Leicester 2 Man City 1 FT

[tfco]

[tfco]

WE know 'our' manager

[marko]

Attack city and all is possible, said this several times

[zee]

enugu blogger

his sidekick mental mugu

zee the (EPL Barca) angel*

pappy the apologist

does the Inheritance Merchant need another 200MM to spend in January??

Pygmy breda It is still b/w my ..................................



people Head or tail................the great Zee wins

[Coach]

What was the inheritance exactly, in regard to Pep Thirdiola? If anyone has stamped an imprint on a team, tis Chief Oga Guardiola, akwa akwuru I of Manchester. Klopp can argue the same. Mourinho was merely money laundering, the type worthy of a page in Abiola's autobiography. Gerroff.

[tfco]

What was the inheritance exactly, in regard to Pep Thirdiola? If anyone has stamped an imprint on a team, tis Chief Oga Guardiola, akwa akwuru I of Manchester. Klopp can argue the same. Mourinho was merely money laundering, the type worthy of a page in Abiola's autobiography. Gerroff.

inherits ready made squads

how many academy players have been promoted by the fraud?

couldn't groom Kele, a player who had the best goals/minutes ratio in europe circa 2016

how did he improve Bayern?

answers on a postcard, thank you and merry christmas

[zee]

What was the inheritance exactly, in regard to Pep Thirdiola? If anyone has stamped an imprint on a team, tis Chief Oga Guardiola, akwa akwuru I of Manchester. Klopp can argue the same. Mourinho was merely money laundering, the type worthy of a page in Abiola's autobiography. Gerroff.

[ohsee]

I think Pep Mperempe has been figured out. Anyway, it is only December. Long way to go still. Let's see what happens on Thursday next week when Liverpool goes to Etihad.

[Coach]

^Figured out, not at all, burning out, certainly. City play with a terrific intensity and tend to drag opposition into deep waters, wave after wave of ball hugging possession, drowning them at sea. Those that manage to stay afloat have a chance of making it to shore. Have they been found out? No, they just need to regain their economy...being part of the chasing pack may actually prove inspirational.

[Heliopolis]

Too many knuckleheads on CE

Guardiola is one of the best managers ever and is the best manager in the EPL. The guy is a genius. Obviously when you are as great as he is the best clubs are going to go for him and these same clubs have a far larger war chest than others. Two straight losses is not a big deal for 99% of managers out there but its a big deal when you've achieved as much as Pep.

You can't simply "attack" City to neutralize them. Good luck attacking against a club that packs 7 players in midfield to dominate the ball and have their defenders playing inside your own half.

What's foreign for Guardiola is how rigorous the EPL schedule is. Unlike Spain and Germany, England does not offer time off over Christmas which gives players less time to recover and requires more squad rotation. Guardiola proved last season he can cope but this dynamics plus the fact that everyone plays their best against the champ (to try to avoid embarrassment) plus getting defending champs to be motivated are all challenges he has to deal with. Another issue is that Guardiola is a micro-manager and can be his own worst enemy at times. He tends to over-think things which can lead to disastrous results. Its no coincidence the same guy that oversaw a club that completely dominated the EPL last season also lost to Liverpool 5-1 on aggregate in the CL. He's also seen Bayern get destroyed by Real and Barca in the CL. Sometimes as a manager the best you can do is select the right players, motivate them, and then get out of the way.

They'll bounce back but the bar is set very high which is why they're getting all this attention (the way things should be given how much money they've spent). Anything less than a league title and CL this year is a failure for City now that Pep has built the team he wants. They don't have any excuses. Whats interesting however is they are on pace for 88 points which would win the EPL 90% of the time but Liverpool and Spurs are on fire.

[Scipio Africanus]

I think Pep Mperempe has been figured out. Anyway, it is only December. Long way to go still. Let's see what happens on Thursday next week when Liverpool goes to Etihad.

City will be taken behind the woodshed. 2-0 minimum to the reds.

[Rawlings]

Is Nacho finished?
According to a reliable source, he will be loaned to a championship side
My guess is Leeds

[balo]

Is Nacho finished?
According to a reliable source, he will be loaned to a championship side
My guess is Leeds

Leeds will be promoted soon.

