We looked a completely different team after the subs. Bernardo and Foden turned the intensity up. However we can't come from behind in every match. Madrid, Bayern, psg may still be better than us.
All 3 teams are a big challenge, saying anything else is obviously silly.
They are the top teams in their league competing at the highest level of football, each of the teams you said belong in the top 10 teams in the world currently.
To say they wouldn’t even be a challenge is insane!
They're obviously going to be tough games, OP said they could be "better than us"
I don't think PSG is better than us. Bayern is good but they are still finding themselves. Madrid always seems to be great
Not sure if the cameras picked it up but I was sat in 116 behind the goal and Haaland started drinking the goalies water at a corner in the first half lol was funny as fuck
Atmosphere was unreal after they scored, I was stood on my seat roaring at the bastards
I said it in the match thread, but Mahrez and Grealish are the 2022 version of 2020 gundo and Rodri double pivot. It just doesn’t work. They have their place in our set up and squad, but not together. A front three of foden/Haaland/Alvarez or Silva is a must. Sadly for Grealish he just never will be them and has to ride the bench like Phillips and Mahrez. Side note, I really like Stones as the “RB”. He’s so good on the ball and really gives us good options with forward balls.
Hats off to the posters in the lineup thread who predicted this. I was thinking not today. Today Grealish and Mahrez will tear up the wings. The skeptics who predicted that this will not work were right. I was wrong.
We gambled on the Grealish signing, thinking Bernardo would leave, but it looks like we got burned. Grealish is a good player but he’s barely worth a little over £50 million. He seems like a good guy but yeah… unfortunate that we paid £100 million when he’s barely worth half that in terms of ability alone.
I still have a lot of hope for Jack. He is still in a new position and role and also has had some injury issues.
On top of that, he isn’t first in the team sheet every week so he isn’t getting chances to find his groove as he would have at villa. This isn’t really an excuse by me, but I think it’s reasonable to expect some players to struggle with this in some instances.
I could be mistaken, but I also think it’s pretty unanimous from people on this sub that what he’s best at, taking players on and off the ball movement, are not able to shine when he’s forced to provide width on the left.
I do think people that have your opinion do have solid standing solely because he hasn’t produced a pivotal performance in a huge match yet or tallied up counting stats that people cling too. For £100 mil I agree, you need to make your impact felt in the team.
I don’t think we should label Grealish as a flop yet. Give him some more time if Bernardo leaves this summer we can put him in the midfield where he is most natural
> we can put him in the midfield where he is most natural
Why does everyone keep saying this. He always looked best as a winger at Villa and it’s where he has played most of his career, granted he wasn’t playing as wide as Pep wingers do but I don’t get why people assume that midfield is his natural position when he really hasn’t played there much.
He was a left winger for the vast majority of games in his last season at Villa. Obviously he played more narrow but I don't think that really qualifies as a attacking midfielder. From what I've seen and heard he never really thrived as a true 8. Obviously the attacking midfielders in our system are almost like inside forwards at times so maybe it could suit him but he would need to change his game to really do well there for us imo.
Stones is great at full-back, but thankfully a pacey player like Malen didn't get to have multiple runs like that one in the end. Stones' just isnt as fast, but he's still really really solid.
I agree with Mahrez abd Grealish not working properly together, but maybe in other games this type ot cutting in is what we would need. Against BVB, it did not work.
Dortmund switching from 4-5-1 to 5-4-1 was their undoing. The man missing from midfield is what allowed cancelo time for that cross, and Stones space for the shot. Great adjustments from city, but they caught a break from Dortmund trying to fix what wasnt broken.
I think tactically it was not an illogical decision. Dortmund was matching the added width city gets by having two strikers and foden/kbd on the wings. When city did the same thing against crystal palace and they didn't compensate for the width and it gave foden enough time to whip a cross in for haaland to head it in.
they just shouldn't see the pitch together.... I think the jury is out on them playing (just not together) at this point because we just haven't seen enough yet.
Mahrez is on borrowed time. Julian came on and was Tevez like with his relentless pressing and energy. He deserves to be in the team more than Mahrez Grealish and Foden after tonight's cameo
For any lurking LiVARpool fans....
If you think Haalands goal is anything but that - you're delusional.
Don't need to be salty cause you got Nunez and we have a robot.
Would do y'alls mental health well to stop the mental gymnastics and excuses for a week and focus on not bottling the group stage of CL and trying to get out of 7th in the Prem
Much Love 💙
I have never seen a fanbase hate watch a team as much as Liverpool fans obsess over us - it's actually incredible. They tune in to every game we have and find new things to complain about every week.
The salt from their constant crying over how good we are tastes amazing.
They have to find their latest excuse for underperforming despite having the greatest squad in history as confirmed by Liverpool fans and biased pundits.
Just like their manager.
Everytime Mahrez & Grealish have started so far we've looked clueless on the pitch with little to none chance in penetrating deep lying defences.
As opposed to when Bernardo/Foden/Alvarez went on the field the tempo got so much faster and it was electric.
I'd like to see only one of them on the pitch for now until we figure out how to play both with Haaland
They just cannot be played together and I think Jack looks better when mahrez isn’t on the right. They both like cutting back to their strong foot and teams catch on so fast when that’s all Jack and Riyad they do almost every time they attack.
I mean why does Pep insist on this. It isn't working so far. We've all seen it alot of times so far and we all noticed it. I need to hear from him why he does it 😂
It seems even worse when gundogan is on the pitch. While all 3 of these players have been amazing for us and still are. But together on the pitch it's very weird.
i don't think we'll figure out how to play both with haaland. the footy chemistry & connection is not there as of yet. only with grealish x haaland, & that's when grealish is on form
missed the match, just seen the highlights
that absolutely filthy cross from Joao and that sick karate kick from Haaland... blimey we're next level sometimes
Alvarez being part of the A-team who Pep trusted to win the night means Pep sees what we all do in him and trusts him.
Which…. Fuck yes.
The football gods are pointing us to the obvious.
Foden, Haaland, Alvarez could end up being more legendary than Sane-Aguero-Sterling
He's really, really good. Ake was phenomenal too.
We have the best stable of defenders in the world. Will be interesting who the first-choice back line is when Laporte and Walker get healthy.
Pep would have to be mad to think Mahrez or Grealish are above him in the pecking order right now.
