Pellegrini had no plan B

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/manuel-pellegrinis-plan-b-manchester-6672359

Rodwell or Milner holding in midfield and Yaya pushed onto their back 4. That would have been different.

We had far too many weak areas on Monday night with Kolarov, DM, MF not tracking back etc.

I think it's unfair to be too critical of MP.

I think the problem was more that we have too many 'B' players in the squad and some of them are injury-prone B players.

It was one game....we had good chances early on...and if one of them would have been scored, the game may have been different...and let's face it, it's worked against Arsenal, United, Bayern away, Liverpool...

I think we also need to remember, Chelsea only scored 1 goal....yes they hit the post 3 times...but still only scored 1 goal....and we weren't clinical enough. At 1-0 down, we had to keep trying to press and score, which against Chelsea, is always difficult when they go ahead.

I think it's wrong to get the knives out (not saying you Dawg)...but it's funny how now, after one loss at home all season....the team that drew 0-0 against West Ham a few days earlier, are now suddenly this incredibly well-managed team, that are strong favourites for the PL.

Why does it have to be a problem with MP. Isn't it possible for us to have an off-day? We all have bad days at the office and unfortunately ours occurred on Monday. I have no doubts that we'll bounce back.

Some interesting stats..which pretty much sum up how we missed Fernandhino



There were more than a few raised eyebrows last week when Jose Mourinho ripped into Sam Allardyce for his '19th century' approach to stifling Chelsea.

Considering the manager's penchant for killing games, it did seem rather rich given the Blues were off to Manchester City in a matter of days.

'Jose practically invented parking the bus,' Allardyce laughed in the aftermath. But the way in which Chelsea went about beating City on Monday night was a thing of beauty.
















City as a whole were dominant by numbers - shots, crosses and all the rest. But that's all relative. Rarely did they get in behind the visitors; the amount of genuine chances were sparse.

That's mirrored by the comparison between Toure and Hazard.

The Ivory Coast midfielder was tidy but not his usual self. Manuel Pellegrini's decision to include Martin Demichelis beside him proved costly. Toure was quiet, scared of marauding. He barely touched the ball in Chelsea's final third. 
Having the central defender next to him meant Toure's effect on the game was minimal - most of his work was on the halfway line rather than in the final third. You won't win games with your main protagonist stuck 60 yards from goal.


As Chelsea went slightly longer, it was up to Hazard to battle with Pablo Zabaleta and Aleksandar Kolarov aerially. He did that manfully and was able to turnover possession high up the pitch.

Toure, on the flip side, unusually failed to pick pockets and stamp his mark - forever scared of leaving his midfield partner unprotected. It became a game of nudging balls sideways and managing space in front of the back four.

Yaya's numbers were nice, but the decision to play Demichelis in midfield stopped the one man to take the game by the horns from having any sort of impact.

And that enable Hazard to light up the Etihad.



Yaya vs Hazard

Without reading whats said above (my bad i know)......but isn't that MPs fault for not telling Yaya to push further upfield. His performance seemed like a fall back to the Mancini era.

What happens this weekend if we just have the same players available to pick from? Are we to expect Yaya to just amble around the centre circle for 90 minutes again?.......this drive me fuckin crazy, allowing him to do this.

I see what you are saying Shaken, but Chelsea are the masters at closing down space....

It's a difficult one. No Garcia (  ), Milner only 75% fit, Rodwell (who knows how fit he is)....yes, there were options to change DeM and I think he should've at least made that change at half time....more so, as he wasn't tracking back with his players...which was his job.

Like I said, we had 2 or 3 good chances before they scored, but Silva, Negredo and Dzeko were wasteful.

We all said that if Kolorov plays, he tends to be caught out of position up the field....and Ivanovich exposed that. Poorer teams have done that - Watford for example.

With Nastasic having a shocker, Vinny was trying to cover 2 positions as Nasty was having to pull off into the LB position, this is where Vinny was left exposed as DeM wasn't tracking Willian all night. Zaba was often left one on one with Hazard, with huge gaps behind him, as Vinny was conscious of the runners from MF......

