All fair points for sure. Especially the one about a lack of leaders, you look through the squad and feel its all a bit soft to be honest. No more Kompany, Toure, Zabaleta even Delph (who was quite vocal despite being a reserve.) Get the feeling what we have bar KDB are all too casual.
Manchester City 19/20 season
- Thread starter Gentleman Jim
- Start date
-
In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik and Imran hold a long overdue conversation about United's awful league form with 1 win in 7. They discuss a disappointing draw at Bournemouth, a not so disappointing draw against Liverpool and a crushing defeat at Chelsea - Is time nearly over for Erik Ten Hag?
Then in a special second half of the pod, Nik welcomes Natalie ( https://twitter.com/natalie_17) to discuss the fortunes of Manchester United Women as they booked a place in the FA Cup Final after a historic first ever win vs. Chelsea.
How many of them in that posters lifetime? I'll be betting 1.19 right, young un?
2 of those 3 were starting players for the best part of 2 seasons where we amassed 198 points. Midfield is the problem not defenders. As said by someone else in the thread, you leave any CB's in world football 2 on 2 with attackers 5 times a game and they are gonna get skinned or do something rash. Stones though is an absolute clown. Otamendi is fine if he's not left completely exposed vs strikers who have 3 times his pace. Zinchenko is fine in our system too. It all falls apart when they get zero help from the 6ft odd Spanish statue who replaced Fernandinho in midfield.
To be fair both Stones and Otamendi looked dodgy during that time.
I would agree that is the main difference, you look a lot more open in midfield without Fernandinho in there.
When? Last 2 seasons they conceded the least amount of goals, with Stones and Otamendi and Laporte at CB.
Was that down Stones and Otamendi being any good though? Laporte is one of the best defenders in the league, they had Kompany for about 1/2 the season at the back and Fernandinho in front of them.
Pep obsessed with having these huge squads but without CL football for two years you don't need four senior centrebacks, four fullbacks etc. Guess City will try to at least delay the ban so Pep has another CL season plus would be able to spend big again this summer.
Despite what happened before I thought City should have returned to De Rossi and Alves last summer. They wouldn't play much anyway and would help with lack of leadership in the dressing room. F. Torres, Aouar or Ruben Dias could be very good players but they'll need time to grow.
They looked dodgy because even then at times they were forced to defend 2 vs 2 or 2 vs 3. It happened a couple of times a game and led to a mistake maybe 1 in 5 games. This season the lack of cover exposes them 5-6 times a game so they look far worse. I still believe you slap two or one good CDM who actually does the job in front of Otamendi and he's ok. Not a great defender by any stretch but their is cover for when he does dive it.
Its no coincidence we've only taken 1 point from 7 games vs Spurs, United, Liverpool and Wolves (all teams who defended deep even Liverpool) got the ball and went clean through our midfield like they were asleep. Again I'm not saying Otamendi is world class, I'm saying he's decent if he gets a bit of help. He defends on the edge because of a lack of pace though. He was in the team of the season 2 years ago. Stones is a problem, he hasn't improved at all defensively and is still a bottom half of the table centre back, after Pep he'll end up at West Ham or something.
To make a comparison look at what the return to form from Matic has done for Maguire and Lindelof. They were getting slated on here till he got back in the team, all of a sudden they are doing well and United aren't conceding because they have protection and cover.
Pep teams in general are always going to expose defenders, even Pique used to get slaughtered as being "good with the ball and poor at actually defending". Something he has since put to bed, its a common theme. I still think we'll bin Otamendi end of season but I fully expect him to do well wherever he goes.
Yeah I think Otamendi generally looks a lot better than Stones, but his overall style of defending means if his timing is even a bit off he's sat on his backside with the opposition running through on goal, that's what I mean by dodgy rather than just being a rubbish defender. When he does get it right he looks top class, I think he had a season like that at Valencia the season before he joined City.
Do you think Rodri is going to grow into that more protecting role? Or do you need to bring in another player for it/move Fernandinho back and sign a defender?
Honestly I don't think so and I'd go so far as to say Pep's stubborness for Rodri could be his downfall. We'll never defend like we did in the last two seasons with Rodri as the lone CDM. I can't understand why Pep is so blind to this, but I guess he can see and believes he'll be come good. I think he won't. In general Rodri would be quite good with a ball winner beside him but the reality is you can't have a Busquets styled CDM in the premier league, you have to have someone more physical. I'd take either someone like Matic over him in a heartbeat even though Rodri is better on the ball. We have enough playmakers, we need some balls in midfield.
Could never understand the signing of Stones myself, for £50m to boot.
He was an absolute calamity for Everton before he signed and probably the worst defender in the league on current form at the time they signed him.
He was so overrated because he was young, English and a so called ball playing cb.
Yup, I think he was signed mainly because he was good with the ball and we needed someone homegrown/couldn't get another foreigner in the list.
We'll see what city are made of this season, they seemed to give up against us. If they let their season go pear shaped pep will disappear and city will shrink back.
So Juanma Lillo will become Pep's new assistant. Contract until summer 2021 + option. Makes me think PG could sign another 1-2 year extension after all.
