Fortress Etihad

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

We used to be rock solid home team. Mancini built us that way and in Pellegrini's early days we were always very good at home. We sometimes sucked balls away and especially in Europe but at home there were very few who could match us. All that seems to have vanished now. Teams like Southamptonnand Everton come to our place and they have game plan and they can easily stick to it. I can't understand why that is.

[Original Dub]

The only disappointing performance at home under this manager was today so it might be a bit early.

Maybe wait until we lose at home?

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

The only disappointing performance at home under this manager was today so it might be a bit early.

Maybe wait until we lose at home?

I'm not talking about Pep era (although Everton game was almoat equally crap as today). I'm talking about longer term. Teams like Southampton today used to come to Etihad shitting themselves. That is not the case anymore. This is part of longer continuum with games like Leicester, Spurs, Everton last year. I think it started with that Liverpool mess last year and has something to do with confidence.

[South Stand Balti]

We used to be rock solid home team. Mancini built us that way and in Pellegrini's early days we were always very good at home. We sometimes sucked balls away and especially in Europe but at home there were very few who could match us. All that seems to have vanished now. Teams like Southamptonnand Everton come to our place and they have game plan and they can easily stick to it. I can't understand why that is.

We had better players then. We also used to stick 6 past Arsenal, Spurs and the Rags during that time. We aren't at that level anymore.

[Nigels Tackle]

We used to be rock solid home team. Mancini built us that way and in Pellegrini's early days we were always very good at home. We sometimes sucked balls away and especially in Europe but at home there were very few who could match us. All that seems to have vanished now. Teams like Southamptonnand Everton come to our place and they have game plan and they can easily stick to it. I can't understand why that is.

We had better players then. We also used to stick 6 past Arsenal, Spurs and the Rags during that time. We aren't at that level anymore.

thanks to the spafia's transfer dealings

[South Stand Balti]

We used to be rock solid home team. Mancini built us that way and in Pellegrini's early days we were always very good at home. We sometimes sucked balls away and especially in Europe but at home there were very few who could match us. All that seems to have vanished now. Teams like Southamptonnand Everton come to our place and they have game plan and they can easily stick to it. I can't understand why that is.

We had better players then. We also used to stick 6 past Arsenal, Spurs and the Rags during that time. We aren't at that level anymore.

thanks to the spafia's transfer dealings

Correct

[Mikhail Chigorin]

We used to be rock solid home team. Mancini built us that way and in Pellegrini's early days we were always very good at home. We sometimes sucked balls away and especially in Europe but at home there were very few who could match us. All that seems to have vanished now. Teams like Southamptonnand Everton come to our place and they have game plan and they can easily stick to it. I can't understand why that is.

We had better players then. We also used to stick 6 past Arsenal, Spurs and the Rags during that time. We aren't at that level anymore.

Neither are Arsenal and Spurs.

[South Stand Balti]

We used to be rock solid home team. Mancini built us that way and in Pellegrini's early days we were always very good at home. We sometimes sucked balls away and especially in Europe but at home there were very few who could match us. All that seems to have vanished now. Teams like Southamptonnand Everton come to our place and they have game plan and they can easily stick to it. I can't understand why that is.

We had better players then. We also used to stick 6 past Arsenal, Spurs and the Rags during that time. We aren't at that level anymore.

Neither are Arsenal and Spurs.

They both qualified for Europe that season.

[Mase]

The Etihad is a shithole! I hate the place.

I miss Maine Road

[Original Dub]

The only disappointing performance at home under this manager was today so it might be a bit early.

Maybe wait until we lose at home?

I'm not talking about Pep era (although Everton game was almoat equally crap as today). I'm talking about longer term. Teams like Southampton today used to come to Etihad shitting themselves. That is not the case anymore. This is part of longer continuum with games like Leicester, Spurs, Everton last year. I think it started with that Liverpool mess last year and has something to do with confidence.

The performance against everton was as crap as today??

That performance was brilliant and we were desperately unlucky not to win by a huge margin.

This is the very bollox I'm talking about for one or two on here.

When we play shit say we played shit. When we play great don't say we played shit.

Against everton we played great.

First half today we played shit.

That was the only time I've seen us play shit at home this season.

Last season came off the rails so I wouldn't connect it to this one at all.

[City64]

Ok , a few of us talked about this in length in the pub after the game today . Here is the problem as some of us see it ................