The only way to change our shape would have been to bring off a striker and add Rodwell or Milner to sit with DeM and Yaya, and push Silva further forward.....but to be fair, that would probably have played further into their hands.....effectively, they would have had a defensive unit of 6 players....
Alternatively, they could've have then matched us by adding Oscar....

Either way, against such a strong defence, we desperately missed the energy and positional play of Fernandhino, and  the movement of Aguero up front.

I'm sure if Milner would have been fully fit, he would have brought him on.....

Still, I just think too many players had a poor night....and against a top team, you won't always get away with that.

Cold light of day we had enough chances to get something from the game.  A couple of good saves from Cech and some poor finishing. I know they hit woodwork but we still should have got a point.

Chelsea are going to be hard to break down but we really must manage to do so in the FA Cup.  Lose that as well and it will sow the doubts for next season.

A nice win and it proves it was an off day with a lot of players out.

Plenty of motivation for the FA cup game. Like Zaba said, we didn't play well but still had chances. TBF, it's not the first time. Look at Liverpool, we were lucky to get something out of that game, but the difference was that we made sure we took our chances, which if we did against Chelsea, it would have had to force them to change their shape.

what I can't get my head around was pel saying he couldn't change the midfield set up as Rodwell & milner were not 100% & Garcia was injured. Well if that is the case why put 2 of them on the bench if you have no intention of using them should the need arise?

Who else?

He could have put Clichy at LB and Kolarov in MF.

Even though Kolarov wouldnt have been much better than DeM at least our defence would have been tighter

OR Milner and/or Rodwell could have been given some part in the game instead of ZERO minutes

He persevered with DeM who was hopelessly out of his depth in MF for the whole 90 minutes. That's the incredible thing

Incredible or incredibly dumb?

My point was: who else on the bench?

Yes, he could have put Clichy on at LB and brought DeM off, pushing Kolorov in LMF.

However, Yaya would still have had to sit, as Kolorov would still have gone further forward. And the thought of Yaya as our only sitting DMF player is suicidal.

The objective would have been to get Yaya further forward, but that would've meant bringing both Milner and Rodwell on for a striker and DeM or send Boyata at RB and push Zaba in with either of the subs.

Clearly, he thought both weren't fit enough...and that's the crux of it....why was our bench so lightweight and included 2 players who weren't fit?

Simple, we fucked up in the transfer window and got unlucky with injuries at a bad time.

OK....look at our squad that was available

Hart

Aleksander Kolorov

Dedryk Boyata (Sub)

Gael Clichy(Sub)
Martin Demichelis

Mataja Nastasic

Pablo Zabaleta

Vincent Kompany



Jack Rodwell(Sub)
Jesus Navas

David Silva

James Milner(Sub)
Yaya Toure
Marcos Lopes(Sub)


Stevan Jovetic(Sub)
Edin Dzeko

Alvaro Negredo

Nasri, Aguero, Fernadinho, Richards, Lescott all out

Of the rest of our squad....who else could possibly have played? Apart from bringing in EDS players...and Lopes didn;t get a run out....we were seriously depleted.

So...the bottom line is, we have a squad which isn't as brilliant as some claim it is.

We had 2 subs on the bench who were clearly not fit enough to play, but could've been replaced for EDS players if they weren't fit - but what psychological message does that send out?

We really didn't have the strength in depth for a top 4 clash....and all in all....only a few of those players will be probably fit for the weekend (Rodwell and Milner).....Lopes may get a run out against Norwich, but unless Richards, Garcia and Lescott become fit by the weekend....expect a team very similar to what we played on Monday....maybe with the exception of Nasty at CB and DeM in MF.

Still, attacking wise and in MF....we are very lightweight on fitness and quality.

So as much as we all think MP should have done certain things...and he probably should have made the odd change....his hands were severely tied.

On other news though, Nasri IS back in training........

New York City FC will look to take some of our youngsters to play in the MLS next year.