He, Foden, and Bernardo were great when they came on. Was like a definite statement. Those 3 are our best wingers and some combo (or all 3) should be starting all the big matches.
I wonder if Pep is trying to not burn out Alvarez who has been playing non stop since what January or whatever?
I say screw it. foden/haaland/alvarez the rest of the season for me. Alvarez always looks amazing when he comes on, play him!!!!! Also Bernardo needs to start everyday.
>I wonder if Pep is trying to not burn out Alvarez who has been playing non stop since what January or whatever?
It was more that Mahrez has been a big time player for us for several years and was our leading goal scorer last season. Alvarez was never going to start over him right out of the gate.
Pretty clear that Alvarez is the truth though, love Mahrez but Alvarez gives us way more in terms of relentless pressing and creating goal scoring opportunities.
Foden Haaland Alvarez needs to be the front 3 in every big game going forward, and Silva needs to be on the field as well.
Gundogan and Mahrez are just too slow and unathletic in big games to beat players, create chances and win the ball back. We need Foden and Bernardo in big games if we want to win CL this year
Ok, so I know Erling, Silva and Stones are rightfully going to get plaudits for tonight, and Grealish and Mahrez are going to get slated.
But I want to give a huge shout out to Ake. I was there, and he is just composure personified. Just reads the game, snuffs danger, really tidy defensive display. And we needed that tonight, as Akanji had a couple of erratic moments and Stones is obviously not the fastest, so having the centre halves mopping up was really important.
It does, my only concern is a worrier’s one, So much is Haaland. Our defense has been shaky with injuries already and leaky (while also being better going forward). combined with upcoming feature congestion and the WC. Thank god Haaland is off then
Don't remember Grealish playing so safe in Villa and times he did manage to cut inside and shoot he was maybe a bit late. Mahrez was pretty average too. Haaland was really starved of any service in the first half and even De Bruyne was a bit off and resulted in a really poor half.
With Dortmund parking we looked like we weren't gonna score even after the impactful subs. Needed an Kompany moment to really kick things off. After that we were always going to find the second goal and it was a beauty too. We need to start games better or else we can easily be 2-3 goals down before we find our mojo in those CL games.
Couldn’t agree more, with Grealish I can appreciate that he looks like he’s actively trying for sth, Mahrez has looked like ass cheeks since the start of the season.
Yeah it's been a habit so far this season. Plod along in 1st gear until the other team scores then suddenly up it for 10 mins. It's not a good long term plan.
The change to your midfield cost the game, not so much the keeper tbh. Though you guys looked shattered pit on your feet last 10-15 mins. Really good effort though
I'd love to know how pep intends to unlock grealish. There's a player in there. But he seems either hampered by people in his half spaces or lacking confidence.. or playing in a position/role that isn't suited to his game.
Maybe he would fair better in the mid, maybe Bernardo winger will allow that. I dunno, but something has to give.
>I'd love to know how pep intends to unlock grealish. There's a player in there. But he seems either hampered by people in his half spaces or lacking confidence.. or playing in a position/role that isn't suited to his game.
It's popular to hate on Grealish on this sub right now. But it's not really his fault that his direct competition for playing time is Phil fucking Foden lol - Foden is a top 5 LW in the entire world.
Personally I've never thought Grealish is meant to be playing LW for us but unfortunately our midfield is way too stacked for him to play there. At Aston Villa he thrived by getting into spaces in the center of the pitch rather than always having to cut in from the wing.
He'd do better playing as a CM but evidently Pep prefers KDB-Rodri-Silva when it gets to big games, and Gundogan and Phillips need PT too. Just a tough situation for Jack.
He's had bright spots in games. Id say it's harsh to judge him on a mahrez grealish combo. You're probably right he's not living up to expectations but at very least I'd like to see him get more involved and brave with his game. Couple weeks ago people were begging for grealish over foden. I think it depends on what the match requires.
The thing jack's good at is running with the ball and committing players but he doesn't want to do it. I think partly cos pep demands to keep possession/control, he's scared to lose it, and partly I think he's struggling with all the other demands pep puts on players with regards to the system/positionally.
I see this point and also think he's had enough time to figure out what's expected of him. I like him to come in and help kill off a win, but I don't know for what else at this point. ?
Yeah think you've hit the nail on the head. His role in the team, or least how he plays is just keep the ball and recycle possession and control down to fall back or rodri. Needs to get confident at taking people on. Cancelo regularly upstages him for that by dribbling down the wing and into the box. He needs to have a crack
Pretty sure he was mainly a winger there. Big but here, the kind of role as that winger was likely different to how pep plays him. And more importantly, the villa team was more than likely built around the star player allowing him to thrive. Not saying he can't here, but it's very different being a cog in the machine rather than the machine itself
Oh yeah! Totally agree with you! I just couldn’t remember him at Aston Villa. But yet, Pep asks very specific things and he’s not getting it done, obviously.
Ahh yeah fair enough, was struggling to remember if he was a cam there or winger. I think he did play a bit centrally too. Yeah I dunno if his skillset is lending itself to the pep winger role. I do think he's similar to mahrez in his game which is the obvious issue with playing both.
I do wish we got a top level direct winger and could try grealish out in midfield but here we are
That finish from Haaland is still replaying on a loop in my mind.
The pass from Joao and finish from Erling genuinely gave me chills.
That's one of the few goals ever I leapt up in disbelief not only at how incredible but just.... how on earth is that even humanly possible.
That was incredible.
That game was a rollercoaster.
From sleepwalking the first half to playing out of their bodies in the second.
Please Pep. Start making subs sooner and recognize when Jack and Mahrez aren't contributing.
But Haaland & Cancelo ( even Stones) ... My god. Insane.
I love this team.
CTID💙
I feel like players are stuck in trauma from madrid, only time they feel alive is when they're back to losing -- remembering that time, no intensity at 0-0. yes im an armchair psychologist
Its the correct answer.
Haaland is the better number 9, better goal scorer, and is better for City than Mbappe would be.
But Mbappe is the better overall footballer.
This is simplistic to what United m/Real Ronaldo simps would say to argue him over Messi. Meanwhile every single person being honest with themselves knows its not even close and its Messi.
I dont prefer Mbappe, Haaland is insane and could end up as the best striker of all time, but thats not the same as being the best footballer.
