Belfast_blue5

Another shocking second half performance, how have we spend 2 billion yet have not purchased a world class centre back, have only 2 central midfielders and no real forwards. This team really needs an experienced manager with a proven record of improving younger players that isn’t obsessed with this tippy tappy nonsense even Pep has now changed how city has play. Enzo really needs to go and take the other Enzo with him as he doesn’t have the legs for premier league football and doesn’t provide enough to be carried every week. There is a real prospect that Palmer and Estevao want out in the next year or two due to the style of play and lack of trophies.

Totally agree we hardly have any players who will make forward runs. How many times could sterling have ran in behind their defence tonight and wanted it played short. The whole season has been a disaster from pre season.

I really hoped TT would have been here long term but what he had to deal with in terms of the sanctions, the club nearly going out of business and with his own personal problems he needed a break. The writing is on the wall when a manager starts saying he doesn’t know what’s wrong when you’re losing games.

For me I would like to see some sort of plan in place for going into next season. We keep being told this is a long term plan but what is this plan? Potter has been here since September he should already know who he wants for next season. Reduce the squad size by taking control of the team if one of his excuses is the playing squad is too large to train properly. what system is he going to use next season start it now. Get the players used to it and stop making 5-6 changes every game. I’m sure most supports would put up with indifferent form if it meant going into the next season well drilled,playing good football and competing but the football at the minute is terrible and Potter looks lost. Personally if he doesn’t make any changes i can’t see us winning many games to the end of the season

We could all go round in circles here with who is to blame for this shambolic season. Yes Potter has had an injury crisis to deal but this happens in football. An inflated squad due to the amount of players signed in both transfers windows but why hasn’t he identified the players who aren’t in his plans and reduced the size of the first team squad? He played a back 3 mostly with Brighton why has he abandoned this? Excuses can’t be made for Potter over injuries in your previous post but state we made it look pretty easy against Milan when they had 10 first team players out for the first leg and a man sent off early in the second.

I think he’s here to the summer unless there is a real threat of us getting dragged into a relegation battle. Potter was appointed on the 8th September and there has be no real change in terms of the out put on the pitch since he’s arrived. What is the process are we a team playing on the front foot pressing from the front and moving the ball quickly or a possession based team because at the minute it looks like neither. Pundits and commentators constantly say the squad is to big but why hasn’t he told the players who are not in his plans to train away from the first team and reduce the size of the squad. There is only a few months of the season left how much could they kick off. I’m sure everyone of working age in their chosen profession has come across people like potter nice guy, wants to keep everyone happy but not really that good of a manager. He’s not a born winner and out of his depth. When spurs scored their second on Sunday he showed no reaction and continued to give instructions to one of the subs that’s not the reaction from an elite level manager who’s obsessed with winning.

Totally agree. They lost their first two games when he was trying to play open football then he changed how the team played and made them more defensive. You can see now the players are well drilled and know what to do. Granted he hasn’t had the injury’s to contend with that we have had and had a preseason but it’s a set formation and style. We have seen none of that from potter different formations every week, no patterns of play and players being asked to play in a number of different positions in some games.

This season has turned into a disaster, this team isn’t to good to go down and it’s hard to see were the next win is coming from. The team don’t like fit enough or understand what’s being asked of them tactically. The constant changing of the formation isn’t helping last 3 games a back four then 3 tonight likely to be a 4 on Sunday as Azpis legs are gone. I can’t see Potter being sacked anytime soon especially given his massive contract. I hoped TT was given more time but was happy to get behind Potter but the man looks lost the club is to big for him.

What’s it with players who haven’t scored in months scoring against us. Adam Armstrong at the start of the season and now Vinicius who hasn’t scored in 10 months

Totally agree. Another big challenge for Potter will be playing two games a week and won’t have the luxury of time on the training pitch to get his ideas across like he does at Brighton.

There must be more in this than just bad results. There was rumours in the last few weeks TT was to be offered a new contract. He looked a broken man last night in the press conference maybe the problems in his personal life have taken there toll on him.

I think TT now has the players to play a back 4. Personally I think a 4231 is best suited to the players we have going forward. It’s time TT stuck with a system and started to implement a style of play which will allow us to recruitment the correct players and stop wasting millions on players and trying to shoehorn them into a position. A director of football must be the next signing who will be able to identify players with the hope of getting our business done early next summer. I’d give TT to the summer to see what he can get out of this group before I’d even consider making a change.

One of the first things done when the new owners take over should be to offer Tuchel a new long term deal. The guys been brilliant since he arrived.

Totally unrealistic to bring in that many players at once with no pre season in the middle of a global pandemic expecting a top 2 finish when city and Liverpool have been by far the two best teams in the league for the past few seasons. You could understand that if we were bringing six works class players who had won big trophies at other clubs.