City will compete for the 2014 Guinness International Champions Cup in the United States this summer.
The Blues join an A-list cast of European footballing superpowers in the competition held for the first time in 2013.  
It will be the club’s third visit to the United States in four years after the 2012/13 post-season trip to New York and St Louis and the 2010/11 pre-season tour.
This second annual Guinness International Champions Cup is being staged across 13 cities in the US, including Charlotte, Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Washington DC and one additional venue to be named later.
The tournament will kick-off on July 26 and the final will be held in Miami on August 4.
The full line-up of teams participating in this highly-anticipated competition is:

• AC Milan
  
• AS Roma
  
• Inter Milan
  
• Liverpool
  
• Manchester City
  
• Manchester United
  
• Olympiacos
  
• Real Madrid
  

These eight clubs account for 150 domestic titles, 88 domestic cups and 27 UEFA Champions League trophies, as well as five of the 23 2013 Ballon d’Or nominees – a list which included three-time African Footballer of the Year, Yaya Toure.
The tournament was launched at 10am Eastern time at Miami Gardens, Florida, by tournament organiser’s, Relevent Sports.
“Year one of the Guinness International Champions Cup set the new gold standard for soccer in the United States,” said Charlie Stillitano, Relevent Sports CEO. “Our only goal was to provide fans with the best football experience in their own backyards.
“We look forward to building on these successes in 2014.”
Teams will be divided into two groups for round robin play, meaning that each side will play at least three matches, before the winner of Group A and Group B meet in the final.
Following is a list of all participating venues, with one additional “marquee” venue to be announced at a later date:

• Charlotte, North Carolina
  
• Chicago, Illinois
  
• Dallas, Texas
  
• Denver, Colorado
  
• Minneapolis, Minnesota
  
• New York, New York
  
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  
• Phoenix, Arizona
  
• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  
• Washington DC
  
• FINALS – Miami, Florida
  

The competition will be broadcasted in countless nations around the world, including exclusive coverage for the UK and Ireland audience on Sky Sports.
Real Madrid will defend the title they won on August 7 2013, thanks to their 3-1 win over Chelsea at the Sun Life Stadium in Miami.
City will learn the identities of their opponents in the tournament, where in the country they will play and on what date when a further announcement is made on Tuesday 20 February 2014.
We’ll have full ticket information for City supporters on mcfc.co.uk as soon as details are released.
More information about the tournament can be found at http://www.internationalchampionscup.com.

Hmmmm...United? ooops.

Good thing is though....Final in Miami....my brother-in-law lives on South Beach and we are due to visit this summer......     

blue my point was that as these players had no chance of playing as they were unfit why not put a couple of eds players on the bench. at least then we would have had an option to bring on someone who was 100% fit.

wouldn't look great though would it?

We lost anyway, so why have players who couldn't play on the bench? Maybe just stick a 16yo English lad on the bench so the scribes would be happy.

They could only have been on the bench as cover in case of injuries during the game. MP obviously had the plan to put jovetic on.......he just had to decide which of his forwards to take off.

blue it isn't about looks & surely if  anyone is worried about the way we look then they should  be rag supporters. If as you say church they were only their in case of injury then that in itself is wrong. What damage could they do to themselves carrying an injury then going into a real blood & thunder prem game only 50% fit. Could well end up a long term injury. It just proves that through all of this our squad is not as deep & strong as our rivals like to point out.

They just look at our forwards and make comments. No one really mentioned (apart from us fans) that 3 of our starting line up were absent and a 4th was injured.

then why have 2 players on the bench who are not fit and wouldn't have played?

Just guesswork on my part......I am as confused as everybody on here why MP would put players on the bench he has absolutely no intention of playing....

Mainerdwasmychurch wrote:Just guesswork on my part......I am as confused as everybody on here why MP would put players on the bench he has absolutely no intention of playing....

That was why I asked how it would look if he had a load of kids on a bench, that was already looking very weak.

I've no idea what the reason is....that's why i said maybe it would make us look weak....and expose to others, that we are struggling with injuries, so it may give them hope......can you imagine the press seeing a bench that had, for example:

Pants
Boyata
Clichy
Lopes
Henshall
Fofana
Jovetic

Compared to Chelsea's, that included:

Lampard
Cole
Oscar
Mikel
Saleh

Yep......the media would have had a field day with a line up like that considering all the guff that was highlighted last week with regards the wage bill and transfer spending etc....

