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Phillips is cack I don’t know why anyone expected him to go to City and play. Foden is still only 23 and has scored about 50 goals in the last 3 seasons as a bit part player I wouldn’t say he’s going backwards he’s just competing for a place in the best team in the world. He would probably walk into another other PL team.
He’s always looked poor or ineffective when I see him recently. When he first came on the scene he looked amazing, like a generational talent.
 
It makes you wonder about some young players and what goes on in their heads. I know agents can be ****ty and looking for a deal for them, but what made Hume think he was better than us or what we were offering? What clubs did he think were after him that were better than us? Did he think we were so desperate that we'd offer him vastly improved terms than the original offer just to keep him? Was he always looking to move on no matter what? I mean, I can understand if he was getting rave reviews regularly, or that we were under paying him or that we were struggling so badly his career was going nowhere, but none of that applied while he was here. Certainly in our league 1 days we were constantly in the play offs, only outside on goal difference and only 3 points off an automatic place when the season was curtailed due to COVID. We reached 2 cup finals, winning one, a play off final and a play off semi final in his time as a "regular". Even under the ****ty days of Methven and Donald that's not too bad a record compared to others. Unless his agent has filled his head with rubbish, surely he could see that right then this was the best option for him. Maybe there would be better ones later on, but right then I doubt there were. For whatever reason his career hasn't just stalled, but gone backwards.

Spot on. And I think the last paragraph says it.

His agent will have been promising him all sorts with a new deal elsewhere, ( and a nice cut for himself). The agent won't be bothered, he'll just move onto the next one
 
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He’s always looked poor or ineffective when I see him recently. When he first came on the scene he looked amazing, like a generational talent.

Aye he hasn’t stepped forward.

when you look at how Grealish has come on and the continued growth of Bellingham, he does seem to have stood still.

His position is a handicap, cos we don’t know what it is. All the ability but looks lost as a 10
 
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Yeah 100% mate.

The more at City and Arsenal the better cos those are the top clubs developing players.

I genuinely think of we don’t win these euros we blew it. Last couple of tournaments we have been ‘close’ to the top sides in theory. This euros next summers we are simply better than everyone.

Southgate will manage to blow it.

Still short at the back IMO.

But up there all round with France, Spain, and possibly Germany, who never lie doggo for long!
 
He’s always looked poor or ineffective when I see him recently. When he first came on the scene he looked amazing, like a generational talent.

Tbh I think a lot of it is down to how teams set up against City. Pretty much everyone parks the bus so their midfield are camped on the edge of the opponents box and it’s difficult for wingers to run at defenders which Foden is brilliant at, whereas sterling wasn’t but he got into pockets in the box well.
 
Admittedly I don’t really follow the Prem but Foden and Phillips seem to be going backwards to me.

I still don’t get the crack re Guardiloa being the messiah. All I ever see is that he has teams and resources at his disposal (at Barca, at Bayern and at City) way beyond those available to the rest of the competition. I just find it hard to gauge his achievements with that in mind.

Again, I caveat that loosely held opinion by acknowledging, as someone who is hugely disillusioned by it all, that I don’t follow the Prem very closely anymore so there’s every chance I’m just being ignorant.

Couldn't agree more, he's only ever been at clubs with stupid levels of resources, making it very easy for him to take credit for what his ridiculously paid coaching staff are doing. That said, there can be no doubt that he's improved a fair few players in his time there, most notable being Grealish for me, he's cut out the antics from his game which I hated. Summing up, Guardiola's techniques work when he has the budget to do so. (Just an opinion before I get it rammed back down my throat!)
 
Couldn't agree more, he's only ever been at clubs with stupid levels of resources, making it very easy for him to take credit for what his ridiculously paid coaching staff are doing. That said, there can be no doubt that he's improved a fair few players in his time there, most notable being Grealish for me, he's cut out the antics from his game which I hated. Summing up, Guardiola's techniques work when he has the budget to do so. (Just an opinion before I get it rammed back down my throat!)
They may well work without too but I doubt we’ll ever know. .
 
I'm not sure we're better than France. Spain will have something to say about it too, and Italy always seem to find a way.

Agreed on Southgate though, don't rate him at all. He's been lucky to have one of the best squads of players in England's history, but still lost every game against semi decent opposition.
I find this a very strange opinion. He's done better than any other England manager since Ramsay, has completely harmonised the squad, for first time it feels like a club, players clearly love him, no call offs, they've just battered a decent side 7.0. It's also the first time an England side dominates the ball completely in games.
They blew it against France and Italy but it was a missed penalty in both games. Fine margins. Let's forget about the wins over Croatia, Germany, Ukraine, Senegal as that was down to players and not Southgate....
England have had talent before, do you not remember Scholes, lampard, Gérard, Cole, Terry, Owen, ferdinand in same team? Awful to watch, pathetic.
I don't think this is all down to Southgate but he's part of a strategy from FA and its working. It will take a very good team to beat England in next summers euros. Yes Southgate might have his limitations but I'd be surprised if anyone would have done a better job overall
 
So people think Guardiola is a fraud for battering every team they come across because they have a budget similar to teams around them but think Southgate is doing a wonderful job after winning nothing with one of the best international squads in world football..

