OneMoSalah

Tuchel wanted to sign him for PSG apparently. So wouldn’t say its a guarantee. Plus I think after 4 games its premature to say anything, 4 games in 2 weeks need to rotate. Plus Kante had an injury didnt he so not rushing him back to starting games isnt a bad idea.

Klopps gone this summer I reckon. Not sacked but think he will walk.

Its almost as if hes reignited his City career this season. He was in and out a lot when they had Silva but hes probably been the catalyst of them coming back and going top alongside Dias and Stones.

Never celebrated a City goal in my life but that was probably as close as it will get 😂 Fuck Liverpool. Gundogan is in some form the last 3 months or so. Foden also. Wow is that fucking Karius 😂😂😂😂😂

I honestly think Pep should be praised for how he has defensively improved City, this is arguably the best defensive team he’s had in his career but aye I have always believed that people have overhyped the quality of games in the PL, its the toughest competition because barely ever does the same team win the league season after season but honestly the standard of big games has been abysmal for the last 2 seasons probably. Wow Liverpool penalty. The fuck is Dias doing there?

Hope he doesn’t play Werner tonight as a CF. Think him off the left with Abraham wouldnt be a bad shout. They play a back 3 so give him a chance to drift left and isolate their right sided CB.

All the big PL games have been shite this season. What has happened?

Jesus talk about pointing out the obvious in this article, my question is why only now? Was that not the plan when we signed him? Or has this guy been asleep the whole time? Or did we just sign him in January? Jesus.

Dybala’s assist for Chiesa’s goal was filthy. Good to see what a bit of invention in the final third looks like, have forgotten watching us.

I think its getting to the point where its much much worse than it was last season after Christmas. I wasn’t convinced with the last half of last season but thought some new players maybe would help him out as the GK and defence was an issue. It got better marginally but again once we stopped scoring from crosses and started conceding, back to how it was. You cannot say this style of football or sitting where we are after buying these level of players is acceptable. You cant. We have new players, yes their new but they are so much better than what we had last season and the guys like Mendy, Thiago Silva, Chilwell, Ziyech, even Werner are all more than experienced enough at good levels in other leagues, be it domestically or in Europe, to come in and hit the ground running in a decent set up or at least manage to bring something different to the team through individual qualities. People would of said if it were Maurizio Sarri or Antonio Conte or Jose Mourinho that the way we limped to 4th place last season even with the squad which was more than decent enough, was bad. I get the give him time but cmon, 18 months in now, £200+ million spent... no progress, no identity, still trying to ram crosses in from the fullbacks with no real interplay or cutting edge in the middle of the pitch or major outputs from other attacking areas with players like Ziyech, Pulisic, Havertz, Werner, Mount, Kovacic, Hudson-Odoi... is that really enough to consider sticking with him? The footballs clearly gone backwards, teams have figured have us out, majority of our play comes from the fullbacks. If a new manager couldn’t come in and improve this team then wow, we are only going to keep going backwards even more. May as well sell the squad off if thats the case and get 25 new players. Or more likely, is it the manager that needs to go? Personally think sticking with him is looking more and more like its going to derail the season even more and I dont think winning at Morecambe is exactly going to make people say ‘oh yeah he’s up to the job and things will get better’. You would expect most managers whatever their level or class to somehow put a team out from this group of players and not only win there but win comprehensively, even if it sounds arrogant. This season is not a yard stick no but any other manager and this league position, this run and particularly this style of play wouldn’t be accepted. The football was better (much better at times) under Sarri yet he was basically hounded out of the club by fans because they thought it was boring or whatever. I wonder how many are sitting there now saying give Frank time when in all realism its much worse. This squad is arguably much better as well than the one that season bar the fact we had Eden Hazard but we have more attacking quality now than we did then in terms if personnel. Aye City and Liverpool may be struggling but their in the top 4 and can turn it on whenever they want because they have got managers who have seen things aren’t working and changed it up or have clearly rattled them. City blew us away and then beat United comfortably. We cannot turn it on for more than 10 minutes in a game. Franks nature on the sideline is near embarrassing, he sits with his arms folded as if he is waiting for someone to put him out of his misery. When we are winning he is more vocal. When we lose he sits there. Doing nothing. No innovative tweaks to systems, his subs are normally late or predictable. His system is always the same. Not flexible. Not experienced or successful enough to say his way works either. If he is still here by the end of January/start of Feb, honestly think top 4 will likely not happen barring a minor miracle. He looks as if hes going through the motions and so do the players quite clearly following on from him.

Football managament isn’t the place to feel sad or sorry for yourself. Its higher pressure than playing I would imagine, its about more than one person, he has to step up or get off its as simple as that.

He doesnt look pissed off in games or look to change things though when hes being out done tactically by virtually every manager we come up against particularly in the last 6 or 7 games at least. Serial winner or not, pissed off after games or not, he simply doesn't do enough during the game to try turn the tide. Be it a sub. Be it tactical. Be it berating someone or getting the boys to take it up a notch. Nothing. Just sits with his arms folded doing fuck all but looking like he wants the ground to swallow him up. Looks like he lacks passion at times on the sidelines, particularly when things are going bad, no passion, no angry streak, nothing. Its rubbing off on the players too clearly because they look exactly the same. Jose hit the nail on the head about Frank after the Spurs game. Everyone probably sees it more now than ever.

He says he wants to wear the no. 10 so I am assuming shirt number as you cant wear a position haha. “My dream will always be to wear the No.10 one day at my club.” He mentions playing as an 8, inside right. And says he is not a classic number 10 which I am guessing is why he prefers playing as an 8.