Question for City fans on here from an Ireland perspective - with Bravo injured, any chance of Bazunu making a matchday squad before the end of the season?
I’ve not read anywhere that Bravo is injured? At any rate, Muric is back from his loan at Nottingham Forest. Bazunu has been training with the first-team though.
I'm now not actually sure if Bravo is injured or just leaving, his contract is up isn't it?
Bazunu is with the first team, he got called back early to be third choice. I think it's just him, Ederson and Carson training now.
Ah yeah you're right he's not injured but his contract expires on 30 June. I've not heard anything in the press about an extension but I'd expect him to sign one. Can't see City risking an injury to Ederson and having to play Carson while we're still competing for the Champions League.
Bravo was linked pretty heavily to Celtic last week, so there might be something in that.
Does Bazunu have a chance of breaking through there do you think? Have you heard much of how he is regarded?
Yeah I've heard the Bravo to Celtic rumours. Can't find anything on his future on than an article in the Manchester Evening News yesterday saying that they expect he and David Silva will sign extension to finish the season.
As for Bazunu, I'm afraid I have not heard anything. I know he was highly-regarded when we signed him but I've not heard a word since - I wouldn't read anything in to that though, there's only a couple of youth players you tend to heard about at City unless you actively take an interest in the side. I'm sure he has a chance in the future, it will probably depend how good he is with a ball at his feet as much as anything else.
Sterling a United fan. Who would have known it.
I didn’t know that either! Thought he spoke very well though, Manchester is lucky to have him & Rashford, both have come across really well, in very difficult times.
Yeah agreed.
That said I get a sneaky feeling Sterling could be looking to move on. The comments about playing for Madrid and now telling the world he's a United fan! Seems a bit provocative?
He said this last year? Its a well known fact anyway. Like Solskjaer and Liverpool
No he said it just now to G Nev.
Yeah but he said it last year as well. He has always admitted it
I didn’t see the interview. What exactly did he say?
I remember hearing Sterling was a United fan. Liverpool and City an interesting career path for someone who supports us, but it's all business at that level. His misses against us every time we play City make sense now, he loves us too much to score 
It’s been known since he started out at Liverpool, it’s never been a secret. As for your other comment about angling for a move, I think Sterling’s always had an ambition to go abroad and be a superstar. I can fully see him at Real Madrid in a couple of years, so long as they want him.
Raheem Sterling reveals he supported Manchester United as a kid
Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling has admitted he was a "massive" Manchester United fan when he was growing up.
The England winger, who helped Manchester City to back-to-back Premier League titles last weekend, says one of his first experiences as a United fan was seeing them lose 1-0 to Chelsea in the 2007 FA Cup final at Wembley.
Sterling has 48 goals in 122 appearances since arriving at the Etihad Stadium in 2015, but he has never scored against the team he supported as a child.
Sterling told the Daily Mirror: "I shouldn't really say this - not now, definitely not now! - but when I was young I was a massive United fan.
"I had an old United kit, from when they won the last FA Cup. I was at the final in 2007.
"If two or three of the kids could be inspired, then that's all I was trying to do. Purely, that's how I felt at the time.
"If there was a kid who had a chance of being a footballer, hopefully that will give them motivation or inspiration to change their dreams."
The 24-year-old has scored 23 goals in 50 appearances in all competitions for the Premier League champions this season.
City could seal an unprecedented domestic treble this weekend as they face Watford in the FA Cup final.
https://www.skysports.com/football/...veals-he-supported-manchester-united-as-a-kid
After Ederson there are question marks about all our keepers.
Bravo and Carson are on borrowed time and Muric's loan at Forest was a season wasted.
Bazunu had a shaky start in the youth team but has improved but is behind American international Zack Steffen who is is on City's books and is currently on loan at Fortuna Dusseldorf. He has a future in a top league whether at City or not.
Good to hear. I think Bazunu should go on loan next season, somewhere like Rochdale - Irish manager, close by etc. I think he will need a contract extension before City will allow him on loan though, so we will see a lot more where he stands after this summer.
Aguero could be out until September....that would be of course a massive blow for their Champions League campaign.
I think it improves there chances tbh. Aguero is great in the league but in Europe/International tournaments he's been poor, Jesus overall play and work rate would be better against tougher opponents, I'd argue had Aguero started that game against Madrid they would've lost, Jesus was a big difference.
It's opened up nicely for City now. (CL). They will be peaking by the time the mini tournament starts. While Bayen and PSG would be comming back from lengthy lay offs.
(Obviously have to be Real first)
(Obviously have to be Real first)
Will mean more mins for Sane who always looked like one of City's best players in CL games.
I wish we’d signed Mahrez for our RW. Shame he’s become a squad member for City.
After watching City demolish Arsenal and Burnley, and Liverpool limp to an unimpressive goalless draw against Everton that was similar in performance to a good 50% of their games this season, it begs the question as to how Liverpool are currently 20 points clear at the top. It doesn't add up, not even when you include all the good fortune they've had this season.
May become a blessing in disguise. Had they not bought Mahrez they may have used Sancho instead, who may now be coming to us
.