A big battering but a friendly first and foremost. What to take from it - Pros: - Hernandez looks good - Gray looks brilliant - must be pushing for a start - Okazaki his usual self, winning free kicks - useful lesson going into the champions league season - Amartey can play when he wants to - Simpson solid Cons: - Mendy again on the periphery - Musa doesn't look a natural finisher and struggles to get involved - without Kante there is a big gap between the defence and midfield - not many games left and we don't look 90 minutes fit My thoughts are the maybe Choudbury could be the one to fill the gap?
I agree it was a pretty lacklustre performance and they didn't look fit enough but what a squad PSG have though!!!
I just hope the effects of training and playing in a vastly different time zone so close to the start of our domestic season haven't taken their toll.
... thought Mendy, Amartey and Hernandez all looked good tbf ..Musa didn't really get into it but there is plenty there .. Demarai Gray cameo was fabulous.. might even be worth a crafty fiver four young player of the season .. .. more worryingly... Kingy and Albrighton just don't look uo to that level and Christian Fuchs was at fault for 3rd goal and looks very jaded ... Everyone else looked OK .. Ranieri will have noted quite a bit methinks...
Fell asleep through a lot of the second half, basically between PSG's 3rd and 4th goals, so not feeling terribly happy now! Amartey's performance (penalty aside) was very promising I thought, I think he'd be a good foil for Drinkwater if we're still playing 2 in midfield, he's possibly not quite got the energy levels as Kanté but he's young and malleable. Not a RB though, but I think Hernandez could be an option there- the long throw is particularly effective, and he's very much in the same mould as Fuchs. Young Chilwell looks good as well so plenty of competition at full-back. Mendy looks a little rusty for me, and I'm not sure if he'd work with Drinkwater- they're a bit too similar and Drinkwater edges it for me right now. We look a very different side without Vardy. Still a couple of players (striker and centre half) from ready for me, and that's assuming Kapustka comes in. On a side note, another positive I've only just noticed is how diverse our players are these days. We had a player from virtually every continent on the pitch today, and it's particularly nice to see African (Amartey, Musa, plus kind-of Mahrez and Schlupp) and Asian players (Okazaki) in the mix.
saw the highlights on Sky and whilst the scoreline looks really bad you created enough chances to have easily got 2 or 3 yourself. From the highlights Gray had their RB on toast . When Gray signed for you i said on our board (Liverpool) that i would happily taken a punt on him for the money you were stated to have paid - mind you if we had come calling Brum would have suddenly wanted £9m
THIS!! Little early, but PSG look like Barca under Emery - which says a lot about Blanc. Also - your fixtures were planned brutally. You fly out 9 hours west and back immediately?? What a mess.
The team looks knackered. Half of them were blowing after about 5 minutes. Hernandez looks the part. Think he'll start at right back. Overall, the scoreline didn't do the game justice. I felt we deserved a goal or two although having said both of those things, I felt like PSG could just turn it on when they felt like it. There were plenty of positives to take from that game.
Can only echo the Gray sentiments. He's going to be playing for England this time next year, i'm convinced. I think he'll be this season's Dele Alli and i'll be putting a fiver on him to win the Young Player of the Season.
I was worried about the lack of games we have before Man U. Just 4 Team should have been broken into 2 and mixed with the academy Hopefully we have a midfielder lined up to replace Kante before the season starts. Or does Ranieri see Amartey as that man?
Maybe not right now, but I certainly think he'll get there. Ive been very impressed with him in pre-season. Would like to see us go with a 4-3-3; Schmeichel/Zieler Hernandez/Simpson Huth Morgan Fuchs/Chilwell Amartey Mendy Drinkwater Mahrez-------------Musa Vardy
4-4-2 did us really well last season - why change so much? Kante is a big loss but can see King stepping up for the first couple of games at least while Mendy is getting acclimatised. Can see Ulloa starting ahead of Okazaki for those games as well - we won't be playing the high pressing game of last season so might revert to boot it to the big guy to hold the ball up of 2 seasons ago.
It's got to be 4-4-2 with Drinkwater and Amartey to start the season for me, with Gray possibly replacing Albrighton. Gray definitely needs more of a run-out, but Ranieri clearly doesn't like to play him alongside Mahrez, maybe he wants a bit more defensive stability? Don't think any of the new guys are ready to start yet, Kanté also took a few games to really get going if I remember rightly (I don't think he started until Bournemouth, which if I'm correct, was our third game of the season?). Mendy doesn't look dynamic enough for me yet to play in a two, think we may see him as a substitute for the moment, and Musa on as a replacement for Vardy or Okazaki when we want to really knacker some defences.
I think Gray will force Albrighton out this season. He needs more game time to develop, and once he has developed we'll have one hell of a player on our hands. Definitely start him for home games, pick up the defensive side of the game as he goes on. We don't want him becoming disillusioned at lack of game time, saying that if Kaputska signs and no one else leaves, Ranieri has got a bit of juggling to do. The Tinkermans rotation skills might be called upon. Good times!