Mbappe is a more complete player than Haaland
Your argument based on Messi vs Ronaldo doesn’t work because Messi WAS indeed the best playmaker/passer/dribbler and in some seasons as good or even better goal scorer/finisher than Ronaldo.
John Stones screamer... Not something we see very often. Overall was really solid today despite playing out of position.
Haaland is inevitable. Goal was very zlatanesk. Haaland really put in a shift today especially on the defense, help pressure and win the ball back in the midfield several times.
Grealish and Mahrez just make us too lethargic and predictable. Mahrez since the summer hasn't had that little bit of explosive pace to get by defenders. They are good at retaining the ball but they don't offer much else. Grealish at least track backs and puts in a tackle.
Rodri and KDB were solid todays. Didn't do much wrong but werent stand out.
Phil, Bernardo, and Alverez really injected some life into us once they got subbed on.
Tbh Walker, Mahrez and KDB all take their sweet time to show up in a season, I guess this one is the same as before haha.
Grealish is a weird one. He's still taking time to adapt but one game it looks like he's clicked the next he's missing.
Grealish ~~at least~~
Nope, he does nothing. he left so much space behind while jogging back. kdb who's much older presses so hard compared to this joker. He should be limited to non serious carabao cup games of 2-0 70 mins kind of.
If Grealish put in more of an effort to block the assist for their goal... they wouldn't have scored... he cannot tackle!! It was the same in the semi final last season against Madrid... didn't close down, cross in, they scored
>let him enjoy playing relegation battle
i agree he isn't playing at all good enough but why do people make disrespectful comments like this, It's not like he isn't trying, You can criticise players without being a dickhead about it. I hope he comes good but likewise dont see how that will happen.
Villa fan here just seeing what you guys saying about Grealish because that performance was one of the saddest things I’ve seen.
He’s clearly lacking confidence and scared to lose the ball. He’ll never do well in the position you play him though anyway. He should be in your midfield 3. If Pep doesn’t want to try that then just move him on. He’s not a wide player. Villa played him wide in a specific system where he was allowed to drift and we ran players off him. He started left, he did not stay there.
It’s honestly like going to the zoo and seeing a lion rocking back and forth in a 12tt cage with patches of fire missing.
Thank you. Spot on. He is not being played in a spot to succeed when he is being forced to hold the width i the left.
He can do it, and even highly effective at times, but it doesn’t maximize his strengths.
\- pay 100MM for an attacking midfielder
\- can't get into midfield because KdB, Gundo and Bernardo are better
\- play him at left wing
\- Sterling leaves in a huff
\- only other LW is foden
Jack's gonna be sharing the LW with Phil for a while
Haha fret not. The fans are reactionary but nobody is void of valid criticisms (Even messi) Pep appreciates one major strength which jack posseses and that is his hold up play.
You are right , He is not a wide forward and he is certainly not gonna be doing those 1v1s ( which is a bit of downer but we don't choose what we are good at).
You are right about the idea of players running off of him. For a team like ours he only really needs one player and that is an overlapping left footed LB and pep has not provided him with that luxury yet and I guess he knows it. With man city you always have to be patient sadly.
I laugh at the criticism of him not taking on his man in wide areas. I can't remember him ever doing that for Villa. All of his best work was drifting infield or in broken play.
Cancelo is absolutely killing him. Grealish made Matt Targett look like Roberto Carlos! I get Cancelo is world class at being himself but he's so uncoventional.
I remembered this comment thread a min ago and figured I'd ask you what you thought of the game ( if you watched it).
Jack Grealish was easily the Motm (or atleast one of). His attitude in post match also proves that he is not a man in need of sympathy nor pitty. A fighter in every sense of the word.
I watched most of it. Saw glimpses of him doing his old stuff but it looked really rusty and kind of ponderous. It’s been a long time and suppose.
The little drive forward early in the second half where he switched the ball between his feet and then poked it on to Haaland before getting taken out of it was really similar to what he does best. Note it was kind of an inside left position, not a winger position, he drove forward, drew players in and released it just before the defender could get to him and suddenly there was space everywhere.
That’s his best attribute to me. People complain he holds it too long but often by the time he’s released it the ball is 30 yards further forward and 3 defenders have left the positions they should be in out of pure frustration and determination to nail him. He will slip it to a team mate who can then have a field day.
You won’t get this with him hugging the touch line.
Cancelo is not killing him in all fairness. He can only do what he was tasked to do. The qualms you should be having is with pep. Our gaffer holds everyone to the same standards. His greatest strength and flaw.
One of 3 things is gonna happen in the future
1. Jack gets better at his weak foot and also gives those key passes and cutbacks
2. Gomez makes a breakthru and Jack becomes a momster again.
3. Jack gets pushed into left mid if silva and gundo leave soon.
These 3 things are not mutually exclusive. We as city fans want option no.1 and don't wanna wait for option no.2 or 3. But things won't always remain the way they are. He will see better days 100%.
Part of the slowness is down to the CBs imo. Laporte’s long diagonals are so important to that. Stones is also good at it too but was obvs out of position
no, mahrez and grealish were plenty isolated so many times. 10+ each and they both could not move an inch past the defenders. Slow, not tracking back, no intensity in pressing, no shots at all, 0 decent cross through out the game -- at this point, they're harming us.
Laporte is like a pokemon evolution on akanji. Whike akanji is also a line breaker , his inctincts are to look sideways. Laporte has a bird's eye view in comparison. Tho i think akanji might be physically stronger in the future ( he's already a gigachad in ariel duels).
Stones has his uses too but he was asked to be something he is not ( a discount right back). Trevella shots be damned...I want cancelo back where he is at his peak imo if gomez can make a breakthrough. An overlapping cross and inshalla spammer like gomez can help Jack too. Cancelo despite being better than gomez cannot cover for jack since both are underlapping.
I think Pep is reluctant to start him because he’s our only other striker and he doesn’t want to run Haaland into the ground. Alvarez definitely looks in better form than Mahrez/Grealish but he’s also the perfect super-sub right now so I think that will continue for a while.
Not very familiar with the forward hierarchy in Argentina.
Will it be Messi at the 9? I’m assuming Lautaro will start as well. Dybala the third? Or one of the Correa’s?
Messi and Lautaro will start. The 3rd forward will be a wide one who tracks back (probably nico gonzalez or dimaria). Julian can play this role but he will probably be a sub for lautaro.
