I really don't have anything against Liverpool (or most teams for that matter), in fact I quite like Klopp. My football-watching (and playing in my younger years) personality is nothing like me normally.

Think we'll be okay this season. Hopefully somewhere between 12th and 8/9th. As long as we can get the ball in the net more regularly.

Oh well, off to take out my frustrations on Dead Cells.

Sorry Oli. Just being a cunt.

Apols.

I think you guys will push City harder than last season but ultimately I think you may fall short. If you can consistently do it against lesser teams such as ourselves, you put yourself in a good position.

There will be teams out there that will be even more defensive than we seemed to be in the first half and they will do it for the whole match, regardless of the score.

I think the only way United will challenge is if they kick Jose into touch.

Sure I'm not the only one.

Pogba aint going anywhere this summer.

As for mourinho, yeh the football is defensive tripe, but we've won one game and lost another. You'd think we were on a ten game losing streak the way the media go in about it.

I can't see mourinho leaving, Utd will back him. He's still got the mess of van gaal and his own making to sort out.

Besides who would they replace him with? Poch would be expensive to get out of spurs and ain't won anything. Zidane won trophies but ran away when it came to rebuilding the madrid squad.

so can i, its so competitive for the top four. 5th wouldn't suprise me.

Martial won't be sticking around though will he?

Woodward has been quoted in the most recent earnings call to shareholders as saying that playing success doesn’t really have any impact whatsoever on their ability to earn and create revenue and this is now being factored in to the running of the place.

He's spent a fortune, on top of the fortune's spent by his predecessors. I know City spend loads (and United at least earnt their money via success on the field) but you can see why the board might say "make do with what you've already got". 

On paper United have a very competitive squad, it's their manager and his style that's the problem. Despite all that United can still grind out results, it's just City are on a different level and as long as Guardiola is there United aren't going to win the title (nor us probably).

From a money making perspective United are still a golden goose.

I enjoy The Transfer Window podcast. Ian McGary and Duncan Castles come across as sensible, knowledgeable football journos. Even though Castles is abit too much of a mourinho sycophant for me.

One observation which was mentioned and has rung true at guardiolas last two clubs, is that after 3 seasons players get burnt out by the intensity and demands of his football. It happen at Barcelona and also at Bayern. Ancelotti inherited a squad that was worn out and he had to adjust his season and training that year because of it.

I recall Sacchi saying the same thing of his AC Milan squad of the later 80s. That a high pressing game can only be used with a set of players for 3 seasons top before they are worn out. Marcelo Biesla (at leeds utd and a mentor to guardiola) has had the same issue with his teams. His pressing is more extreme and it definitely takes it out of his players.

It will be interesting to see how leeds fare with biesla tactics through the course of a long arduous championship season.

Liverpool press alot as well, klopp had issues at Dortmund after a few seasons, it will be interesting to see how he gets liverpool through it.

One thing is for sure, utd are the odd one out when it comes to high pressing. City, Liverpool, Spurs and now Chelsea do it. Unfortunately Mourinho is in the Diego Simeone/Allegri school of football, which is to defend deep and take your chances on transitions, which doesn't necessarily make for entertaining football.

I totally agree Guardiola improves players, much much more than mourinho. The latter does improve players, but not their attacking, creative side.

City are going to batter teams that try and press high against them. Unless teams change the way they play I can see them getting 6 points against all of the top 4 challengers other than Utd.

GooberTheHat wrote:

City are going to batter teams that try and press high against them. Unless teams change the way they play I can see them getting 6 points against all of the top 4 challengers other than Utd.

Looks like they have a plan against teams that park the bus too. Last year we had a relatively successful two games against them, in that we got a point at the Etihad and ran them close at our place. They made some changes this time and were quite happy playing through the tight spaces we left them.

And we'll do the same again this year.

It just seemed odd to have a sentiment that Man City would struggle when people park the bus when almost everyone did park the bus and they won the league by a massive margin. And the only major hiccup was when someone didn’t park the bus.

Edit: that’s not actually fair. The counter of battering teams that press is not struggling vs teams that don’t.

Sorry about that.

afgavinstan wrote:

regmcfly wrote:

Kyle Lafferty going back to rangers. Between that and their orange kit, I think their strategy for old firm games will be "teh lulz"

Lemme know if yous need CB scouting tips. Lulz.

Unfortunately I don't know the handshake to speak to the orange sash team tips hotline