Ruben Dias some block on Rashford’s shot. Him and Stones look a very very good partnership, who’d have ever thought John Stones would of ended up playing this good consistently after the last 2/3 years 😂? He looked finished at City a while ago. Arguably their most important CB right now getting picked ahead of Laporte who is one of the best in Europe for me. Mental.

Yes but they also didnt play over 20 times in their first half a season and put in the sort of poor/beyond average performances where he has say lost the ball however many times in a game by needlessly dribbling into people or whatever. We all know he has talent but before he got COVID bar the hat trick, I still was struggling to see the qualities he had shown at a lesser team with inferior players. He has better teammates here. Yes tactically its not been amazing but still, same with Werner, good players are good players and he is one but hasnt done enough. And as I mentioned with Werner also, once you cost a few bob, some sort of expectation is there be it fairly or unfairly. Its at the point where now the run and assist for Callum, which was good yes but its as if thats meant to eradicate the poorer/average games he played beforehand... or meant to be worth the 70/80m we paid for him alone... or so you’d think reading the reactions.

Can the people who spent all of last season comparing Lampard and this side to Klopps Liverpool and Peps City now see how idiotic these comparisons were? Its embarrassing that even the Athletic keep seeming to drag that comparison in and mentioning time. They forgot that those sides had clearer identities and styles regardless of results and trophies. Its not as if Lampard has years of experience or achieved a tenth of what those guys had to even warrant those comparisons. Plus this squad has world cup winners, premier league winners, domestic cup winners, champions league winners etc. This project talk after spending 200m on genuine top players/top talents is infuriating. And for a club as successful as we’ve been since the 2000s, its frankly embarrassing at times. I wonder if those who went for AVB after those 7 or 8 months can see the stark similarities in Frank being so out of his depth... Was his achievements last season really remarkable? We were pretty much dead set for top 4 before December with like a 12 point then collapsed and limped to 4th place. Hardly remarkable. If this is remarkable then the standards have dropped hugely. I get there was a transfer ban but its still hardly remarkable. Man United leap frogged us. We finished third the season beforehand. I think the collection of us who were severely unimpressed last season have every right to say nothing Lampard has done in terms of achievement here has been remarkable. Finishing 4th with that squad after being what 12 points ahead before 2020, limping there sealing it on the last day, where has the standards gone here?

One run. Simple but effective but again you’d expect more of a potential 80m player who seems to lose the ball about 15-20 times a match and has what 4 goals and 4 assists in over 20 games... suppose will give folk something to cling onto. Needs to do much more first season or not. Other issues obviously but tactical stuff and him having covid but hasn’t impressed me bar that hattrick against some lower league team. Which again was against lower league.

Its tough but right now dropping points cannot be an option. Even if it means not changing manager. Or even if a change happens. Everything’s quite tight just now with 5/6 teams all within touching distance but that wont continue for the full duration of the second half of the season. Teams tend to put runs together during the second half of the season because thats when results and positions become much much more meaningful than they are in the first half because its the business end of things.

Both are young players, you dont rotate in defense that often unless you have to so Lamptey even if 2nd choices would hardly play seeing as Reece is the obvious first choice RB based on monutes this season. Thats why its better having a more experienced back up. Someone who’s proven and reliable to a degree. Azpi has only made 6 PL starts this season. In 17 games. He did the right thing leaving and the club also did the right thing letting him go in some capacity as he has to play regularly to further his career. Azpi’s time as a starter is up but as a back up for cup games or lesser teams, he will be more than adequate. Is James really that injury prone? Or slow? Would have to disagree.

Usain Bolt was fastest man alive but still a shite footballer for the 2 games he played or whatever. While I think Lamptey has gone on and done pretty decently with Brighton, some of James’ earlier performances in the season were much better and with more consistency, he will defos be the clubs starting RB for 10 years plus. And he can easily play as a RWB and probably RCB if necessary think he did in u23s (as can Azpi), so whats your point? He also played CM for Wigan and Frank said he could handle it later in his career. So Lamptey can maybe play right winger? Although he plays right back/wingback for Brighton? Thats like saying a horse could maybe be a unicorn? Until it happens, it isnt.

I agree he has to play as a CF not out left but look at the way we play, until thats adapted or changed why would you play him as a CF? If its adapted even. We very rarely have space to play in behind teams which would suit Timo a lot more but instead we cross like mad from the wings, mainly the fullbacks. He’s not scoring headers above 6 ft plus CBs. Its not as if Chilwell is putting lower crosses in the same way Alonso did under Sarri for some of the goals Pedro scored in that season. Or the same from the right side. If we are going to play higher crosses, at the regularity and as our main means of chance creation then surely, Giroud has to be the man to get onto them or even Tammy?

And I suppose that will be the end of the world, like how we just ceased to exist and everything went tits up when Lamptey left??! Behave. Hes done well but he’s hardly been Dani Alves or Cafu with his 1 G 1 A in 11 games and a handful of good performances. Livramento is a good prospect but again there is clearly a pecking order and James and Azpi undoubtedly are better and ahead of him. A loan would suit him more than anything. As it would of for Lamptey but fair play to the guy going and playing somewhere else regularly but again is he a huge miss?

Said when he was at Spurs the summer he wanted to leave we should of registered an interest. Don't think we will go for Eriksen now plus its not exactly happened for him at Inter after a poor 6 months at Spurs before they sold him. PSG would be interesting but do they really need him?

Probably be 2022 by the time this happens again though. It’s embarrassing nobody in government has a clue or can stick with a plan. We will be out again whenever and then back in at least once more before the years out 100%.

Who the fuck is Alison Bender? was gonna say thought he was the Liverpool GK but turns out she is a lass and the Liverpool’s GKs surname is Becker.... still.