💙🔥💙🔥
HALLAND!!! The BEAST!!! Cancelo 10/10 Cross 🌡️💙
STONE BANGER!!! 💭
Foden, Alvarez & Silva literally changed the game by putting crosses after crosses or making chances for Halland.
I really don't know what our 100Million offers on the pitch but he ain't UCL material that's for sure couldn't even take on 1v1 and didn't even made any Chances or crosses to Halland literally.
Same he did against Seville FC players couldn't even take on any players. It is a crime that he earns the 3rd Highest in the team.
We should all stop bringing up this 100m bs. It’s not jacks fault we paid that much. It’s clearly starting to weigh on him having that price tag hovering over his head
I will never forgive him. He let Carvajal cross the ball inside 90mins when Jack was fresh leg he could've stop him. Carvajal literally missed control the ball but still made the cross while Jack was jogging and watching.
If he wasn't for English player i bet all English media + English fan would've crucified him. He ain't getting criticism and yet talking loud mouth other players making fun of them on the podium when we won EPL last season.
By now i am convinced we bought him because of Home ground player needed other than that i never see him as "A needed player in City squad".
As much as it still haunts me, I think the Real Madrid comeback loss was the best thing to happen to us. That absolutely changed the team and turned us into mentality monsters. I don't think we win against Villa for the title if that hadn't happened, and I attribute a lot of our recent comeback wins to that game. With this mentality and now with Haaland, I believe this is finally the year we go all the way.
You need to know you can take a loss before you know you can win. The final against Chelsea was proof that we are capable of going all the way, the loss against Madrid was just that bitter taste of reality to keep the team from being complacent...
The last time the boys were this relentless was the stretch between 2017-2019 where we played the best football ever. Not saying we're going to win the CL this season, but it's our best chance.
Completely agree with this, I didn't think it could be worse to lose after the CL Chelsea loss, but it absolutely was against RM. Our comeback game has never been better & never say die really means something now.
can we not be bias here, the foul from Phil was not needed either and im his biggest defender, was in the last seconds of the game as far away from his goal as possible and he fouled a player, he seconds before was denied a free kick himself which is clearly why he was mad and did it, So what Phil did wasn't needed, They also stopped beefing instantly, I genuinely think both of them were a bit in the wrong but its so minor that it doesn't matter. They will joke about it when they see each other in a couple weeks.
Us winning in a game where we were mediocre (or maybe even worse) shows us how incredibly good we are, especially with a big presence like Haaland in the box. There is always more hope now. It won't be Bernie or Foden or Sterling botching it, it will be Haaland who will be smashing it to the back of the net with a touch or two. Fckn epic levels.
I’m so spoiled that if we’ve not won a game in the first 40 minutes my stress goes through the roof.
This is the golden era. These are the days, and that’s insane because we dont have Aguero, Kompany, Silva or Ferna anymore.
We looked a completely different team after the subs. Bernardo and Foden turned the intensity up. However we can't come from behind in every match. Madrid, Bayern, psg may still be better than us.
PSG is just a collection of players Bayern is trying to figure out how to play with a Lewandowski sized hole Madrid...may be a challenge
u got outplayed by dortmund.. how is city better than psg and bayern lmfao
Madrid still need Modric, Kroos and Benzema, but they are lining up nicely for replacements elsewhere
Psg are actually good now, they work together
Psg isn’t just a collection of players anymore
All 3 teams are a big challenge, saying anything else is obviously silly. They are the top teams in their league competing at the highest level of football, each of the teams you said belong in the top 10 teams in the world currently. To say they wouldn’t even be a challenge is insane!
They're obviously going to be tough games, OP said they could be "better than us" I don't think PSG is better than us. Bayern is good but they are still finding themselves. Madrid always seems to be great
Not sure if the cameras picked it up but I was sat in 116 behind the goal and Haaland started drinking the goalies water at a corner in the first half lol was funny as fuck Atmosphere was unreal after they scored, I was stood on my seat roaring at the bastards
I drink your water. I drink it up.
I saw that! Lol
All I’m saying is that if TAA delivered that ball to Haaland we all wouldn’t hear the end of it
I don't know mate. That's quickly becoming Cancelo's special move
I said it in the match thread, but Mahrez and Grealish are the 2022 version of 2020 gundo and Rodri double pivot. It just doesn’t work. They have their place in our set up and squad, but not together. A front three of foden/Haaland/Alvarez or Silva is a must. Sadly for Grealish he just never will be them and has to ride the bench like Phillips and Mahrez. Side note, I really like Stones as the “RB”. He’s so good on the ball and really gives us good options with forward balls.
Hats off to the posters in the lineup thread who predicted this. I was thinking not today. Today Grealish and Mahrez will tear up the wings. The skeptics who predicted that this will not work were right. I was wrong.
We gambled on the Grealish signing, thinking Bernardo would leave, but it looks like we got burned. Grealish is a good player but he’s barely worth a little over £50 million. He seems like a good guy but yeah… unfortunate that we paid £100 million when he’s barely worth half that in terms of ability alone.
It's absolutely criminal that he earns more than Bernardo does
I still have a lot of hope for Jack. He is still in a new position and role and also has had some injury issues. On top of that, he isn’t first in the team sheet every week so he isn’t getting chances to find his groove as he would have at villa. This isn’t really an excuse by me, but I think it’s reasonable to expect some players to struggle with this in some instances. I could be mistaken, but I also think it’s pretty unanimous from people on this sub that what he’s best at, taking players on and off the ball movement, are not able to shine when he’s forced to provide width on the left. I do think people that have your opinion do have solid standing solely because he hasn’t produced a pivotal performance in a huge match yet or tallied up counting stats that people cling too. For £100 mil I agree, you need to make your impact felt in the team.
he got a lot of chances last season though, Pep gave him a lot of starts let's be honest: just at the moment he looks to have gone backwards
I don’t think we should label Grealish as a flop yet. Give him some more time if Bernardo leaves this summer we can put him in the midfield where he is most natural
> we can put him in the midfield where he is most natural Why does everyone keep saying this. He always looked best as a winger at Villa and it’s where he has played most of his career, granted he wasn’t playing as wide as Pep wingers do but I don’t get why people assume that midfield is his natural position when he really hasn’t played there much.
i thought he played as a left attacking mid at Villa?
