1-0 loss at City is a "good" result. Didn't get battered as many will do and have been previously and on form we will create more chances than we did so needs to be a learning curve - you have to be at 110% every week in this league - City played well and deserved the win but 5/6 points on the board after Brighton and I'd be happy with that start. Liverpool next week is a tough one and if you'd asked me at the beginning of last season I'd be saying the same "Just don't get hammered" but I'd be disappointed to lose against them currently as we are doing well enough to and are capable of getting points out of just about everyone. Also I'd love to shut Klopp up more than anything, hopefully he gets all sorts on the weekend as the numpty deserves it.
See i just don't subscribe to this, not any more. We were getting 1-0 defeats against "big" cliubs with Bruce and Rafa in charge. They had played Weds, no KDB, no Gundogan, no Mahrez and didn't even make a substitution. I'm still quite pissed at the manner of the defeat, we just didn't make them do anything and our tactics were flat and uninspired. For me we would be much better off going with a 4-2-3-1 against these bigger clubs, because what happens when you do 4-3-3 is you end up pushed back to a 4-5-1, striker gets isolated and the added problem we have is not having a destroyer in the middle. Bruno and Tonali look like the same type of player to me, so why they're not in a double pivot is a bit of a mystery. Joelinton lacks discipline in that midfield 3 and is maybe better off left side of a 3 in a 4-2-3-1, with Gordon in the 10 and Barnes in for Almiron. I'm sure I'll be proven wrong, but I think we need to evolve and bring some new ideas. Last season we finished 4th, but come on - who thought Chelsea and Spurs would be THAT bad? Although we hammered Villa, they're still a threat, and Brighton look as fresh as last year. We seem to be in a pattern of buying the same players and sticking with the same system.
They play twice a week every week mate and they played Alvarez and Foden instead. De bruyne was a miss , but I don't think a single Newcastle player gets in the side they fielded. The left back they fielded was 5 times the price of our right winger.
I think in a nutshell we played away to the best team in the world, but we didn't perform to our levels, it was the easiest 1-0 ever, it isn't a good result. Eddie basically said as much.
No, I understand they're better in every way! But I just wanted invention, fight, having a go. Not a single shot all match. They all choked (including Howe) basically, rather than being up for it, which is why it was so disappointing.
It was like the cup final, though that was more disappointing as we weren't playing a team as good and, well it was a cup final. We need to stop being overawed by such occasions and play like we belong there, that's the next step.
Man city didn't allow Newcastle to play.... they were successful in negotiating the press and didn't commit to attacking too much themselves.... they didn't really offer Newcastle a thing for 90 mins. It was a tactical masterplan executed perfectly by a winning machine.... they passed Newcastle into psychological defeat.
Choked and lost 1-0 to the best team in the world atm - probably ever, could be worse! It's frustrating because if we played well we could probably got something but against City a 1-0 loss isn't a bad result (I'll retract me earlier statement saying it was a "good" result because no loss is ever good) and our season won't be defined by games against City it's the other 36 other matches in the season.
I think they did choke mind they did not look themselves even Joelinton was ambling around looking defeated.
Man city would have simply upped their game accordingly. They were happy creating the odd chance themselves because they weren't under threat themselves.... they performed a clinic on our team.... dissected them slowly and carefully.
To a point, I agree, but I always think the best teams evolve their tactics to keep surprising. This is why Pep is so successful - notwithstanding the blank cheque book. He's always looking to evolve. We've now got this midfield "box" and CB's moving forward with Ederson creating a back four. I think De Zerbi is a bit like this as well. Howe has stuck with the same system. Understandable, of course, but I worry that a lack of evolution will see us left behind and undo a lot of good work. I mean, we reached the Champions League, immediately signed Tonali, then followed that up with.....a backup RB, a young LB (probably) and swapped ASM for Barnes. All English, all safe, all Ashworth. I mean, does Howe not want top end players? We seemed to pull away from signing Paqueta, Diaby, etc.
Howe did very well at Bournemouth but in the end bought poorly and got relegated without a fight ... even Bruce defeated his side. I like Howe it's going well, but this idea that everything he touches turns to gold is a bit much for me. I'd say he's currently one of the safest managers I football and rightly so , but he's just a man he's going to make mistakes and get things wrong... I'm pleased he's our manager.
You'll get over it, but I'm just not doing the whole worshipping thing.. he can make mistakes he's blood and bones like the rest of us.
I guess the real question is - Did Howe get it tactically wrong, or did the players simply fail to execute the plan ...
