Leftback99
Might have a bedwetting fetish.
- Joined
- Jan 11, 2015
- Messages
- 14,308
The first XI is what really matters and it's not better than the top 4.
Mourinho was right, our CB is shitty. We are still relying on 30+ years old Young and yes, MF without Pogba is average at best.The center backs, the full backs and the midfield need additions. I still worry that without Pogba our level would go down 2 to 3 notches.
Now OGS coached them and it's all great.What i don't understand is that, we all agreed that our players needs coaching on the final third. Each were playing like they've met others for the first time. How is it's now clicking all of the sudden without any coaching?
I don’t see Shaw getting in that City team. And I don’t see any of our other defenders getting in the other teams. You telling me you wouldn’t take Alonso from Chelsea?Haven't city being playing delph at left back for a long while, plus I don't see mendy being better than shaw overall. Liverpool maybe although I still think bailly would be great alongside VVD whereas not that impressed with chelsea defenders barring azpi.
Nope don't think he is that good in a back four. Only leftback I would take is robertson.I don’t see Shaw getting in that City team. And I don’t see any of our other defenders getting in the other teams. You telling me you wouldn’t take Alonso from Chelsea?
Would definitely take Robertson, Trippier, Walker and Alonso. None of our FBs are at that level.Nope don't think he is that good in a back four. Only leftback I would take is robertson.
Shaw is better than a make shit left back.
Forgot about walker, him and robertson would be good. The others I think we can do better.Would definitely take Robertson, Trippier, Walker and Alonso. None of our FBs are at that level.
You need to look beyond the goals against column which only tells part of the story. We were/are conceding more shots and more shots on target than the rest of the top 4, last season we were getting lucky/De Gea was performing heroics, this season it's caught up with us. See Burnley for the same effect, conceded 39 last season, 41 already this.Our defense is getting a lot of stick here, but last year we allowed the 2nd least goals in the league, 1 more than City, with this same group of “shit” defenders.
I think everyone’s been drinking the Jose juice that we need some world-class central defenders because our guys are terrible. They weren’t bad last year but with Jose telling everyone how terrible they are it became a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Our problem over the past 5 seasons was and has been lack of goals and creativity in the attack. The evidence over the past 3 matches is that it might have been caused by overemphasis on tactical discipline. We’ll see if that continues to be borne out.
Our squad is good.
That argument is always flawed. How many Madrid players would get into City's team? And before the start of the season, how many Liverpool players would get into City's team? No one ever gets into a functioning team.None of our defenders would get in the City, Liverpool, Chelsea or Spurs team. And when you look through the rest of the squad, hand on heart, how many would get into those first teams. That’s the problem for me. We’ve fallen behind.
Makes a lot of sense. It's amazing what little has to change to cause a day and night effect. Finally we have a good direction to journey and hopefully Ole gets what he deserves at the end of the season.It's not just about coaching but also the tactical set up and mindset with which we approach games. Coaching the players into better versions of themselves and the team to elevate everybody can take time and effort through coaching (if the manager is capable), but a shift in terms of tempo, high press, bodied in the box, fullbacks high up, relentless attack mindedness etc can be brought in fairly quickly. How well that is executed of course depends on various factors. In our case it has been pretty smooth although against lesser opposition. But still, impressively smooth. But it isn't the same as coaching the intricate details into the players which would always take time.
It's like with Klopp. He entered and immediately you saw the team press high up and try to play the way he wants them to play. However it took a long time to work on the finer apsects, buy players etc to get them challenging.
Madrid are in the same mess as us, that argument is flawed.That argument is always flawed. How many Madrid players would get into City's team? And before the start of the season, how many Liverpool players would get into City's team? No one ever gets into a functioning team.
edited
Yet they won the last three CL's. So the whole "we've fallen behind" argument is wrong because you can't be said to have fallen behind if you're the most successful team in the last one year and last five years. You need to refresh your squad time to time and somehow Mourinho made us believe that it's such a massive job.Madrid are in the same mess as us, that argument is flawed.
Man for man the Madrid squad has regressed as was predicted by many. Likewise, man for man many of us have been pointing out the deficiencies of our squad versus the rest. This doesn’t mean our squad is totally Sh1t. It means we have weak links throughout. This time last year it was obvious Pool needed a keeper and a CB, they addressed that. I honestly don’t think we have addressed any of our weaknesses as a squad in recent years, unlike most of the competition.Yet they won the last three CL's. So the whole "we've fallen behind" argument is wrong because you can't be said to have fallen behind if you're the most successful team in the last one year and last five years. You need to refresh your squad time to time and somehow Mourinho made us believe that it's such a massive job.
