***Southampton v City Official Match Thread***

[s1ty m]

hope we don't get CL. The club needs looking at top to bottom.

Good luck getting these tourist fans to games City

It really does.

[Mase]

Pep's blamed Southampton

[city72]

If only we’d have backed him in January with some funds to bolster the team

[KinkyKinkladze]

My unpopular opinion.

The tactics were absolutely fine. We completely controlled the game. What it came down to, and has ever since we shit ourselves prechristmas, is players (who really should know better after winning fucking everything) suddenly having an existential crisis and either not knowing what to do when in the final third or are so bereft of self belief that they won't take on the responsibility of making something happen.

Look at doku. Yes he might be pretty poor in his assists but the cunt always tries to make something happen but is let down by static players or guys who make the wrong choice (I love you erling but stop going far post).

Or the amount of times we played it horseshoe shaped around the box. So many times we could have had a shot on goal. Kevin, Bernardo, foden, Matteo, but instead they keep recycling possession when there was a chance to have a pop. It wasn't until Marmoush came on that we suddenly had somebody who thought "fuck it" and the first chance he got he hits the bar. Why wasn't anybody else doing this? He's a bit hot and cold but he's got self belief and that almost got us a goal.

The tactics have been largely fine. I have less questions as to pep's ability in this than you lot. My only question is why the fuck are our players playing so within themselves that they are frightened to take it upon themselves to be the match winner?

Just fucking shoot lads. Create something. Be bold. Where's the sense of adventure gone? We can all sit here and say pep's brand of football is stifling creativity and that but what sort of players are we paying top dollar for who can't take it upon themselves to change a game?

This season for me has been a disappointment caused by lack of summer signings, injury problems and all that leading into a crisis of confidence in the players. The lads need to look deep within themselves and ask wtf are they doing to themselves. Today we did everything perfect but when it comes to facing a team with no ambition but not conceding, it's entirely up to the players to come up with the ideas to beat that.

[KinkyKinkladze]

Jack's the biggest symptom of this. He's changed his game a lot to be possession based. He's scared of losing the ball. He's scared to make things happen because he thinks if he loses it, he'll be out of the team. He was signed to make things happen. But he's shit himself entirely as a creative outlet.

Compare with doku. Doku loses the ball. His crosses don't often land. But he makes things happen by taking his men on and at least actually getting the ball in the box. Sav's at a halfway house imo, he often plays like jack and would rather retain possession than attack. But when he does put it on, he shows an ability like doku.

We can't be having a go at pep for not giving jack a chance when almost every chance jack gets, he doesn't take it. Sure he's neat and tidy but that doesn't win games. We need more than that from a 100m player. Doku gets an appearance almost every week because for all his faults, he tries to make something work.

Our downfall this season is on players and their own sense of self worth and ability. Pep can only set the players up with his tactics and ideas, it's on the players to use those plans with their own tools to create a winning combination. They are letting Pep, the club, the fans and more importantly themselves down massively.

[Mase]

Didn't Jack play, score and was then back on the bench the next game? Of course Pep can be blamed for that.

O'Reilly makes two mistakes against Wolves and he's instantly pulled. Nunes gets to make mistake after mistakes. Josko as well at LB earlier in the season. They stay on.

With SOME players he's fuckin weird and the first mistake they make he takes them off and we don't see them for weeks.

[ayrshireblue]

The tactics were dreadful, don't sit at the edge of Southampton's box. Come back and play from the halfway line, leaves you less open to quick breaks. Have less possession and let Southampton have the ball and then pounce on them, play quick ball and actually attack. Asking Dias and Akanji to be playing the ball before the assist is ludicrous, but Pep does it repeatedly with the same results. Doku is shite, maybe beats a man but then cuts back to take him on again and is indecisive that his final ball is shut down. How many of the players now need to take a touch to control, we used to play one touch football but now it's so slow and predictable.
It's not the results I'm hating just now, it's the style of play. Even the last few weeks when the results have gone our way the football has been poor.

[Mase]

The tactics were dreadful, don't sit at the edge of Southampton's box. Come back and play from the halfway line, leaves you less open to quick breaks. Have less possession and let Southampton have the ball and then pounce on them, play quick ball and actually attack. Asking Dias and Akanji to be playing the ball before the assist is ludicrous, but Pep does it repeatedly with the same results. Doku is shite, maybe beats a man but then cuts back to take him on again and is indecisive that his final ball is shut down. How many of the players now need to take a touch to control, we used to play one touch football but now it's so slow and predictable.
It's not the results I'm hating just now, it's the style of play. Even the last few weeks when the results have gone our way the football has been poor.

I said earlier, I'd rather we lost but were entertaining. Feels like we're in a zoo watching lions slowly lose the will to live.

[Mase]

Dias blaming Southampton now as well. Pep arse licker -

Watch on youtube.com

[Indianablue]

My unpopular opinion.

The tactics were absolutely fine. We completely controlled the game. What it came down to, and has ever since we shit ourselves prechristmas, is players (who really should know better after winning fucking everything) suddenly having an existential crisis and either not knowing what to do when in the final third or are so bereft of self belief that they won't take on the responsibility of making something happen.

Look at doku. Yes he might be pretty poor in his assists but the cunt always tries to make something happen but is let down by static players or guys who make the wrong choice (I love you erling but stop going far post).

Or the amount of times we played it horseshoe shaped around the box. So many times we could have had a shot on goal. Kevin, Bernardo, foden, Matteo, but instead they keep recycling possession when there was a chance to have a pop. It wasn't until Marmoush came on that we suddenly had somebody who thought "fuck it" and the first chance he got he hits the bar. Why wasn't anybody else doing this? He's a bit hot and cold but he's got self belief and that almost got us a goal.

