Our Defensive System Under Pep

[I Just Blue Myself]

Our defence was as shambolic as your attempt to spell "defensive".

Not his most stellar effort.

[Slim]

I am wondering if Pep is REALLY clever or just amazed how many crap defenders we have so he's trying to reinvent the Wolf.

[johnny crossan]

Zabba is staying to help Pep, things are that bad

[Nigels Tackle]

Our defence was as shambolic as your attempt to spell "defensive".

i understood what he meant though
but i still haven't worked out what the players were doing yesterday

[Blue Blood]

I like very much what Pep is attempting to do with our defence, if we can adapt into it it will be powerful....

However...

As it stands now we are 3 players short of doing it... we need a new GK who can pass (Joe and Willy just can't ball play) and two new ball playing CB's (Fernando at CB, WTF!?!) and probably another month of training (no chance of this!).

Sunderland could be a horror show at this rate! Txiki save us!

[Slim]

Our defence was as shambolic as your attempt to spell "defensive".

i understood what he meant though
but i still haven't worked out what the players were doing yesterday

We need a like button


ANDY! HEY ANDY! MISTER PRIME MINISTER!

[john@staustell]

Joe always looks so uncomfortable with the ball at his feet and I just wonder if this concern transmits itself to our defenders.

I'm just musing but I wonder if this is partly why Tosin tried to play the ball, which led to their 3rd goal, across the back line, when it would seem to have been an easier pass to direct it back to Joe. I know it was an awful ball and I don't want to excuse it but I just wonder if, subconsciously or otherwise, our defenders don't trust him and, at times, get caught in a bit of a dilemma because of that.

This summer he's looking quite uncomfortable with the ball at his hands to be honest.

We've always played out from the back so I'm not sure why it is such a shambles. Interesting that the Mangler seems to be being shipped out despite the obvious lack of CBs.

Can't say Pep lacks confidence.

On the bright side plan A is not to let Sunderland or Steaua get in our half!

[Mikhail Chigorin]

Joe always looks so uncomfortable with the ball at his feet and I just wonder if this concern transmits itself to our defenders.

I'm just musing but I wonder if this is partly why Tosin tried to play the ball, which led to their 3rd goal, across the back line, when it would seem to have been an easier pass to direct it back to Joe. I know it was an awful ball and I don't want to excuse it but I just wonder if, subconsciously or otherwise, our defenders don't trust him and, at times, get caught in a bit of a dilemma because of that.

This summer he's looking quite uncomfortable with the ball at his hands to be honest.

We've always played out from the back so I'm not sure why it is such a shambles. Interesting that the Mangler seems to be being shipped out despite the obvious lack of CBs.

Can't say Pep lacks confidence.

On the bright side plan A is not to let Sunderland or Steaua get in our half!

I was a bit disappointed with Joe's effort to try and save the first goal, however, I'm not a goalkeeper so I'm not qualified to criticise.

It's just that, having got a hand to it, I was a bit surprised it then went in.

[City64]

Could be a case for playing Yaya at CB until Vinny fit ? Didn't he play there for Barca under Pep ?

[Hazy2]

I would swap Bony for Ashley Williams, He would settle in like he was here all his life, bring a calmness we lack, also he is a leader. 31/32 is no age in the game now. We need a tweak and IMHO he is it, Pep needs players he can trust to make the system work. AW would be a quick fix. It wont happen I know that.

[Mase]

I can't believe that left-back still isn't sorted after years of everyone knowing we need a decent LB. After the 11/12 season it was obvious that position needing sorting and we've still not sorted it.

This kid coming through may well be the answer but if he's not going to play him straight away we need to bring someone in.

[Cocacolajojo]

Joe always looks so uncomfortable with the ball at his feet and I just wonder if this concern transmits itself to our defenders.

I'm just musing but I wonder if this is partly why Tosin tried to play the ball, which led to their 3rd goal, across the back line, when it would seem to have been an easier pass to direct it back to Joe. I know it was an awful ball and I don't want to excuse it but I just wonder if, subconsciously or otherwise, our defenders don't trust him and, at times, get caught in a bit of a dilemma because of that.

This summer he's looking quite uncomfortable with the ball at his hands to be honest.

We've always played out from the back so I'm not sure why it is such a shambles. Interesting that the Mangler seems to be being shipped out despite the obvious lack of CBs.

Can't say Pep lacks confidence.

On the bright side plan A is not to let Sunderland or Steaua get in our half!

I was a bit disappointed with Joe's effort to try and save the first goal, however, I'm not a goalkeeper so I'm not qualified to criticise.

It's just that, having got a hand to it, I was a bit surprised it then went in.