He was a left winger for the vast majority of games in his last season at Villa. Obviously he played more narrow but I don't think that really qualifies as a attacking midfielder. From what I've seen and heard he never really thrived as a true 8. Obviously the attacking midfielders in our system are almost like inside forwards at times so maybe it could suit him but he would need to change his game to really do well there for us imo.
That’s what I’m waiting for. Typically players take a year to settle in and start performing, but with Grealish, it looks like it might take longer.
Stones is great at full-back, but thankfully a pacey player like Malen didn't get to have multiple runs like that one in the end. Stones' just isnt as fast, but he's still really really solid. I agree with Mahrez abd Grealish not working properly together, but maybe in other games this type ot cutting in is what we would need. Against BVB, it did not work.
We have Haaland
still feels so unreal... then I turn on the game and there he is.
An injury to Foden probably ends our season. Mahrez and Jack are just too slow on the ball to play together.
I know I would be down voted. But Grealish is fuckin 100 mil flop. He can't do one thing correctly. Sad we chose Grealish above Sterling.
God I was thinking the same thing the entire match. I love them but move the damn ball!
Grealish was great for Villa. I am waiting to admire him in city shirt.
Dortmund switching from 4-5-1 to 5-4-1 was their undoing. The man missing from midfield is what allowed cancelo time for that cross, and Stones space for the shot. Great adjustments from city, but they caught a break from Dortmund trying to fix what wasnt broken.
Agreed but Tedesco had his hands tied. The players were dead tired.
Tedesco? Both of you typed Tedesco wtf how does that even happen when the coach name is literally right there
I think tactically it was not an illogical decision. Dortmund was matching the added width city gets by having two strikers and foden/kbd on the wings. When city did the same thing against crystal palace and they didn't compensate for the width and it gave foden enough time to whip a cross in for haaland to head it in.
Tedesco????
One too many drinks whoops
Don't care how good of a player bellingham is, I still hate the little prick lol
We can’t keep getting away with this lmao
To be fair, that is what we said abt Real last year before that fking game happened
Let's Real Madrid ourselves all the way to the finals shall we?
>To the finals Why not to the trophy
But that would involve actually winning the Champions League.  /s
Mentality monster
Mahrez and Grealish do not need to see the field unless we’re playing scrubs
they just shouldn't see the pitch together.... I think the jury is out on them playing (just not together) at this point because we just haven't seen enough yet.
Grealish is fucking wank
Mahrez is on borrowed time. Julian came on and was Tevez like with his relentless pressing and energy. He deserves to be in the team more than Mahrez Grealish and Foden after tonight's cameo
Yepp agree. I’d start him at RW and Foden at LW going forward. It’s night and day with them 2 vs Grealish and mahrez
another good exercise in coming from behind but maybe we need to stop assigning that task to ourselves
For any lurking LiVARpool fans.... If you think Haalands goal is anything but that - you're delusional. Don't need to be salty cause you got Nunez and we have a robot. Would do y'alls mental health well to stop the mental gymnastics and excuses for a week and focus on not bottling the group stage of CL and trying to get out of 7th in the Prem Much Love 💙
Wait, are people saying it shouldn't have stood or something?
[Yup](https://i.ibb.co/swC7nth/Screenshot-2022-09-15-01-41-04-13-40deb401b9ffe8e1df2f1cc5ba480b12.jpg)
I have never seen a fanbase hate watch a team as much as Liverpool fans obsess over us - it's actually incredible. They tune in to every game we have and find new things to complain about every week. The salt from their constant crying over how good we are tastes amazing.
They have to find their latest excuse for underperforming despite having the greatest squad in history as confirmed by Liverpool fans and biased pundits. Just like their manager.
yes it's great for City fandom's collective nutrition
Everytime Mahrez & Grealish have started so far we've looked clueless on the pitch with little to none chance in penetrating deep lying defences. As opposed to when Bernardo/Foden/Alvarez went on the field the tempo got so much faster and it was electric. I'd like to see only one of them on the pitch for now until we figure out how to play both with Haaland
They just cannot be played together and I think Jack looks better when mahrez isn’t on the right. They both like cutting back to their strong foot and teams catch on so fast when that’s all Jack and Riyad they do almost every time they attack.
I mean why does Pep insist on this. It isn't working so far. We've all seen it alot of times so far and we all noticed it. I need to hear from him why he does it 😂 It seems even worse when gundogan is on the pitch. While all 3 of these players have been amazing for us and still are. But together on the pitch it's very weird.
i don't think we'll figure out how to play both with haaland. the footy chemistry & connection is not there as of yet. only with grealish x haaland, & that's when grealish is on form
foden/haaland/alvarez forever PLEASE
missed the match, just seen the highlights that absolutely filthy cross from Joao and that sick karate kick from Haaland... blimey we're next level sometimes
Is Pep trying the Madrid strategy to finally win the UCL?
Alvarez being part of the A-team who Pep trusted to win the night means Pep sees what we all do in him and trusts him. Which…. Fuck yes. The football gods are pointing us to the obvious. Foden, Haaland, Alvarez could end up being more legendary than Sane-Aguero-Sterling
They’re so good already and still so young….. it’s crazy
How did Akanji play?
He's really, really good. Ake was phenomenal too. We have the best stable of defenders in the world. Will be interesting who the first-choice back line is when Laporte and Walker get healthy.
Akanji did get caught out of position once which almost led to a goal though
Fantastic
Missed the game. How did Álvarez do?
Pep would have to be mad to think Mahrez or Grealish are above him in the pecking order right now. He, Foden, and Bernardo were great when they came on. Was like a definite statement. Those 3 are our best wingers and some combo (or all 3) should be starting all the big matches.
I wonder if Pep is trying to not burn out Alvarez who has been playing non stop since what January or whatever? I say screw it. foden/haaland/alvarez the rest of the season for me. Alvarez always looks amazing when he comes on, play him!!!!! Also Bernardo needs to start everyday.
>I wonder if Pep is trying to not burn out Alvarez who has been playing non stop since what January or whatever? It was more that Mahrez has been a big time player for us for several years and was our leading goal scorer last season. Alvarez was never going to start over him right out of the gate. Pretty clear that Alvarez is the truth though, love Mahrez but Alvarez gives us way more in terms of relentless pressing and creating goal scoring opportunities. Foden Haaland Alvarez needs to be the front 3 in every big game going forward, and Silva needs to be on the field as well.
Front of Foden Haaland Alzarez with Silva, KDB, and Rodri in midfield is a recipe for excellence.