The tactics have been largely fine. I have less questions as to pep's ability in this than you lot. My only question is why the fuck are our players playing so within themselves that they are frightened to take it upon themselves to be the match winner?

Just fucking shoot lads. Create something. Be bold. Where's the sense of adventure gone? We can all sit here and say pep's brand of football is stifling creativity and that but what sort of players are we paying top dollar for who can't take it upon themselves to change a game?

This season for me has been a disappointment caused by lack of summer signings, injury problems and all that leading into a crisis of confidence in the players. The lads need to look deep within themselves and ask wtf are they doing to themselves. Today we did everything perfect but when it comes to facing a team with no ambition but not conceding, it's entirely up to the players to come up with the ideas to beat that.

Bollocks, you can put some of it on the players that have the talent to do better, but the slow build up at walkingvpace is on the manager. In the first 2 mins it was obvious they were going to pack their box and sit back. We didnt have the tactics or players to get behind them to the bye line and attack them. Some of those ayers should not have started or should have been changed out much sooner. Gvardiol was our best player in the first half, completely redundant once Doku took his space. DOKU OR sav should have played on the right. KDB was poor yet lasted the match, Akanji is a walking fucking post. Cant head the ball, cant shoot always takes an easy option pass sideways, couldnt find his arse in the dark. Lewis, no height poor in possession, again not required.
I agree our players performed poorly, but we had a bench that could have been used and we pay mega buck for a manager that has lost whatever magic he had. I agree Marmoush was like a breath of fresh air, but why wasnt he started?

[Indianablue]

The tactics were dreadful, don't sit at the edge of Southampton's box. Come back and play from the halfway line, leaves you less open to quick breaks. Have less possession and let Southampton have the ball and then pounce on them, play quick ball and actually attack. Asking Dias and Akanji to be playing the ball before the assist is ludicrous, but Pep does it repeatedly with the same results. Doku is shite, maybe beats a man but then cuts back to take him on again and is indecisive that his final ball is shut down. How many of the players now need to take a touch to control, we used to play one touch football but now it's so slow and predictable.
It's not the results I'm hating just now, it's the style of play. Even the last few weeks when the results have gone our way the football has been poor.

100% this

[PeterParker]

His tactic is what is wrong with us at the moment, to be honest. Those tactics, once revolutionary, now often feel like a slow, looping song on repeat. The constant recycling of the ball, the obsessive insistence on control, and the reluctance to take risks in front of goal have made City easier to defend against. Teams know what’s coming: we’ll pass, pass, and pass again, hoping the opponent blinks first. But when the cutting edge is missing and the tempo is flat, even the weakest side in the league can read the script and act accordingly. We’re not unpredictable anymore. Sit back and wait to hit us on the break.

Today’s match laid it bare. We played one of the worst Premier League teams in recent memory, and across two legs this season, we scored just once. That’s not down to bad luck. That’s a tactical failure. There’s no vertical thrust, no urgency, just sterile domination. It’s not that teams have figured us out because they're brilliant — it's that we've stopped evolving. If you don’t shoot, you don’t score. If you don’t take risks, you don’t win. And right now, Pep seems more interested in passing drills than punching holes in defences.

200 mil out the window in the winter. What's next? Give him 300 more to do what?

[Indianablue]

Pep's blamed Southampton

To be fair he didn't. Ruben Dias did
Pep said they can play how they want, it is our duty to break them.
Simple fact, his team his tactics and in game management could not beat one of the worst teams in PL history

[Mase]

Pep's blamed Southampton

To be fair he didn't. Ruben Dias did
Pep said they can play how they want, it is our duty to break them.
Simple fact, his team his tactics and in game management could not beat one of the worst teams in PL history

Mate, Google is available to you. Was about to copy and paste but you can do it yourself. He's come out after Dias' interview, however before it he moaned about "11 men in their own box" and "time wasting"

[carl_feedthegoat]

Where are the pep apologists ? I demand to know where they are !!?? Especially chief licker number 1 ? Come out and defend that shit we all saw today !!

[johnny crossan]

Where are the pep apologists ? I demand to know where they are !!?? Especially chief licker number 1 ? Come out and defend that shit we all saw today !!

Shockingly bad management today. No excuses if we fail to get into the top five after that. It's all down to Pep's selection and tactics. Really disappointing to see such unnecessary experimentation in a crucial game - not for the first time either. He cost us a CL trophy doing exactly this.

[Indianablue]

Pep's blamed Southampton

To be fair he didn't. Ruben Dias did
Pep said they can play how they want, it is our duty to break them.
Simple fact, his team his tactics and in game management could not beat one of the worst teams in PL history

Mate, Google is available to you. Was about to copy and paste but you can do it yourself. He's come out after Dias' interview, however before it he moaned about "11 men in their own box" and "time wasting"

He mentioned that they were more defensive than he thought, realised it after 20 mins and that we had no wingers, he also said Ramsdale was taking his time in the first half. But to his credit when asked about Dias's commentd he categoricslly stated that he did not blamed Southampton. It was City's duty to break them down. Thought it was an honest interview . Watched it a on Youtube, Its fairly clear Mase. Don't need to search it out on Google. If he had started the blame game i'd be one of the first to call him out.
I would have asked why he didnt stsrt with wingers, he new they would be defensive.

[Mase]

You've watched his interview prior to Dias'
Watch the one he did before it. He says pretty much what Dias said.

[Indianablue]

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk ... s-31614639

[Indianablue]

You've watched his interview prior to Dias'
Watch the one he did before it. He says pretty much what Dias said.

I just listened to what he says, perhaps the MEN are just stirring shit between Dias and Pep, eh?
No big deal, people hear what they want to hear sometimes.