Last season, did you think anyone from Liverpool apart from Salah could make it to City's first team? Even now, how many Liverpool players would you say can get into that City team? VVD and maybe Salah. When a team is setup well and have good players in all positions, you will never think it is a good idea to replace them, even with equally good players.
I'm not entirely sure, but Solskjær's instructions to the players probably permits a lot more 'freedom to express' within its' framework. Mourinho would lambast players for trying flicks (when they come off potentially creates huge spaces and we're seeing it); players - like Matic - taking loads of extra touches seem to have stemmed from the manager, there's been much more willingness to play passes through the lines the last few games.What i don't understand is that, we all agreed that our players needs coaching on the final third. Each were playing like they've met others for the first time. How is it's now clicking all of the sudden without any coaching?
Not so sure about that. With Mendy out they are struggling at LB. With Luke Shaw pace he would be a good fit for them.I don’t see Shaw getting in that City team. And I don’t see any of our other defenders getting in the other teams. You telling me you wouldn’t take Alonso from Chelsea?
We lost stupid points against clubs which we should have won (BHA, Palace, etc.,).Had we managed,say 10 points out of those games, which I don't think is unrealistic, we would have been challenging.It's not shit but its not a title challenging squad either. Need improvements defensively that's for sure and a deeper squad depth. Attack wise, the quality and numbers are there but we do lack quality in depth in other areas.
And against those rubbish teams we never truly played attacking football. We were still trying to play contained controlling football and it just didn't fit with the ethos.We lost stupid points against clubs which we should have won (BHA, Palace, etc.,).Had we managed,say 10 points out of those games, which I don't think is unrealistic, we would have been challenging.
It was the same last season, We dropped at least 10-12 points (Newcastle, WBA, BHA,Huddersfield, Stoke etc.,) which the squad is capable of getting,with a right manager. It may not have mattered in the end, but that has been the case. We were rightly the second best team last year, but the margin should have been nowhere near that big.
Your squad was never "shit" slightly unbalanced but far from shit
IMO you have potentially one of the best attacks in Europe under the right manager and right tactical setup.
Pogba, Sanchez, Martial and Rashford has the potential to be absolutely incredible. Martial, Rashford and Sanchez as an interchanging front 3 with Pogba pulling the strings behind them
True. You only have to think back to the Beckenbauer-like Wes Morgan.It's hard to win anything major without a world class or near to WC centre back.
Not to be branded a Mourinho defender but that's not what he meant. He was excusing himself but he was talking about since SAF not the entirety of history.Our club does NOT have less European heritage than Sevilla
Mou talked a lot of shit in an attempt to cover his shortcomings
Not gonna lie, he contributed* to building a good team.Its funny. If it's one thing Jose did, he built a pretty damn good squad for playing attacking, pressing full throttle foot ball. He's sold the right players and bought some pretty good ones. Problem is he had a ferrari and started to want to drive it like a MAC truck
It does not really work that argument, because unfortunately for Mourinho we were the first English club to win the European cup and one of the first British teams in the competition itself doing very well and if the munich crash had never happened, we may have won it before Celtic did, and be the first British team to win it.Not to be branded a Mourinho defender but that's not what he meant. He was excusing himself but he was talking about since SAF not the entirety of history.
And yet every other supporter on here of other clubs saw how good your players are. Is your defence as bad as the stats say? Individually, are they that bad? or have they played in a system which invites pressure on them?The squad is not shit, but not great either. There are too many passengers.
The hyperbolic depression and an equally crazy mania in this forum after a run of bad or good results is quite frightening.
I know. That's not what I was saying or what Mourinho was saying. His overall point was wrong, we should have beaten Sevilla. But he was arguing about the last 3-5 years.It does not really work that argument, because unfortunately for Mourinho we were the first English club to win the European cup and one of the first British teams in the competition itself doing very well and if the munich crash had never happened, we may have won it before Celtic did, and be the first British team to win it.
When will people stop using Leicester - the biggest shock winner in all of PL history - as a yardstick? They are the exception.True. You only have to think back to the Beckenbauer-like Wes Morgan.
Or his partner in crime, the 53 year old Robert Huth.