If Pep was England manager I’d eat my own ****e if we didn’t win either the euros or World Cup at the first time of asking.


Worth looking at the difference between when Southgate opts for 3 at the back and Pep does.

England v Italy in the euros final when they absolutely pummelled us and somehow we took it to penalties, we had 3 centre backs with 2 full backs and 2 defensive midfielders. Meaning the only attack minded players on the pitch were Kane, Mount and Sterling.

City v Madrid, obviously a 4-0 win for city.

3 centre backs, 2 defensive midfielders with 4 attack minded midfielders behind a striker.

That’s not having an unlimited budget, that’s having a pair of bollocks and the tactical know how to beat your opponent - which Mancini did against England.
 
Still short at the back IMO.

But up there all round with France, Spain, and possibly Germany, who never lie doggo for long!

Mad thing is, we probably aren’t, he just picks the wrong ones.

Tomori has been superb for Milan and is rapid and strong, Stones as good as any last 2 years.

It’s his unwillingness to pick the right players at the back that ****s me off.

We are **** at LB mind, Chilwell v Theo Hernandes is a walkover for France.
 
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Mad thing is, we probably aren’t, he just picks the wrong ones.

Tomori has been superb for Milan and is rapid and strong, Stones as good as any last 2 years.

It’s his unwillingness to pick the right players at the back that ****s me off.

We are **** at LB mind, Chilwell v Theo Hernandes is a walkover for France.

Shaw and James are our best 2 full backs. James has absolutely no luck with injuries though
 
So people think Guardiola is a fraud for battering every team they come across because they have a budget similar to teams around them but think Southgate is doing a wonderful job after winning nothing with one of the best international squads in world football..

If Pep was England manager I’d eat my own ****e if we didn’t win either the euros or World Cup at the first time of asking.
Is that not because he would have the best players among the international squads like you just mentioned? Clough would be doing it with Macedonia. That’s why Peps a fraud<ok>
 
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So people think Guardiola is a fraud for battering every team they come across because they have a budget similar to teams around them but think Southgate is doing a wonderful job after winning nothing with one of the best international squads in world football..

If Pep was England manager I’d eat my own ****e if we didn’t win either the euros or World Cup at the first time of asking.


Worth looking at the difference between when Southgate opts for 3 at the back and Pep does.

England v Italy in the euros final when they absolutely pummelled us and somehow we took it to penalties, we had 3 centre backs with 2 full backs and 2 defensive midfielders. Meaning the only attack minded players on the pitch were Kane, Mount and Sterling.

City v Madrid, obviously a 4-0 win for city.

3 centre backs, 2 defensive midfielders with 4 attack minded midfielders behind a striker.

That’s not having an unlimited budget, that’s having a pair of bollocks and the tactical know how to beat your opponent - which Mancini did against England.
Exactly
 
It's all based on what he learnt from Cruyff and the ideas that Cruyff left behind at Barcelona (all of which was based on the ideas of Rinus Michels, who developed the ideas of coaches before him) but Guardiola is easily the most influential coach of his generation. Clubs at every level are trying to play like a Guardiola side and he's constantly developing his style. He's taken that Ajax/Barcelona Cruyff approach and developed it further.
 
So people think Guardiola is a fraud for battering every team they come across because they have a budget similar to teams around them but think Southgate is doing a wonderful job after winning nothing with one of the best international squads in world football..

If Pep was England manager I’d eat my own ****e if we didn’t win either the euros or World Cup at the first time of asking.


Worth looking at the difference between when Southgate opts for 3 at the back and Pep does.

England v Italy in the euros final when they absolutely pummelled us and somehow we took it to penalties, we had 3 centre backs with 2 full backs and 2 defensive midfielders. Meaning the only attack minded players on the pitch were Kane, Mount and Sterling.

City v Madrid, obviously a 4-0 win for city.

3 centre backs, 2 defensive midfielders with 4 attack minded midfielders behind a striker.

That’s not having an unlimited budget, that’s having a pair of bollocks and the tactical know how to beat your opponent - which Mancini did against England.
A budget similar to everyone around them? Absolute bollocks. Jack grealish cost more than the entire inter Milan team. The total cost of the first 11 and subs was 850m that day. He is a good coach of elite footballers but its easy getting talented and engaged footballers to play certain systems and adapt. His first job he had peak Messi, iniesta, xavi etc and that gave him a great start to build his reputation so folk like you would believe the baloney said and written about him.
 
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