Maybe Chelsea would have looked at our bench thinking these fuckers have only got kids on the bench because they think they can beat us with kids. Maybe they would have got scared and gone to pieces.

     

blueboy wrote:I've no idea what the reason is....that's why i said maybe it would make us look weak....and expose to others, that we are struggling with injuries, so it may give them hope.

Well, there is that, but on the flip side they might think, "Hey, they're fielding kids, they're screwed!" and back off the power a bit, giving us the room to sneak in and beat them, David and Goliath style.

Given these kids are largely unknown quantities, who knows? Maybe MP could've brought on Lopes and Henshall, they play out of their skins and craft two brilliant goals between them. What we do know is, having half the bench not even fit to play is ridiculous.

Agree Leo...but no doubt MP had some reason for it...whether we agree or not......

I'm just hoping we have Rodwell and Milner back for the weekend....as playing DeM in MF....is nothing short of ridiculous.

Right, I'm not having this!
Yes I saw this game (in a bar of Chelsea fans in Tenerife), and I agree we were poor.
But all this knocking of MP for lack of tactical awareness and squad choices is way off the mark.
We have had one defeat in weeks, and that was against one of the top teams in Europe. It happens!
I think he has done a great job in his first season, I certainly never expected it to go this well so quickly.
So wait til the end of the season before we chastise the man, and base it on where we are then.
Let's not forget that there is a fair chance we could be top of the league again this weekend, in the final of the league cup, in the knockout stages of the champions league, as well as still in with a shout of the FA cup. Compare that to what's going on with the scum, and celebrate where we are and where we are heading.
Keep The Faith, the blue moon is still rising!

titbumwilly wrote:Right, I'm not having this!
Yes I saw this game (in a bar of Chelsea fans in Tenerife), and I agree we were poor.
But all this knocking of MP for lack of tactical awareness and squad choices is way off the mark.
We have had one defeat in weeks, and that was against one of the top teams in Europe. It happens!
I think he has done a great job in his first season, I certainly never expected it to go this well so quickly.
So wait til the end of the season before we chastise the man, and base it on where we are then.
Let's not forget that there is a fair chance we could be top of the league again this weekend, in the final of the league cup, in the knockout stages of the champions league, as well as still in with a shout of the FA cup. Compare that to what's going on with the scum, and celebrate where we are and where we are heading.
Keep The Faith, the blue moon is still rising!

TBW....I tend to agree as I posted this earlier in the thread:

I think it's unfair to be too critical of MP.

I think the problem was more that we have too many 'B' players in the squad and some of them are injury-prone B players.

It was one game....we had good chances early on...and if one of them would have been scored, the game may have been different...and let's face it, it's worked against Arsenal, United, Bayern away, Liverpool...

I think we also need to remember, Chelsea only scored 1 goal....yes they hit the post 3 times...but still only scored 1 goal....and we weren't clinical enough. At 1-0 down, we had to keep trying to press and score, which against Chelsea, is always difficult when they go ahead.

I think it's wrong to get the knives out (not saying you Dawg)...but it's funny how now, after one loss at home all season....the team that drew 0-0 against West Ham a few days earlier, are now suddenly this incredibly well-managed team, that are strong favourites for the PL.
.........................................................................................................................

I just think that we would like to know why NO changes in MF were made.....and what was the reason behind having 2 players on the bench which were not fit to play....and he clearly had no intention of playing them...genuine questions, I would say.  

Hang on, TBW, it's not like we're calling for his head, mate!

We can question the dubious decisions like having unfit players on the bench when he was brought in to push the EDS players forwards.  For persevering with Demichelis when Lescott is a better player.  And for telling Little Joe to stay back when we had a corner at the death, despite the fact we had nothing to lose.  These are all little things that are frustrating to witness.  I don't think it's a bad thing to ask the questions.

