... precisely the type of dynamic midfielder with physical presence much needed to complement our style - particularly in this league. The Britton - Dobbie axis served us well against championship midfields however may not be the right balance against premier league tyros (notwithstanding man city are exceptional in that department!) Fair play to Britton for endeavour however it was a timely wake up call before the transfer window closes
Er....no. We will comfortably avoid relegation so no time for silly threads after the first game against a top 4 Club.
I thought we play ok no be honest. City will smash 3 or 4 past most teams this season, they looked very good!!
Not as easy as bringing him back is it, I appreciate may be tongue in cheek comment. Considering opposition I think we did ok last night more positives than negatives. However, I do agree we could do with a ball wining midfielder just to give us some options not o say britton et al are not up to it just more options. A ball winni midfielder and 2 defenders and think we will be ok
Keeper was the definate plus of the night! I thought we did ok , they had just too much class. On that showing last night I think we will be competitive in away matches with most teams in bottom half of table, and I think all teams at home will find it difficult to get 3 points off us. As much as I love Tatey , we need Taylor back as Tatey backing off opens up wide gaping holes at this level.
What he will learn to be stronger? I thought he did ok on the whole. Nota lot he can do when opposition foot taller and 3 stone heavier. We have got to accept that and play to our strengths. All in the knowledge that we don't have to play man city every week. There are a number of different mini leagues in the prem. We just had to compete with and beat teams in and around bottom half. Anything against likes of man city is a bonus
What we do need to do is to be quicker in the oppsition third with the ball, apart from that i think all in all we gave a good account of ourselves and will learn so much more from this outing than we did against Celtic & Betis, as been said earlier in other posts more than capable of holding our own against the teams in this league i feel. in buck we trust STID
Forget Pratley, we held our own in the centre, it's Dobbie that was the weak link last night. I counted one good pass all night. He also had a shot that was really weak, when there were plenty of options around him. His first touch was abysmal and he didn't work hard enough, either to get back to defend or to get forward to support Graham. It was obvious he was gonna have a tough game, because Man city always play with three strong ball winners who are told to sit deep, but when he did get the ball he didn't do what we know he can do. I was surprised Buck played that system tbh. With their midfield, thought he would play Kemy, Leon and Joey cos we would get more ball posession and be tighter in the middle. Maybe I am being harsh on Dobbie, and I hope he proves me wrong, but i think he needs to improve alot to compete at this level
You're not harsh on Dobbie, and I'm a massive fan. Looked a tad over-awed to me. As others have said, I'm not sure he's the answer when we play away from home. Just shows how we've come to rely on him. Against Betis everything worthwhile came through him, and that was the story of last season by and large. If he has a bad game we don't threaten.
Agree with Leeeon re Dobbie - Routledge made a much bigger impression in that space with his energy and speed We could definitely do with a Pratley-type player to bolster the middle and protect the back4 more effectively whilst also having the ability to drive forward when appropriate Barca have always balanced the small intricate players with a big physical capability - a la Toure and now Busquets. Clearly we dont have the spending power however there must be that type of player available in the market...?
agree Dobbie didn't/couldn't perform last night, but thought Rangel made a few boobs too... Still overall, we did give a good account - something to build on now and lets face it, it doesn't get much tougher than that!. Adventure is just beginning!
Dobbie is the answer for home games. Unsure about away starting line up against teams who are expected to be in the bottom half, but I am inclined to prefer Kemy , Joey and Leon (or preferably a more physical but still skillfull central midfielder on loan - don't know who fits that bill for us on loan though with our (sensible) wage structure). I do not think though that Dobbie should start in away games against top 6 sides. (bring him on for last 15 minutes if we are still in the match) We do however also need to purchase defensive cover for left back. Tate is not the answer...one step too far I'm afraid. He is good squad cover for centre back though for emergencies. Just my opinion.