[ohsee]

^Figured out, not at all, burning out, certainly. City play with a terrific intensity and tend to drag opposition into deep waters, wave after wave of ball hugging possession, drowning them at sea. Those that manage to stay afloat have a chance of making it to shore. Have they been found out? No, they just need to regain their economy...being part of the chasing pack may actually prove inspirational.

Chief Coachito nwokem,
1) Since Barca, Pep teams have achieved precious little in the CL. In Europe, his "genius" is not generating anything. The top teams, have him figured out.
2) Now even small team is showing him Pep-per. Lyon beat him at in the Etihad, and would have beaten him at least 5:2 if they had buried half their chances in Lyon.
3) This is the age of video footage, and statistical analysis, as you yourself told us during the World Cup. Coaches and tacticians have been studying Pep Mperempe for a decade. He's been figured out, no question. How many small team beat him last season? Lyon has now shown the way. More and more small team will be finishing him, mark my words.

[ohsee]

Too many knuckleheads on CE

Guardiola is one of the best managers ever and is the best manager in the EPL. The guy is a genius. Obviously when you are as great as he is the best clubs are going to go for him and these same clubs have a far larger war chest than others. Two straight losses is not a big deal for 99% of managers out there but its a big deal when you've achieved as much as Pep.

You can't simply "attack" City to neutralize them. Good luck attacking against a club that packs 7 players in midfield to dominate the ball and have their defenders playing inside your own half.

What's foreign for Guardiola is how rigorous the EPL schedule is. Unlike Spain and Germany, England does not offer time off over Christmas which gives players less time to recover and requires more squad rotation. Guardiola proved last season he can cope but this dynamics plus the fact that everyone plays their best against the champ (to try to avoid embarrassment) plus getting defending champs to be motivated are all challenges he has to deal with. Another issue is that Guardiola is a micro-manager and can be his own worst enemy at times. He tends to over-think things which can lead to disastrous results. Its no coincidence the same guy that oversaw a club that completely dominated the EPL last season also lost to Liverpool 5-1 on aggregate in the CL. He's also seen Bayern get destroyed by Real and Barca in the CL. Sometimes as a manager the best you can do is select the right players, motivate them, and then get out of the way.

They'll bounce back but the bar is set very high which is why they're getting all this attention (the way things should be given how much money they've spent). Anything less than a league title and CL this year is a failure for City now that Pep has built the team he wants. They don't have any excuses. Whats interesting however is they are on pace for 88 points which would win the EPL 90% of the time but Liverpool and Spurs are on fire.

Chief, this is his THIRD season, so the EPL schedule can't be foreign to him. Last season, he didn't get beaten by Leicester, and a team only seven points from the drop zone like Crystal Palace, so your argument is on very shaky ground.

[marko]

The premiership schedule is indeed rigid! The players should get a 2 week break to re-charge their batteries and chill out with family, the FA should be helping the premiership ensure they keep up with what others are doing in the continent, these days, you need a huge squad of players to ensure others can come in and perform, there is also the risk of injury and burn outs, City will definitely bounce back but its good for the league that the premiership becomes a 3 way horse race in comparison to last season

[tfco]

The premiership schedule is indeed rigid! The players should get a 2 week break to re-charge their batteries and chill out with family, the FA should be helping the premiership ensure they keep up with what others are doing in the continent, these days, you need a huge squad of players to ensure others can come in and perform, there is also the risk of injury and burn outs, City will definitely bounce back but its good for the league that the premiership becomes a 3 way horse race in comparison to last season

ger rid of the stupid carabao cup

or restrict it to U23 players

[marko]

The premiership schedule is indeed rigid! The players should get a 2 week break to re-charge their batteries and chill out with family, the FA should be helping the premiership ensure they keep up with what others are doing in the continent, these days, you need a huge squad of players to ensure others can come in and perform, there is also the risk of injury and burn outs, City will definitely bounce back but its good for the league that the premiership becomes a 3 way horse race in comparison to last season

ger rid of the stupid carabao cup

or restrict it to U23 players

Exactly! I think United should make a move for Ndidi as a long term replacement for Matic, he has been in the premiership now and is used to the intensity, think he current transfer value is between 50-80 million