Match Ratings Ratings vs Manu

[Bus-Conductor]

Sounds like a similar debate to that on this weeks Spurs Show, Rob Easton (IIRC) asking similar questions about the resignation from our team once we went 2-1 down. Classic Mourinho of course in terms of shutting the game down but the lack of reaction/leadership from our team was the main concern.

I didn’t really feel that our heads went down or we gave up, I just think it was a combination of things. Mourinho had them set up much better tactically this time, he also coaches his teams what to do in given situations and once they got their noses in front it was tough to make headway. Kane was poor again, as was Son, Dembele had a bad game, we had no impetuous from midfield and Poch’s in game management didn’t really help matters.

I really don’t think this team lacks fight or determination, it just lacks a bit of nous, quality and in game management at times.

 

[danielneeds]

I didn’t really feel that our heads went down or we gave up, I just think it was a combination of things. Mourinho had them set up much better tactically this time, he also coaches his teams what to do in given situations and once they got their noses in front it was tough to make headway. Kane was poor again, as was Son, Dembele had a bad game, we had no impetuous from midfield and Poch’s in game management didn’t really help matters.

I really don’t think this team lacks fight or determination, it just lacks a bit of nous, quality and in game management at times.

I think we definitely had 10 minutes when it was like we were winded from a punch to the guts. By the time we got back our heads they were in full game killing mode, and it was hard to build momentum.

 

[onthetwo]

I think we definitely had 10 minutes when it was like we were winded from a punch to the guts. By the time we got back our heads they were in full game killing mode, and it was hard to build momentum.

dont think De Gea had a shot to save after their second goal IIRC (other than a shot from distance from Eriksen?) I suppose the question is whether they were THAT impregnable defensively or we'd just resigned ourselves to it being yet another semi-final disappointment? It felt like the latter at the time so id love to know whether the stats (possession, yard covered etc) backed up that feeling?

 

[DCSPUR]

Thing is once you stop Eriksen's through balls, the only other way we have of making space is with Dembele's forward drives. Stop them both and effectively you stop us playing completely. So important now to get someone else in that can play intelligently from a bit deeper.

mate, what about Winks? People seem to forget how bloody good he was in the autumn.....

 

[Marty]

mate, what about Winks? People seem to forget how bloody good he was in the autumn.....

I'm very concerned that three ankle injuries in a season might seriously impact Winks' career in a bad way. I really hope I'm wrong.

 

[Trix]

mate, what about Winks? People seem to forget how bloody good he was in the autumn.....

Winks is a good all round CM but he is not yet a playmaker at the standard we currently require in the big games. He also has not stood out for me against teams who sit back and force us to try to play through them. He certainly has his merits, and deserves his place in the squad though.

 

[double0]

Thing is once you stop Eriksen's through balls, the only other way we have of making space is with Dembele's forward drives. Stop them both and effectively you stop us playing completely. So important now to get someone else in that can play intelligently from a bit deeper.

Dele Alli and Lamela aint bad at finding and assisting we have many threats however what was evident to me was our wingbacks. Looking back that game was tight it could have gone either way it wasn't like we got out played. Another worrying trend is our lack of clean sheets we really have to address this if we are to move forward .

 

[Trix]

dont think De Gea had a shot to save after their second goal IIRC (other than a shot from distance from Eriksen?) I suppose the question is whether they were THAT impregnable defensively or we'd just resigned ourselves to it being yet another semi-final disappointment? It felt like the latter at the time so id love to know whether the stats (possession, yard covered etc) backed up that feeling?

Definitely the former. We had enough possession in advanced areas, but could not get through their compact formation.

 

[Trix]

Dele Alli and Lamela aint bad at finding and assisting we have many threats however what was evident to me was our wingbacks. Looking back that game was tight it could have gone either way it wasn't like we got out played. Another worrying trend is our lack of clean sheets we really have to address this if we are to move forward .

Dele has the ability thread balls through when we are transitioning up the pitch. When teams park the bus however it's a different story, and that's fine because his game is to be at the other end of those passes. It's the same with Lamela to some extent. When teams are deep the two wider players of the AM 3 need to be in advanced positions themselves either side of Kane. This is our main problem for me though. If our AM's are forced to come back to do the creative work(when teams are deep) then there are fewer options for them to find. The main difference between us and City for example is De Bruyne playing in CM. I know that sound obvious but every time he gets the ball there are always 3 and usually 4 options in front of him. Having that extra player to mark is imo why they are able to cut through teams at ease even against packed defences.

 

[Trix]

I didn’t really feel that our heads went down or we gave up, I just think it was a combination of things. Mourinho had them set up much better tactically this time, he also coaches his teams what to do in given situations and once they got their noses in front it was tough to make headway. Kane was poor again, as was Son, Dembele had a bad game, we had no impetuous from midfield and Poch’s in game management didn’t really help matters.

I really don’t think this team lacks fight or determination, it just lacks a bit of nous, quality and in game management at times.

I think that is the big difference between Poch and Jose. Jose might be able to do that, but he has to buy ready made players because he's not capable of coaching them to be better players technically. It's why his football is boring but effective.