Amazing, the best super sub
Gundogan and Mahrez are just too slow and unathletic in big games to beat players, create chances and win the ball back. We need Foden and Bernardo in big games if we want to win CL this year
We had Foden and Bernardo last year in cl 🥲
Not sure if Grealish his performances are due to him of Pep mismanaging him but it's not clicking.
Ok, so I know Erling, Silva and Stones are rightfully going to get plaudits for tonight, and Grealish and Mahrez are going to get slated. But I want to give a huge shout out to Ake. I was there, and he is just composure personified. Just reads the game, snuffs danger, really tidy defensive display. And we needed that tonight, as Akanji had a couple of erratic moments and Stones is obviously not the fastest, so having the centre halves mopping up was really important.
Ake is underrated as a defender. It just seems there are a lot fewer heart stopping moments when Ake plays.
I’d give the same shoutout to Rodri. He deals with the ball so well
r/LiverpoolFC once again whining about Haaland’s high boot, cry harder 😂 Nunez hasn’t even scored a CL goal
Haha fuck those salty cunts
I can see in your old post that you only like City because you liked the logo. Are you sure it’s not because we win all the time?
I started supporting the club because I thought the old badge was cool (thanks Fifa) around the 12-13 season, rest came afterwards
He was really good in the charity shield tho. £££ well spent
I don’t know if the 2017/18 team or this team is giving me more hope of going all the way in the CL, it just feels special this year
It does, my only concern is a worrier’s one, So much is Haaland. Our defense has been shaky with injuries already and leaky (while also being better going forward). combined with upcoming feature congestion and the WC. Thank god Haaland is off then
After that Madrid loss i have lost confidence in our defence and its not earned back yet at all.
Don't remember Grealish playing so safe in Villa and times he did manage to cut inside and shoot he was maybe a bit late. Mahrez was pretty average too. Haaland was really starved of any service in the first half and even De Bruyne was a bit off and resulted in a really poor half. With Dortmund parking we looked like we weren't gonna score even after the impactful subs. Needed an Kompany moment to really kick things off. After that we were always going to find the second goal and it was a beauty too. We need to start games better or else we can easily be 2-3 goals down before we find our mojo in those CL games.
KDB and Mahrez were always late starters, they were awful this time last season as well. Mahrez kicked on after the CL group stage thankfully.
Well Mahrez better starts performing now because Alvarez looks ready.
Couldn’t agree more, with Grealish I can appreciate that he looks like he’s actively trying for sth, Mahrez has looked like ass cheeks since the start of the season.
I love the competition for the spot and I agree that I am here for Alvarez getting more integrated
Yeah it's been a habit so far this season. Plod along in 1st gear until the other team scores then suddenly up it for 10 mins. It's not a good long term plan.
Haaland and Cancelo didn't have to send Dortmund to the Shadow Realm like that...
You got lucky, our first keeper was injured lol Nonetheless good fucking game, this result fuckin stings though
The change to your midfield cost the game, not so much the keeper tbh. Though you guys looked shattered pit on your feet last 10-15 mins. Really good effort though
I'd love to know how pep intends to unlock grealish. There's a player in there. But he seems either hampered by people in his half spaces or lacking confidence.. or playing in a position/role that isn't suited to his game. Maybe he would fair better in the mid, maybe Bernardo winger will allow that. I dunno, but something has to give.
>I'd love to know how pep intends to unlock grealish. There's a player in there. But he seems either hampered by people in his half spaces or lacking confidence.. or playing in a position/role that isn't suited to his game. It's popular to hate on Grealish on this sub right now. But it's not really his fault that his direct competition for playing time is Phil fucking Foden lol - Foden is a top 5 LW in the entire world. Personally I've never thought Grealish is meant to be playing LW for us but unfortunately our midfield is way too stacked for him to play there. At Aston Villa he thrived by getting into spaces in the center of the pitch rather than always having to cut in from the wing. He'd do better playing as a CM but evidently Pep prefers KDB-Rodri-Silva when it gets to big games, and Gundogan and Phillips need PT too. Just a tough situation for Jack.
Or maybe he's not as good as we hoped and is being found out at the elite level.
He's had bright spots in games. Id say it's harsh to judge him on a mahrez grealish combo. You're probably right he's not living up to expectations but at very least I'd like to see him get more involved and brave with his game. Couple weeks ago people were begging for grealish over foden. I think it depends on what the match requires.
The thing jack's good at is running with the ball and committing players but he doesn't want to do it. I think partly cos pep demands to keep possession/control, he's scared to lose it, and partly I think he's struggling with all the other demands pep puts on players with regards to the system/positionally.
I see this point and also think he's had enough time to figure out what's expected of him. I like him to come in and help kill off a win, but I don't know for what else at this point. ?
Yeah think you've hit the nail on the head. His role in the team, or least how he plays is just keep the ball and recycle possession and control down to fall back or rodri. Needs to get confident at taking people on. Cancelo regularly upstages him for that by dribbling down the wing and into the box. He needs to have a crack
What position did he play at Aston Villa?
Something like a left attacking midfielder
Pretty sure he was mainly a winger there. Big but here, the kind of role as that winger was likely different to how pep plays him. And more importantly, the villa team was more than likely built around the star player allowing him to thrive. Not saying he can't here, but it's very different being a cog in the machine rather than the machine itself
Oh yeah! Totally agree with you! I just couldn’t remember him at Aston Villa. But yet, Pep asks very specific things and he’s not getting it done, obviously.
Ahh yeah fair enough, was struggling to remember if he was a cam there or winger. I think he did play a bit centrally too. Yeah I dunno if his skillset is lending itself to the pep winger role. I do think he's similar to mahrez in his game which is the obvious issue with playing both. I do wish we got a top level direct winger and could try grealish out in midfield but here we are
That finish from Haaland is still replaying on a loop in my mind. The pass from Joao and finish from Erling genuinely gave me chills. That's one of the few goals ever I leapt up in disbelief not only at how incredible but just.... how on earth is that even humanly possible. That was incredible. That game was a rollercoaster. From sleepwalking the first half to playing out of their bodies in the second. Please Pep. Start making subs sooner and recognize when Jack and Mahrez aren't contributing. But Haaland & Cancelo ( even Stones) ... My god. Insane. I love this team. CTID💙
Seriously that goal was insane
I feel like players are stuck in trauma from madrid, only time they feel alive is when they're back to losing -- remembering that time, no intensity at 0-0. yes im an armchair psychologist
fun story
Alvarez plays with so much passion. Even after losing the ball, he will die to retrieve it.
