First goal - defensive error and a mistake by Pepe (already a thread on this). Second goal - bad marking, but a very well-directed header. Third goal - a penalty that wasn't. You can do something about the first and second, but not the third.
Surprised no one's gone with my positive thought after our game vs City - if you're gonna lose it's better to be comprehensively beaten so you can pick yourself up and move on. If the game had finished 1-0 you'd all be gutted about the dodgy penalty and wouldn't really learn anything or have anything to improve on. The only way is up And a 3-0 defeat gets you as many points as a 1-0 defeat, so at least you conceded the goals when it doesn't really matter
Against the top 6 we are not always going to put in the best performances and we will get beat, it is just going to happen. I look at this game and the scoreline and kind of continuing theme of lack of goals and no creativity in the final third still really irks me. What I lose my nut with are these: Norwich, Blackburn, Swansea, Wigan, Fulham - these are the games that if we win one of these, just one, we are tied for fourth but behind on goal differential. 3/5 of these games were at home against either newly promoted teams or the bottom of the table teams. This is where I havemy biggest problems as this has been going on for the past few years, different managers, different players, but that same mindset or block that we are still struggling to get over. I think some real class in January might help as let's face it who out there British would really really help us? Also if you look at the stats, we had a lot going in our favor but the possession stat was more in the middle and back of the field rather than in the attacking third. All in all, this should be an eye opener and a good wake up call for us
Usually after a good result against one of the top teams we go on to the next game and get a bad result. We must react to this and do what Utd did after their bad result.
Was a good game. two teams that are very good defensively. Admitedly they were better on the night and Kompanys man of the match was deserved. We were able to control the midfield for long periods and create chances. We know what we need to do and that is to be more clinical. Man City showed us their clinical edge and it was very impressive....Give them a chance and they take it. By no means were we outplayed anywhere on the pitch... Its never easy to watch us lose, but it was always going to be one of the (if not the hardest game of the season.)