Agree Bluey and Leo, but I think there has been an over-reaction in some circles (not particularly on here) over one game, and the whole picture has been overlooked.
I was just trying to emphasise that there are far far more positives than negatives where MP is concerned.
The media would love it to all end in tears, but it ain't going to happen.

We all were just confused....and MP's explanation that both the players weren't fit to play just seemed an odd one.....but agree with Leo, nobody is calling for his head or giving him too much stick....and agree with you TBW....the press just love a story!!

Ah, got you. I try and avoid those circles - I did sign up to the Bluemoon forum, but they're largely a bunch of miserable bastards who managed to survive slitting their wrists every time Corradi failed to find the back of the net (or maybe they're not that old!) and it got very old very quickly. As for JA606, I got fed up of the trolls.

Anyway, all that winning games by big margins probably bred some complacency that this defeat could flush out. Now they know they're not infallible, they might work a bit harder and even try shooting on target. I'm looking at you, David Silva!

I don't think anyone can complain about where we are right now. Well, not unless they're properly bitter.

   

Here is my honest.....blue tinted specs wearing opinion......DEM should not have been anywhere near the pitch in that game but MP's hand was forced.......I also agree that MP can take a lot of positives and he tried to tell the media in his usual calm manner that Chelsea were not as good as the media tried to make them......his comments definately showed that he took the whole game in rather than agonising at wasted chances...(which is what we did)........I know stats don't mean a lot when you lose but we had more posession....passed the ball more and even though DEM was playing we managed to create more goal scoring opportunities than they did.......as for the media saying JM gave MP a master class......my arse he did........their goal came from a speculative first time snap shot from the edge of the box by a defender......yes they hit the woodwork 3 times......and if they are gonna harp on about those missed opportunities then we should raise the point that we did get round their defense on a number of occasions and we should have been 3 up before they got in our half.......and we kept creating chances throughout the match.....right to end.....we lost when on another night we would have handed out another pasting.....it simply wasn't to be our night.......I hope somebody agrees with me.... ;-)

So it ain't just me and my specs then.......LOL

Well I totally agree.  I posted before the match that we would probably take a fall.  Fernandinho injured in training, Aguero and Nasri out injured and the press suddenly praising us to the heavens for our sublime footie.  It was bound to happen.  Recipe for disaster.  If we come on strong at Norwich it will restore some confidence - for the other fixtures.  Manny will see us through.  He's not a novice. 

Wensdi wrote:Well I totally agree.  I posted before the match that we would probably take a fall.  Fernandinho injured in training, Aguero and Nasri out injured and the press suddenly praising us to the heavens for our sublime footie.  It was bound to happen.  Recipe for disaster.  If we come on strong at Norwich it will restore some confidence - for the other fixtures.  Manny will see us through.  He's not a novice. 

Well said Wensdi.  

Carrying on the positive theme, I think that defeat could be the best thing to happen long-term.
The reason I say that is, imagine if we'd spanked them, the media would've carried on whipping up that ridiculous four trophy non-story. The pressure would've built on us and it could ultimately have gone wrong at the business end of the season. But as it is now, the press will jump on the Jose loveboat and build them up as title favourites, great for us I think.
MP will learn from this, and the players will now be fully aware that attitude has to be spot on in every game, if any of them were in any doubt before.
I have the same feeling following this game that I had following the game at The Emirates a couple of seasons ago. Following that Mario mess we were written off, the title was gone and we were about to implode. Well history shows otherwise, it was the kick up the arse we needed.
I hope history repeats itself.

Pellegreeny got it wrong in MF against Bayern at home and he got it wrong in MF against Chelsea at home.

Flay him in public I say.

Flaying is too good for the man Dawg

Make him wear a t-shirt with I love Rooney on it...

No, make him wear Mario's "why always me" shirt!!

Or get him to just cut his hair!

What about the guy who sits next to him - he must be on his last legs - the way he looks - blanket on his knee etc., do they wheel him on for the match?  I've actually seen raise up on one knee when we've scored - 

leave poor old marty Feldman alone wensdi!!!! he just looks cold.

Thats the guy that wore the Moonchester suit he got too old so they gave him the job of warming the bench for the subs