First game he's involved in since the break, give him a break ;)

[I Just Blue Myself]

Joe always looks so uncomfortable with the ball at his feet and I just wonder if this concern transmits itself to our defenders.

I'm just musing but I wonder if this is partly why Tosin tried to play the ball, which led to their 3rd goal, across the back line, when it would seem to have been an easier pass to direct it back to Joe. I know it was an awful ball and I don't want to excuse it but I just wonder if, subconsciously or otherwise, our defenders don't trust him and, at times, get caught in a bit of a dilemma because of that.

This summer he's looking quite uncomfortable with the ball at his hands to be honest.

We've always played out from the back so I'm not sure why it is such a shambles. Interesting that the Mangler seems to be being shipped out despite the obvious lack of CBs.

Can't say Pep lacks confidence.

On the bright side plan A is not to let Sunderland or Steaua get in our half!

I was a bit disappointed with Joe's effort to try and save the first goal, however, I'm not a goalkeeper so I'm not qualified to criticise.

It's just that, having got a hand to it, I was a bit surprised it then went in.

I wasn't surprised, as it was his left hand.

[john@staustell]

Well, I also thought he had dived on the 3rd goal at the edge of the area, but then the ball appeared again and was fired in. But he does look a lot more the part than Willy!

[Foreverinbluedreams]

Joe always looks so uncomfortable with the ball at his feet and I just wonder if this concern transmits itself to our defenders.

I'm just musing but I wonder if this is partly why Tosin tried to play the ball, which led to their 3rd goal, across the back line, when it would seem to have been an easier pass to direct it back to Joe. I know it was an awful ball and I don't want to excuse it but I just wonder if, subconsciously or otherwise, our defenders don't trust him and, at times, get caught in a bit of a dilemma because of that.

This summer he's looking quite uncomfortable with the ball at his hands to be honest.

We've always played out from the back so I'm not sure why it is such a shambles. Interesting that the Mangler seems to be being shipped out despite the obvious lack of CBs.

Can't say Pep lacks confidence.

On the bright side plan A is not to let Sunderland or Steaua get in our half!

I was a bit disappointed with Joe's effort to try and save the first goal, however, I'm not a goalkeeper so I'm not qualified to criticise.

It's just that, having got a hand to it, I was a bit surprised it then went in.

I wasn't surprised, as it was his left hand.

He did well to get anything on it.

[PrezIke]

Could be a case for playing Yaya at CB until Vinny fit ? Didn't he play there for Barca under Pep ?

Yes, he did. I suggested this on BM about a month ago and was called crazy, but he has many of the attributes, and then I read on CityWatch about two weeks ago that this could be a valuable idea.

I don't think Pep sees Yaya as anything other than an attacking midfielder at this point though. He can get caught out for pace and I don't think he wants to be anywhere but in the final third of the pitch.

[City64]

Could be a case for playing Yaya at CB until Vinny fit ? Didn't he play there for Barca under Pep ?

Yes, he did. I suggested this on BM about a month ago and was called crazy, but he has many of the attributes, and then I read on CityWatch about two weeks ago that this could be a valuable idea.

I don't think Pep sees Yaya as anything other than an attacking midfielder at this point though. He can get caught out for pace and I don't think he wants to be anywhere but in the final third of the pitch.

Yaya still a world class passer of the ball and this is what pep wants at the back no ? One thing is for sure it is going to take pep a while to mould this squad into what he wants and I am guessing there are another 2 or 3 more players to come in before the transfer deadline . Pep could also blow us all away with Saturdays line up ........ we will see ;-)

[Nigels Tackle]

if anyone had said 6 weeks ago that yaya should be playing at cb in a pep guardiola team they have been bullied of the site quicker than you can say phips.

[DoomMerchant]

Could be a case for playing Yaya at CB until Vinny fit ? Didn't he play there for Barca under Pep ?

Yes, he did. I suggested this on BM about a month ago and was called crazy, but he has many of the attributes, and then I read on CityWatch about two weeks ago that this could be a valuable idea.

I don't think Pep sees Yaya as anything other than an attacking midfielder at this point though. He can get caught out for pace and I don't think he wants to be anywhere but in the final third of the pitch.

but he really didn't tho...he played there in a pinch due to massive injuries to basically 3 CBs at the tail end of a season and one match he happened to play in was a CL final vs the Rags which they won. And he was decent. For sure. But he's not "played there under Pep" in any consistent fashion to act like it's a position he was favored in. That's complete horseshit.

I think it would be about as dumb an idea as i could envision.

cheers

[kennyboy]

I also find it strange if Mangler leaves before Otter. Not sure about Stones either, but who else in..?
Hope we get in a quick wingback, Zabba has done his part for us, nice to see he got the armband thou.
Kolarov can join Nasri out the door.