Man City 4-1 Wolves: Verdict Thread

[YoungWolf]

Think the frustration is that the team don't seem to be learning anything either, been alternating spells in recent games between the old passive style and a more assertive, forward thinking approach and on pretty much every game the latter looks more effective but it never seems to become the norm.

But the fact those spells exist point, and we are inconsistent points to the fact that something is going on there. I don't think we are physically capable in games like this to do it for 90 minutes regardless, not this season with everything going on.

If anyone is expecting us to go full throttle for 90 minutes in games they are going to be disappointed. I just want to see the process, but it won't be smooth (and it hasn't!)

 

[BeaverWolf]

What’s frustrating is we went out with the tactic to defend the edge of our box and that’s it. You can’t do that against a team as good as City. They’re just too good and will get through you some how - it took them 14 minutes.

We’ve been told umpteen times that we’ve got nothing to play for this season - so just have a go. When we did, we scored! The problem is, as soon as we got level, we went back to defending the edge of the area and surprise, surprise, the same thing happens.

Fair play to City. They will win the league at a canter, but I can’t help but be disappointed with our tactics once again.

Totally right - set up to win the game & give City something to think about. But I do think we have no one in match winning form at the moment.

 

[Walnut]

Dendoncker, Neto and Hoever, might as well stopped in the dressing room. Absolutely awful.

 

[Premier Quality]

Just to mention Coady tonight, ignoring the goal, I thought he defended really well tonight - he was good in the air, and defended well on the ground too. There is hope for him as a centre back I think.

 

[Paul]

"We'd have won with Van Dijk and Fernandes in the side"
"Relax guys, we have at least seven or eight top 4 players in this team"
"Nothing to do with Nuno though! "

No, no snipey comments at all ??? Now do another funny picture dick !

 

[slink]

We didn’t learn anything new though so I don’t understand people being so upset. We need a CB and a CM, and another wide option with some speed.

I think you're right we didn't learn anything new but sometimes that's not great either. I'm looking forward to your breakdown of this game as all your other stuff has been outstanding but i'm not sure you will be able to understand what we were trying to do in the first half because i definitely don't.

This is 100% not the game to be massively critical but i'm still not sure how we go about evolving as i've seen very little that Nuno and his staff are able to get us to play with a different mentality that will enable us to become a more attacking side. We all know we need players but the tactical/mental issues are just as big as player depth or quality and because this game is included in the season it's another where things were not right and that's been the case too often.

 

[Jinky]

.

 

[Wolvensam]

But the fact those spells exist point, and we are inconsistent points to the fact that something is going on there. I don't think we are physically capable in games like this to do it for 90 minutes regardless, not this season with everything going on.

If anyone is expecting us to go full throttle for 90 minutes in games they are going to be disappointed. I just want to see the process, but it won't be smooth (and it hasn't!)

Not making excuses, but I think us being slow starters and only sustaining attacks for 20-30 minutes at a time is absolutely down to fitness.

 

[Jinky]

"We'd have won with Van Dijk and Fernandes in the side"
"Relax guys, we have at least seven or eight top 4 players in this team"
"Nothing to do with Nuno though! "

No, no snipey comments at all ??? Now do another funny picture dick !

I think you’ve got the wrong poster, mate.

 

[Wolvensam]

Bloody hell folks, sometimes you wouldn't think I was one of the only women on this forum... it's the internet!

 

[Tredman]

Just to mention Coady tonight, ignoring the goal, I thought he defended really well tonight - he was good in the air, and defended well on the ground too. There is hope for him as a centre back I think.

Yes thought he was good today, at times in the 2nd half he was everywhere. Let down by his defensive teammates ultimately.

 

[Lycan]

This is the weird state football is in right now that 4-1 didn't flatter them at all and yet there's no need for any kind of inquisition at our end. It is what it is.

I barely even watched it to be honest. We've had better fortune than most against City recently but even still there's a sense of inevitably about these games that just makes them unwatchable from my point of view.