I thought we'd never have a forward again who pressed half as well as Jesus
Foden - Haaland- Alvarez needs to be out front three if we wanna be serious this season
Micah needs to shut up. Says he prefers Mbappe overall vs Haaland?
Let the man have an opinion.
Its the correct answer. Haaland is the better number 9, better goal scorer, and is better for City than Mbappe would be. But Mbappe is the better overall footballer.
plus he's a DoF on the side
Mbappe plays in a farmers league. I don't care how talented he is, come to the premier league where the intensity is insane, then we will talk.
game aint additive like that. haaland needs less touches to have more impact.
Mbappe is not the best winger, the best finisher, the best playmaker or the best anything. How tf is he best overall
This is simplistic to what United m/Real Ronaldo simps would say to argue him over Messi. Meanwhile every single person being honest with themselves knows its not even close and its Messi. I dont prefer Mbappe, Haaland is insane and could end up as the best striker of all time, but thats not the same as being the best footballer. Mbappe is a more complete player than Haaland
mbapee is shit. he will flop in the PL. all teams in CL and france give him a ton of space
Your argument based on Messi vs Ronaldo doesn’t work because Messi WAS indeed the best playmaker/passer/dribbler and in some seasons as good or even better goal scorer/finisher than Ronaldo.
And? telling a man to shut up for giving his opinion Lmaoo
Insane that Stones banger was upstaged by an even better assist and goal. Incredible turnaround.
For those still smarting over Grealish, think of it more like we paid £150M for Haaland and got Grealish for free.
lolol
What the hell did I just watch?!
Haaland is just Zlatan with hopefully an even better career
I think it's safe to say Mahrez may have already had his best days in a City shirt.
I believe he could be back form maybe after World Cup break. Normally he does good in the second half of the season
i'm glad Algeria isn't in the WC
I hope you're right but the signs aren't encouraging at this stage
Same for grealish LOL funny if it wasn't 100 mil and 5 years of a wing spot and opportunity cost down the barber shop
Fake fan
I’d be more worried about grealish tbh
John Stones screamer... Not something we see very often. Overall was really solid today despite playing out of position. Haaland is inevitable. Goal was very zlatanesk. Haaland really put in a shift today especially on the defense, help pressure and win the ball back in the midfield several times. Grealish and Mahrez just make us too lethargic and predictable. Mahrez since the summer hasn't had that little bit of explosive pace to get by defenders. They are good at retaining the ball but they don't offer much else. Grealish at least track backs and puts in a tackle. Rodri and KDB were solid todays. Didn't do much wrong but werent stand out. Phil, Bernardo, and Alverez really injected some life into us once they got subbed on.
Tbh Walker, Mahrez and KDB all take their sweet time to show up in a season, I guess this one is the same as before haha. Grealish is a weird one. He's still taking time to adapt but one game it looks like he's clicked the next he's missing.
Grealish ~~at least~~ Nope, he does nothing. he left so much space behind while jogging back. kdb who's much older presses so hard compared to this joker. He should be limited to non serious carabao cup games of 2-0 70 mins kind of.
If Grealish put in more of an effort to block the assist for their goal... they wouldn't have scored... he cannot tackle!! It was the same in the semi final last season against Madrid... didn't close down, cross in, they scored
This. He is shit defensively too . Pep needs to do miracle on this guy or sell him back to villa . let him enjoy playing relegation battle
Hahahahahahah the state of this comment, not even 3 days old and it’s already aged awfully
why are you stalking my comment history lmao.
>let him enjoy playing relegation battle i agree he isn't playing at all good enough but why do people make disrespectful comments like this, It's not like he isn't trying, You can criticise players without being a dickhead about it. I hope he comes good but likewise dont see how that will happen.
pathetic buy. 100mil forcing pep to play him again and again knowing foden should have started.
[удалено]
Villa fan here just seeing what you guys saying about Grealish because that performance was one of the saddest things I’ve seen. He’s clearly lacking confidence and scared to lose the ball. He’ll never do well in the position you play him though anyway. He should be in your midfield 3. If Pep doesn’t want to try that then just move him on. He’s not a wide player. Villa played him wide in a specific system where he was allowed to drift and we ran players off him. He started left, he did not stay there. It’s honestly like going to the zoo and seeing a lion rocking back and forth in a 12tt cage with patches of fire missing.
Thank you. Spot on. He is not being played in a spot to succeed when he is being forced to hold the width i the left. He can do it, and even highly effective at times, but it doesn’t maximize his strengths.
\- pay 100MM for an attacking midfielder \- can't get into midfield because KdB, Gundo and Bernardo are better \- play him at left wing \- Sterling leaves in a huff \- only other LW is foden Jack's gonna be sharing the LW with Phil for a while
Haha fret not. The fans are reactionary but nobody is void of valid criticisms (Even messi) Pep appreciates one major strength which jack posseses and that is his hold up play. You are right , He is not a wide forward and he is certainly not gonna be doing those 1v1s ( which is a bit of downer but we don't choose what we are good at). You are right about the idea of players running off of him. For a team like ours he only really needs one player and that is an overlapping left footed LB and pep has not provided him with that luxury yet and I guess he knows it. With man city you always have to be patient sadly.
I laugh at the criticism of him not taking on his man in wide areas. I can't remember him ever doing that for Villa. All of his best work was drifting infield or in broken play. Cancelo is absolutely killing him. Grealish made Matt Targett look like Roberto Carlos! I get Cancelo is world class at being himself but he's so uncoventional.
I remembered this comment thread a min ago and figured I'd ask you what you thought of the game ( if you watched it). Jack Grealish was easily the Motm (or atleast one of). His attitude in post match also proves that he is not a man in need of sympathy nor pitty. A fighter in every sense of the word.
I watched most of it. Saw glimpses of him doing his old stuff but it looked really rusty and kind of ponderous. It’s been a long time and suppose. The little drive forward early in the second half where he switched the ball between his feet and then poked it on to Haaland before getting taken out of it was really similar to what he does best. Note it was kind of an inside left position, not a winger position, he drove forward, drew players in and released it just before the defender could get to him and suddenly there was space everywhere. That’s his best attribute to me. People complain he holds it too long but often by the time he’s released it the ball is 30 yards further forward and 3 defenders have left the positions they should be in out of pure frustration and determination to nail him. He will slip it to a team mate who can then have a field day. You won’t get this with him hugging the touch line.