Pep comes along to the Premier League with his "play out from the back " system . It worked for a few weeks then all of a sudden the Premier League coaches / managers sussed it out very quickly . From a dead ball situation with Bravo in his own 6 yard area every City defender is "marked" and closed down by the oppo so Bravo has to play a ball out wide to Sterling / Sane or Nolito , our build out from the back is eradicated straight away . Today Bravo played some great balls out to said wingers to be fair , now then once this happened all the oppo have to do is fall straight back into the same old 2 banks of 4 and frustrate the fuck out of us = Peps system sussed already by oppo teams in the Premier League . Pep is going to have to have a rethink for sure ! The oppos 2 banks of 4 make for a frustrating afternoon for sure especially if we gift the cunts a goal start as regularly as we do !!!

Things have got tricky for Pep for sure lets see how good he really is .......

[Douglas Higginbottom]

The only disappointing performance at home under this manager was today so it might be a bit early.

Maybe wait until we lose at home?

I'm not talking about Pep era (although Everton game was almoat equally crap as today). I'm talking about longer term. Teams like Southampton today used to come to Etihad shitting themselves. That is not the case anymore. This is part of longer continuum with games like Leicester, Spurs, Everton last year. I think it started with that Liverpool mess last year and has something to do with confidence.

The performance against everton was as crap as today??

That performance was brilliant and we were desperately unlucky not to win by a huge margin.

This is the very bollox I'm talking about for one or two on here.

When we play shit say we played shit. When we play great don't say we played shit.

Against everton we played great.

First half today we played shit.

That was the only time I've seen us play shit at home this season.

Last season came off the rails so I wouldn't connect it to this one at all.

Sounds about right to me.2 penalty misses, special goalkeeping and missed chances says we played well against Everton. I was baffled today at half time re how poor we were. Part of that was that Southampton were a bit scared of us and that's why they adopted a mostly defensive approach to the game.To be honest in that first half if they hadn't we might have been out of the game altogether.

We were 2nd to many balls today and just lacked the energy needed for a Pep team approach. It got a bit better but not enough.

[stevefromdonny]

I hate other teams having a corner, all our players go into pen area and no one stays outside it, goalie gets ball then got to wait till our players start going out of area then throws it, if we have 4 players out of area that means they will have 6 players out of area to cover us, but if we can clear ball to one of these players we can be away on the counter attack, sometimes when we clear ball no one outside area and in it comes back into area wrong so very wrong

[nottsblue]

I hate other teams having a corner, all our players go into pen area and no one stays outside it, goalie gets ball then got to wait till our players start going out of area then throws it, if we have 4 players out of area that means they will have 6 players out of area to cover us, but if we can clear ball to one of these players we can be away on the counter attack, sometimes when we clear ball no one outside area and in it comes back into area wrong so very wrong

One of my biggest bug bears.

If we keep two men around the centre circle and one midway between our penalty area and the centre circle then the opposition need to keep both their centre halves back and at least one player in order to nullify our counter attacking threat. This in turn means the oppositions threat from the set piece is reduced. No good ever comes from having your forward in your own penalty area

[Beefymcfc]

Have we lost?

[Mase]

Have we lost?

Yeh 2-0 to Spurs and 4-0 to Barca. Haven't seen a win in five either.

[Mikhail Chigorin]

We used to be rock solid home team. Mancini built us that way and in Pellegrini's early days we were always very good at home. We sometimes sucked balls away and especially in Europe but at home there were very few who could match us. All that seems to have vanished now. Teams like Southamptonnand Everton come to our place and they have game plan and they can easily stick to it. I can't understand why that is.

We had better players then. We also used to stick 6 past Arsenal, Spurs and the Rags during that time. We aren't at that level anymore.

Neither are Arsenal and Spurs.

They both qualified for Europe that season.

And both are far better today than then.

[South Stand Balti]

We used to be rock solid home team. Mancini built us that way and in Pellegrini's early days we were always very good at home. We sometimes sucked balls away and especially in Europe but at home there were very few who could match us. All that seems to have vanished now. Teams like Southamptonnand Everton come to our place and they have game plan and they can easily stick to it. I can't understand why that is.

We had better players then. We also used to stick 6 past Arsenal, Spurs and the Rags during that time. We aren't at that level anymore.

Neither are Arsenal and Spurs.

They both qualified for Europe that season.

And both are far better today than then.

I understand the point you make. It's quite possible they are both better, but they both finished in the top 5 then. I just wish we had improved too.

[Beefymcfc]

Have we lost?

Yeh 2-0 to Spurs and 4-0 to Barca. Haven't seen a win in five either.

History, eh?

[Hutch's Shoulder]

I think he meant have we lost at the Etihad.