If the rumours are true Werner picked us over liverpool after being convinced of the project at the club. No way was he coming here to be a back up.

Someone will get the benefit of these two players I’m just hoping it’s frank. In hindsight Werner was a no brainer he was scoring for fun, young, quick and could play in a number on positions. Firstly I think Havertz will turn out to be a good signing but I thought at the time he would be the hardest to fit into the system. We just signed too many players in the summer and with no pre season, congested fixture list and a global pandemic it was never going to be easy.

If frank is to go Rodgers would be my first pick but Leicester would be looking a big fee for him. He just signed a new contract last year and I think he would need convincing of the project. He seen what was coming at Celtic.

For me Frank will be the greatest player to pull on the blue shirt this will buy him some extra time but he sadly needs to be judged solely on his performance as manager which hasn't been good enough. He done brilliantly last season under the circumstances but i was worried for him when we signed 6 players in the summer with only one having experience playing in England. Even someone vastly more experienced than Frank would struggle trying to mould these players together. I think the club felt they could take advantage in the market with having the Hazard money and the global pandemic to sign players that mite have been out of reach otherwise. In the long term i think it will benefit the club but there will be a lot of pain until we can get them used to playing together and move out any deadwood which we are seeing now. Its no surprise that the teams at the top of the table have basically the same squads as last season. The most disappointing thing is the style of play last season you could see it was a work in progress quick attacking football but that has gone now. Last night we seen full backs crossing the ball from 30 yards out, a very lightweight midfield and play so disjointed you thought the players only met at the ground. If frank does go we need to seriously look at a manger who will get the best out of the players at the club for me Brendan Rodgers would be my first choice.

I think this is a good thing for the youth team players the really good ones will kick on playing with better players and the ones that don’t will be loaned or sold. For years it seemed we were trying to find the next Messi coming through instead of using the youth team to fill the squad and buying the best players available. It seems like the club is hopefully realising after that disaster of a transfer window a few years ago. That summer chalobah was sold for 7 million and we purchased drinkwater and Baka for 70-80 million. If we had of kept chalobah as back up and signed a world class player with that money we would be in a far better position. Since 14/15 season we have spent around 80 million on left backs a position we will need to improve again this season. We have also sold Bertrand and van Aanholt. Are these two players world class no but they would have been solid squad team players which would have allowed the club to purchase a world class left back with the money. hopefully with frank and big Pete now at the club they will first look to the youth before going into the market.

I was reading that article earlier and I've said before in this thread i think it would be a massive risk selling that many players in one window especially when our last match is more than likely going to be Saturday and we start again on the 12th September. Trying to bring that many player in at once when the teams around us will probably sign 2-3 players max could give them a big advantage. The club now has a long term project with big Pete and frank at the club if they think that many players need to leave i really hope its over the next 3 windows. I would also like to see us going after high quality targets instead of taking the 4th-5th player on the list for that position and then introducing the youth team players into the squad like we have done this season. We have already signed two quality players. I think the club really likes Havertz but didn't expect to be in the running to sign him until covid. If Havertz is signed that's 3 players signed who will probably take time to find there feet in this league. I think we really need a GK, left back, centre back and a holding midfielder but i would like to see this done over the next two summer windows. A commanding GK and a holding midfielder would help stop the leak of goals and give the centre backs more protection until a world class one is available.

This is a big worry for me as well. With the league starting again so soon we wont really have a full pre season to integrate the new players into the squad. Ziyech hasn't played since march so he will take a while. I think that's one of the reason we could be looking at Pope, Henderson and Rice as they won't take as much time to settle in and know the league. There isn't a host of World class centre backs available who can lead a defence. We are really missing a leader at the back and any of the current centres backs would improve with a leader beside them.

I could be wrong but I thought he has only scored 4 since the restart. 3 pens city West Ham, Watford and 1 free kick against West Ham. Takes him till 9 for the season his most productive season

Most goalkeepers at this level usually do something really well be it shot stopping commanding his area etc. Kepa doesn't do anything well from what i can see. I wonder did we ever scout him as bad as some of our transfers have been we have done really well with goalkeepers. We really need to replace him this summer. The only silver lining yes we did pay 71 million for him but we did get 36 million from Madrid that same summer so he only cost 35 million. If we got 35 million for him we would only really lose his signing on fee and wages the last few years.

You do realise that we still have a game to play and we only need a point? Frank has done a fantastic job anyone would have struggled under the circumstances.

If we get top 4 regardless if we win the FA cup of not we have had a fantastic season considering all he has had to deal with. We may not have a set formation yet but we can see a style of play developing. We have tried all the best coaches in Europe and after the disastrous transfer window a few seasons ago the club now have something in place to bring us success in future years with a hero at the helm. Someone who is also willing to promote youth team players to either take key roles in the squad or fill holes which allows us to sign the key players.