haaland doesn't fit the Pep system at all - but we can carry him. A side that relies on an effective press and retention of the ball can likely carry one attacker - Haaland isn't total shit on the ball or on pressing... but he's not great either. But he's the best goal scorer in the world - and given that ability we can carry him... by which I mean that we can compensate for his average pressing on defense and his average ability on link up play.

Donnarumma doesn't fit the Pep system at all - but beats the fuck out of me how we cope with a keeper who is arguably the best at stopping shots while in the box, but who is average at best on the ball... which in turn means that our build up from the back is going to take a huge hit when Donnarumma starts.

An honest question, what build up? A huge hit to us making 1,000 passes around our box at 2 miles per hour until someone commits a bozo and it costs us? Ederson's best moments in recent times have been his long passes, especially to Holland. This so-called build up from the back hasn't produced fruit in quite some time. How about we keep it honest...

 

[DiscoSteve]

23 and 24 being especially delicious....

 

[Pontypool Blue]

An honest question, what build up? A huge hit to us making 1,000 passes around our box at 2 miles per hour until someone commits a bozo and it costs us? Ederson's best moments in recent times have been his long passes, especially to Holland. This so-called build up from the back hasn't produced fruit in quite some time. How about we keep it honest...

That's a really, really, really long pass indeed!

 

[cleavers]

Exactly. His strength was never in adherence to a system that cannot be changed. People act like he's Marcelo Bielsa.

His strength is his pragmatism. He's an incredible analyst of the game and proven to be reactive to change. And he's banked more than enough capital to be given the "wait and see" here.

Especially since its not some random prospect we've signed and thrown in the deep end. It's fucking Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Correct, people keep claiming that Pep won't change his system, but they fail to remember that he has changed the system numerous times since he arrived here, he changes it seasonally, and sometimes during matches. I don't doubt that we'll develop a new way of playing this season, we can't have done that at this point, as there has been so little time, and the players have barely been together to get to know each other.

I'm happy to wait and see how it all develops, and this talk of how poor our recruitment has been is also false at this stage, as we don't actually know yet, and it'll probably be a few weeks yet before we do.

The only poor (imho) signings have been Nunes, Doku, and Savinho (who still have some merits in their own right), I think the others (incl those out on loan) have been brought in for the future, as much as the now.

One thing none of us know, is when Pep will leave (contracts mean little), and who will replace him, but I'm sure those conversations have been had behind the scenes.

 

[Gordyola]

An honest question, what build up? A huge hit to us making 1,000 passes around our box at 2 miles per hour until someone commits a bozo and it costs us? Ederson's best moments in recent times have been his long passes, especially to Holland. This so-called build up from the back hasn't produced fruit in quite some time. How about we keep it honest...

All Dutch to me

 

[Gordyola]

Biggest concern I have is not his passing but his alleged difficulty with crosses and corners already our major weakness in preventing crosses. Hopefully, this isn't compounded

 

[Le Havre Oswald]

What read that online yeah

Convinced he’s using ChatGPT

 

[Paul1970]

Cheers.

Ball retention is - as far as I can tell - the most important tactic in football. I cannot see him changing this philosophy at all.

Well we are in trouble as we have a team that can hardly do that anymore .

 

[Paul1970]

We've/he's been found out with the current style for over a season now so I'd prefer to think he's going to change the gameplan.

This could be that because pep is the one that’s pushed for this

 

[TheGhost]

When he saves a penalty in the 93rd minute to win us the game on Sunday, all you doubters can disappear back under the rocks from which you’ve crawled.

 

[Zin 'messiah' Zimmer]

My assessment of Donnarumma and of the way we play aren't premature at all - it's based on evidence of how Pep has always played - and of how Donnarumma has always played. If Pep attempts to play out from the back with Donnarumma- as I think he will - then that will lead to far more errors than either Ederson or Trafford would commit - and unlike PSG - our backfield isn't nearly good enough on the ball to play without a keeper who is also good on the ball if we want to consistently build from the back. Sure we're always going to hoof it sometimes no matter who is in goal - the change though is that when we try to build from the back - we're going to end up in trouble far more often than we would have if we had Ederson or Trafford in goal because Donnarumma isn't good on the ball.

Trafford isn’t better than donnarumma with his feet for starters; also measuring mistakes that may occur, against a guy who outshines both Eddie and Trafford with shot stopping by some distance, evens the notion out…..

His long range consistency is clearly below Eddie but again measured against Trafford, is night and day, the kid struggles for distance under pressure, that won’t happen under donnarumma, just watch his PSG reel, he’s also got a true target in Haaland….

Eddie is our best ever keeper but because of the style that dictated, I’ve come around to having to evolve as Eddie will remain an anomaly in terms of consistency from playing out…

One thing is for sure, the command of his area against set pieces relaxes me no end and we may even keep a penalty out or 2….

Like for likes haven’t existed with Peps core players, invariably though, we’ve gone up a level!