Hi lads. Just so I can gat this off my chest:
1. Playing with a lone stiker is one thing. You still need to get it right though. Scholes and Carrick should have indeed started, but neither are fast. Park, who has not played for three months, is not fast, and neither is Giggs. So you start with a very slow team against fresh opposition legs.
2. How can you play a player who has not played for three months in the most important game of the season? I mean it's not like it's Cantona/Rooney/Van Nistelroy/Ronaldo comming back for injury, is it? It's only a utility player (eventhough he's had his good moments with us)
3. This makes for such a defensieve and slow side that the mind boggles. Is it that complicated to start with two fast winger (either two of Young, Nani and Valencia), and the lone striker between them?
4. These decision leaves you bereft of substitution options later in the game, whether to use Giggs as an impact sub if you're behind, or maybe even park (if you are to play him at one point) just to break up play in the last 20 mins or so if we're not behind.
5. So you go with the defensieve line-up, and you couldn't even get a counter attack. But at half time you're behind. You don't need to defend your one goal deficit, and since in the event of a loss, we were f§cked goal difference-wise anyway, why the hell wait another 15-20 mins before a substitution?
6. Eventhough I can understand taking Scholesy off if he can't hack it anymore, it was the game agaisnt Everton that he should have been taken of against at the 65-70 min much more so than today (two late equaliser against Everton, rigns a bell anyone? Twice in two seasons for the exact same reason!)
7. What's with all the needing extra height in defence bulscrap! The two City strikers are not the tallest ones are they? And ironically we conceided from a set piece anyway. City did well to block Smallings without fouling, so that even with Peter bloody Crouch defending on Kompany thay could have scored that one. What is it that Jones did that Rafael couldn't have?
8. You change the attack, you change the midfield and you change the defence, for the most important game the season. I cannot, for the life of me, get it...
Well, if anyone had the patience and heart to read through that despite the length and disapointment, thanks a bunch
My take on the tactics
posted on 30/4/12
Iv always insisted that Fergie is too smart for his own good in the big games.
Instead of looking at ways to hurt our opposition, he only looks at ways on how we can stop our oppoentns.
He made the same mistakes vs Barca and tonight, he got it very wrong. Even mourinho plays his best XI in El Classicos nowadays and he is renowned for being an overly defensive minded coach
posted on 30/4/12
I think saf throws games to teach our players a lesson, look at the crazy team he put out in the champions league final with no nani. Why play scholes and giggs and park with carrick. When carrick is your most fastest player in midfield and most agile you know you are in trouble. If he had played with young instead on the left and valencia on the right it would have been better.
I have a feeling it is not over as man city didn't really create many chances today, in fact if it was 0-0 at half time it would have been fair.
posted on 30/4/12
Smalling_Jones:
I see wat you mean. I wish indeed that he would at times compare his line ups to the most straight forward one, and from time to time realise simple is the best. It's football, for crying out loud, not chess...
posted on 1/5/12
utd are and have never been a team capable of defending for 90 mins everytime we try to do this we concede.
like the two champs lge final, today is another example. So what I am frustrated by yet again is the manner of defeat.
posted on 1/5/12
tonight is fergies fault.
everton was the defenders fault
wigan was just - rubbish half ar sed performance from the players
posted on 1/5/12
But, his decision to play Park? F Knows, as soon as i saw the team sheet i knew we would create absolutely nothing and hey oh wey , we had 1 shot all game which went higher than rugby posts.
We have our strengths, so do City, so WE should play to our strengths which is WING PLAY, we have some of the best wingers in the league and tonight we just completely ignored that and played a rusty, old and slow side who rarely play together in games these days.