 

[Sam-Wolf]

Thought Fabio did a very selfless job when he came on, tried to do his bit to keep the City centre halves in check when they had possession and allowed the wide players to push onto the fullbacks rather than get caught between two players. Spent a lot of his time dropping in onto Rodri or de Bruyne if he'd come deep too as City played it forward allowing Neves and Moutinho to stay in more restrained positions.

Didn't really do much in an attacking sense though, covered off easily by Walker a couple of times, recycled one corner and helped set Traore away for one of his shots but he didn't do anything wrong for me.

Agree hugely with this. It's not a surprise that our best spell of the game is when he came on. Off the ball he completely stopped the Centre-backs passing out to Rodri which allowed us to press them more as a team. Very selfless work.

Attacking he didn't do much (but similarly not much wrong either), though there was the one point where Traore decided to blast the ball over the bar with his back to goal where Fabio would have been in a much better position if he'd have passed it instead.

Semedo just is a RWB, we shouldn't be messing around playing him elsewhere.

Dendoncker wasn't great, but was really disappointed in Hoever, not too sure what he's particularly good at yet, but there's time on his side!

 

[Paul]

I think you’ve got the wrong poster, mate.

What on earth are you on about ?

 

[YoungWolf]

I think you're right we didn't learn anything new but sometimes that's not great either. I'm looking forward to your breakdown of this game as all your other stuff has been outstanding but i'm not sure you will be able to understand what we were trying to do in the first half because i definitely don't.

This is 100% not the game to be massively critical but i'm still not sure how we go about evolving as i've seen very little that Nuno and his staff are able to get us to play with a different mentality that will enable us to become a more attacking side. We all know we need players but the tactical/mental issues are just as big as player depth or quality and because this game is included in the season it's another where things were not right and that's been the case too often.

We just tried to contain. Pure and simple, Get to 60 minutes, have our spell of the game where we look bright and threatening and play a bit higher up. In many ways, a typical Nuno approach to a game where the opposition are so far superior individually (although probably a bit deeper than usual due to not having Boly, and a kid at right back).

I've seen enough in recent games (and even for a bit in this game) to see where we are trying to play a bit higher, win the ball back a bit earlier. It's not going to be a drastic change though, we aren't going to become Leipzig all of a sudden for example.

The way we played before scoring against Leeds is a good idea of where are trying to go IMO, and how we tried to play against Southampton, force longer kicks, play quickly into the forwards feet on the floor, and try to get more bodies forward. Whether we get it or not is down to Nuno because if we are playing as poorly as we have this season come the start of next season questions will rightly be asked.

 

[MARKakaJIM]

Is not doing anything wrong the aim? Pretty shit if it is.

It's better than most managed in tonight's game!

He's a kid, he's got the body of a kid and barely any adult football experience to build the mental elements to overcome that deficit, if he was in a dominant team you could probably carry him and he'd maybe sneak enough opportunities in the box to look like an experiment worth persevering with but Wolves expect their attacking players to be some sort of super-human specimens that can do the job of 2-3 players in one go, he isn't that man.

So for me yes, not doing anything wrong is pretty much the aim for a boy playing a man's game at the moment.

 

[sycophantia]

Thought Jonny looked a bit jaded from the start tonight, I know Mahrez played well but he wasn't to to his usual standard. I'd give him a rest for a game or two, he's played quite a lot after being out for so long

 

[Tredman]

It's better than most managed in tonight's game!

He's a kid, he's got the body of a kid and barely any adult football experience to build the mental elements to overcome that deficit, if he was in a dominant team you could probably carry him and he'd maybe sneak enough opportunities in the box to look like an experiment worth persevering with but Wolves expect their attacking players to be some sort of super-human specimens that can do the job of 2-3 players in one go, he isn't that man.

So for me yes, not doing anything wrong is pretty much the aim for a boy playing a man's game at the moment.

Which is fine for him, but not for a team playing the against one of the best team’s the world has ever seen - literally being lauded for occupying space.

 

[HanDoJin]

Worth remembering City have dicked far better squads than ours all season long while we're hanging players out to dry

 

[Wolvensam]

Silva did well tonight. We were better when he came on, as we often are. It's not really a coincidence anymore.