How and why do City go on this mad tear up every year at this point in the season?
The City title charge - A pattern emerging?
- Thread starter UnitedSofa
- Start date
Drugs for Christmas.
I can think of 115 reasons why….
Genuinely think it's either because they have their performance enhanced at a certain time of year, or that they hold back until later on to make it look competitive.
Pep having fine tuned his tactical approach during the first half of the season?
The benefits of a very deep squad paying off, as other teams struggle with injuries and fatigue?
Very experienced players that know what it takes to win, when it matters most?
The benefits of a very deep squad paying off, as other teams struggle with injuries and fatigue?
Very experienced players that know what it takes to win, when it matters most?
Now, now, we used to do this, too.
Guardiola hates you and made it his life's mission to make you miserable?
Not that strange is it, best team in the country with the best manager and the greatest resources, who also happen to have the most belief and a habit of winning that reinforces it. The anomaly is Liverpool and Arsenal keeping pace.
It’s exactly how Sir Alex approached the season. A few years ago, Pep would get his players peaking too early and they’d have an amazing start and beyond Christmas but flag at the end of the season. He’s made a very clear effort to keep them in second gear up until Christmas before putting his foot on the pedal around January.
so in a way, all city’s titles can be seen as sir alec’s.
This has occurred to many of us, of course. That success on tap has to made LOOK competitive. Trouble with this theory is, someone would have spilled the beans. There is SOMETHING about Pep, some A.I. smoothness, that makes him feel inauthentic. But it’s his certainty of dominance, the fact that money is not an issue, money over the table, under the table, the best justice money can buy. Yet he is still brilliant. He is advising Hasland on body language. My advice to Pep on body language. Try to look less smug. Look worried sometimes. Like there’s jeopardy, like a man involved in a competition.
Most money, deepest squad, one of the best managers, 7 or 8 years of building a team, cheating...it's not that unexpected?
It won't happen this year though. This season they very rarely demolish teams like they used to do regularly. Haaland is not at the same level which hurts the team doubly since it's built around him now. And Ederson is simply too bad to salvage any points in hard fought matches.
Seriously, look at Ederson's Opta stats. He's an absolute anomaly in a bad way. He has the lowest Opta rating of any City player with more than 50% matches played this season.
Seriously, look at Ederson's Opta stats. He's an absolute anomaly in a bad way. He has the lowest Opta rating of any City player with more than 50% matches played this season.
Bingo
They freeze De Bruyne and only bring him out at this time of they year like they do with Michael Buble at Xmas
Because Pep is a dickhead who needs to feck off and be bald somewhere else
Sunday evening will determine how correct this is
But seriously, it's just a fitness issue. Not even sure it's deliberate either
They have like 3 preseason games
115 reasons and the whiff of Pep and PED's which has really never left him.
Both of these.
Hopefully, there'll be 115 reasons to remove their trophy haul and send them into non-League oblivion.
Mark of a great team and manager. I remember when we used to be relentless under fergie. This looks much the same.
This game will be close.
Will be tough for Liverpool because they do have some key players out and the players that returned recently don't have a lot of minutes under their belts. Alisson, Trent, and Jota will be big misses although they've got fantastic squad options that have come in and replaced them. City too have their own misses, but are not as bad as the dippers, and have been playing with a consistent team for a little while. Of course Liverpool have the home advantage as well.
As a United fan though, deciding between City (this season especially because of their chance of a repeat Treble) and Pool (for reasons known) is like deciding between a frying pan and the fryer
Would rather the Gooners win this season than these two, and that's also a bitter pill to swallow with their fanbase 
Better than Liverpool isn't it? I mean ideally they'd both lose and Arsenal. But here we are.
Must be the only team that never seems to suffer with fatigue, they all look fresh as they did on the opening game of season.
Consider they could potentially win back to back trebles you’d think they’d start to look laggy, must be something in the water down that end.
Consider they could potentially win back to back trebles you’d think they’d start to look laggy, must be something in the water down that end.
It's probably just not having big holes in their squad (money) and Pep's system (tactically) hiding injuries better but could also just be Pep's system (doping) "hiding" injuries better.