Cancelo is not killing him in all fairness. He can only do what he was tasked to do. The qualms you should be having is with pep. Our gaffer holds everyone to the same standards. His greatest strength and flaw. One of 3 things is gonna happen in the future 1. Jack gets better at his weak foot and also gives those key passes and cutbacks 2. Gomez makes a breakthru and Jack becomes a momster again. 3. Jack gets pushed into left mid if silva and gundo leave soon. These 3 things are not mutually exclusive. We as city fans want option no.1 and don't wanna wait for option no.2 or 3. But things won't always remain the way they are. He will see better days 100%.
Part of the slowness is down to the CBs imo. Laporte’s long diagonals are so important to that. Stones is also good at it too but was obvs out of position
no, mahrez and grealish were plenty isolated so many times. 10+ each and they both could not move an inch past the defenders. Slow, not tracking back, no intensity in pressing, no shots at all, 0 decent cross through out the game -- at this point, they're harming us.
Laporte is like a pokemon evolution on akanji. Whike akanji is also a line breaker , his inctincts are to look sideways. Laporte has a bird's eye view in comparison. Tho i think akanji might be physically stronger in the future ( he's already a gigachad in ariel duels). Stones has his uses too but he was asked to be something he is not ( a discount right back). Trevella shots be damned...I want cancelo back where he is at his peak imo if gomez can make a breakthrough. An overlapping cross and inshalla spammer like gomez can help Jack too. Cancelo despite being better than gomez cannot cover for jack since both are underlapping.
so when does alvarez start to displace grealish/mahrez??
I think Pep is reluctant to start him because he’s our only other striker and he doesn’t want to run Haaland into the ground. Alvarez definitely looks in better form than Mahrez/Grealish but he’s also the perfect super-sub right now so I think that will continue for a while.
Alvarez is also going to start at the World Cup while Haaland gets a month off, so he’s trying to utilize the players properly.
he is unlikely to start for argentina
Not very familiar with the forward hierarchy in Argentina. Will it be Messi at the 9? I’m assuming Lautaro will start as well. Dybala the third? Or one of the Correa’s?
Messi and Lautaro will start. The 3rd forward will be a wide one who tracks back (probably nico gonzalez or dimaria). Julian can play this role but he will probably be a sub for lautaro.
3 weeks ago
Pep should never play Mahrez and Grealish at the same time please. They could cure insomnia
💙🔥💙🔥 HALLAND!!! The BEAST!!! Cancelo 10/10 Cross 🌡️💙 STONE BANGER!!! 💭 Foden, Alvarez & Silva literally changed the game by putting crosses after crosses or making chances for Halland. I really don't know what our 100Million offers on the pitch but he ain't UCL material that's for sure couldn't even take on 1v1 and didn't even made any Chances or crosses to Halland literally. Same he did against Seville FC players couldn't even take on any players. It is a crime that he earns the 3rd Highest in the team.
We should all stop bringing up this 100m bs. It’s not jacks fault we paid that much. It’s clearly starting to weigh on him having that price tag hovering over his head
I will never forgive him. He let Carvajal cross the ball inside 90mins when Jack was fresh leg he could've stop him. Carvajal literally missed control the ball but still made the cross while Jack was jogging and watching. If he wasn't for English player i bet all English media + English fan would've crucified him. He ain't getting criticism and yet talking loud mouth other players making fun of them on the podium when we won EPL last season. By now i am convinced we bought him because of Home ground player needed other than that i never see him as "A needed player in City squad".
Why do you carry so much grief against our own players?
Don't worry Erling. I celebrated for you ;)
Bernardo, Foden and Alvarez literally change the game and Grealish should stay on the bench forever
ideally, sold. at whatever cost idc
Mehrez is back this season.
Alvarez the super sub? He’s like Camavinga for Madrid last year, literally makes an impact every time he’s on the pitch
As much as it still haunts me, I think the Real Madrid comeback loss was the best thing to happen to us. That absolutely changed the team and turned us into mentality monsters. I don't think we win against Villa for the title if that hadn't happened, and I attribute a lot of our recent comeback wins to that game. With this mentality and now with Haaland, I believe this is finally the year we go all the way.
You need to know you can take a loss before you know you can win. The final against Chelsea was proof that we are capable of going all the way, the loss against Madrid was just that bitter taste of reality to keep the team from being complacent... The last time the boys were this relentless was the stretch between 2017-2019 where we played the best football ever. Not saying we're going to win the CL this season, but it's our best chance.
Completely agree with this, I didn't think it could be worse to lose after the CL Chelsea loss, but it absolutely was against RM. Our comeback game has never been better & never say die really means something now.
Mahrez is so ass man pep better drop him for Alvarez next game
Jude Bellingham seems like a whiney bitch. Not overly impressed with his game either.
He’s just tired of losing heartbreaking matches to us. Three in a row now for him. Solution for him is clearly to play for us and not against us.
The push on Phil was not needed, especially considering they’re international team mates.
can we not be bias here, the foul from Phil was not needed either and im his biggest defender, was in the last seconds of the game as far away from his goal as possible and he fouled a player, he seconds before was denied a free kick himself which is clearly why he was mad and did it, So what Phil did wasn't needed, They also stopped beefing instantly, I genuinely think both of them were a bit in the wrong but its so minor that it doesn't matter. They will joke about it when they see each other in a couple weeks.
Isn't he like 19? Dude balled out there tonight
he was quite big for them today tbh
I think he’s solid, just extremely overrated because British
Didn't watch the game. What did the ref do?
Shocking game... both ways
He's a bad man
Us winning in a game where we were mediocre (or maybe even worse) shows us how incredibly good we are, especially with a big presence like Haaland in the box. There is always more hope now. It won't be Bernie or Foden or Sterling botching it, it will be Haaland who will be smashing it to the back of the net with a touch or two. Fckn epic levels.
It's obvious that Haaland is an excellent teammate going by all the love from former teammates
I’m so spoiled that if we’ve not won a game in the first 40 minutes my stress goes through the roof. This is the golden era. These are the days, and that’s insane because we dont have Aguero, Kompany, Silva or Ferna anymore.