Dunno mate they're so good I could see them getting 114 points one year. Maybe even 115.
You dropped this *
Utd used to do this under SAF all the time.
First half of the season, keep in touch by winning games and use that period to build up a sustainable level of fitness and confidence.
Second half of the season, go on a run and push right to the end. Which I think is much easier to do when you're playing 2 games a week, in between games I recall Ferdinand or someone saying training was mostly about recovery and matches were how they kept fitness levels up.
There is also the point Ole made and I think Keane made it before too, that having a smaller group means the players are more focused and motivated because they feel that they actually w have a chance to play regularly and be part of the winning team.
First half of the season, keep in touch by winning games and use that period to build up a sustainable level of fitness and confidence.
Second half of the season, go on a run and push right to the end. Which I think is much easier to do when you're playing 2 games a week, in between games I recall Ferdinand or someone saying training was mostly about recovery and matches were how they kept fitness levels up.
There is also the point Ole made and I think Keane made it before too, that having a smaller group means the players are more focused and motivated because they feel that they actually w have a chance to play regularly and be part of the winning team.
I used to hope Liverpool lost the league because they are a rival and a football club. But I’ve changed. There are 115 reasons to think that this City is not an anomaly, but the new kind of football club.
I feel like all those remarks about 114, 115 are a little easy actually. As if their financial fraud helps them get great patterns of play in place. United's squad cost more to assemble after all, you just screwed up in recruitment (as did Ajax). City just have a great manager, great squad and great continuity.
They're still frauds of course and should be ripped of all their titles in years in which financial fraud can be proved. But to blame financial fraud for every aspect in which City performs better than United isn't right and will not help you get back to where you should be.
They're still frauds of course and should be ripped of all their titles in years in which financial fraud can be proved. But to blame financial fraud for every aspect in which City performs better than United isn't right and will not help you get back to where you should be.
The financial fraud helped them get the manager and exact perfect players they'd need to get that style of play though. It's all hollow.
It is not unexpected and that is how they can become so dominant in league. Winning a league requires consistency. City has the resources to have at least 2 world class players at every position. This takes away any injury crisis risk that other rivals facing. Once the other teams enter into an injury period at some point in the season, that will be when City will run away with the points. Last year that happens as well when Arsenal had the injury crisis near end of season. If Arsenal has the same resources for their backups, they would have won the title last year. Unfortunately nothing can be stopped unless we somehow managed to sanction City and restrict their unfair unlimited resources.
I honestly won’t mind if they win 4 in a row. Would draw more attention to their cheating, make a mockery of the league and also be meaningless.
They have the best squad depth. Rodri is the only player I could see them not being able to adequately replace, but De Bruyne is back now so they'll probably have enough for most teams anyway.
They must have more asthmatics than us, only explanation!
Players hit match fitness and peak performance levels later into the season, I guess. Pep and his coaches must specifically work for this reason. You’d rather start weak and end the season strongly than vice versa.
It's because, they're often still recovering from the previous season until about December. It's tough going right to the end year on year, and there isn't a lot of time off in between.
Luckily, the CL format means that they're not having to play super hard 2x a week at the start. Come March though, you're balls to the wall and you need your players to be sharpest.
Luckily, the CL format means that they're not having to play super hard 2x a week at the start. Come March though, you're balls to the wall and you need your players to be sharpest.
Just what this Forum needed, another City thread.
I am thinking they probably draw. A draw is not fatal for either side but a loss is so they wont go all out. I have seen Pep vs Klopp many times by 75mins they just step it down and settle for a draw.This game will be close.
Will be tough for Liverpool because they do have some key players out and the players that returned recently don't have a lot of minutes under their belts. Alisson, Trent, and Jota will be big misses although they've got fantastic squad options that have come in and replaced them. City too have their own misses, but are not as bad as the dippers, and have been playing with a consistent team for a little while. Of course Liverpool have the home advantage as well.
As a United fan though, deciding between City (this season especially because of their chance of a repeat Treble) and Pool (for reasons known) is like deciding between a frying pan and the fryer