I was rubbing my hands in anticipation on Tuesday afternoon; really looking forward to seeing my beloved Blues in action in the league on a Tuesday night. Then, at around about 7:10pm, I saw the team line-up.
My jaw flopped open and after scanning ‘the 11’ for a third & final time, my head dropped and my heart sank a little.
Where was the attacking threat available to us…where was the true width?! The answer was that a lot of it was sat on the bench and guess what…they weren’t even used!
This is what I wrote on one site the following morning as my disappointed refused to subside…
Foden being played out of his best position; no Torres or Silva. A real lack of attacking threat & pace at home against a struggling side. I do blame Pep for this one and agree with another poster - some of the players look a little frustrated.
Thankfully, other teams are dropping points too and the top half of the table is SO close. We have a game in hand over most too. There’re the positives.
But if Pep doesn't start picking better 11s and putting round pegs in round holes then I hope, at least, that we don't wait until the summer to bring in an additional creative spark to help Kev in that department and / or more firepower in January. God knows we need it...surely Pep does too.
Over the last few weeks, I have been sitting back and shaking my head whilst looking at the increasing number of disgruntled Blues (assuming they are of course) posting comments about how dull we have become as a team and how Pep has lost the plot; with a lot suggesting that it’s time for a managerial change. WAY over the top comments, I was muttering to myself.
However, although I fall WAY short of calling for Guardiola’s head, I think the Spanish boss does need to give that part of his anatomy a serious wobble; take a good look at himself in the mirror and ask his reflection…could he be picking better with the talent at his disposal and ask himself WHY we’ve gone from a side full of gusto to one that looks so plodding for long-periods of time.
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that as the ‘fizz’ has gone flat, the goals have dried up…
77% possession last Tuesday and for what?! 26 shots but only 7 of them heading into the goal before being blocked / saved – that’s nearly 1 in 3 shots off target!
Huhhhh…
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| St. Mary's Stadium |
Predicted line-up, subs and outcome:
(Number correct from the starting line-up in the last game: 8/11).
Fluid 4-1-4-1 / 4-5-1 / 4-3-3:
____________________Carson____________________
Walker________________________________Zinchenko
____________Steffen_________Mendy______________
____________________Aguero____________________
Ederson__________________________________Jesus
_____________Silva___________Mahrez____________
___________________De Bruyne__________________
Subs: Cancelo, Laporte, Stones, Ake, Dias, Fernandinho, Gundogan, me, my wife.
Okay, I’m (still) letting my frustration out by being just a…LI-TTLE bit sarcastic here. Huh…it did actually cross my mind for a fleeting moment to post this line-up to Pep with a note that would read: “Ee-arr Pep, give this a go you balloon!”.
Deep breath…
v Southampton
Fluid 4-1-4-1 / 4-5-1 / 4-3-3:
____________________Jesus____________________
Sterling________________________________Mahrez
__________De Bruyne________Silva______________
_________________Fernandinho_________________
Cancelo_________________________________Walker
_____________Laporte_______Stones_____________
____________________Ederson___________________
Subs: Steffen, Mendy, Ake, Dias, Rodri, Gundogan, Foden, Torres, Aguero. Yes…9 subs allowed now…
Ederson keeps the ‘glove spot’.
I don’t know why but I’ve just got a feeling that Aymeric might get popped back into the starting 11. John to partner the Frenchman; Joao & Kyle either side.
Fernandinho – just get a feeling he’ll get a start as the defensive midfielder. Ahead of him, a quartet of Raheem, ‘a must’ Kevin, Bernardo & manager favourite, Riyad.
Gabriel continues ‘up top’…and continues his search for goals.
Zack the reserve keeper; Benny, Nathan & Ruben are the defensive replacement options from ‘the 9’. Ilkay, Phil, Ferran & Sergio are the midfield / wing / attacking choices from the side; the latter only having re-joined training today having-had-to miss out for 2 days because of more injury concerns (God we (still) need another striker!).
Notable absences:
- Eric Garcia – Injured for another 1-½ to 2 weeks.
- Oleksandr Zinchenko – Injured - both reason & length of time out still unknown at this stage.
Do I agree with Pep’s (predicted) line-up?
Fluid 4-5-1 / 4-3-3:
_____________________Jesus____________________
__Sterling______________________________Torres__
___________Foden______________Silva____________
___________________De Bruyne__________________
Cancelo_________________________________Walker
_____________Stones__________Dias_____________
____________________Ederson___________________
Subs: Steffen, Mendy, Ake, Laporte, Fernandinho, Rodri, Gundogan, Mahrez, Aguero.
I nearly went for Zack starting in net because I get the feeling that Ederson needs a little ‘reset’. But I didn’t…
Cancelo is in form and, so for me, he gets the left-wing back slot. Kyle on the right is a ‘no brainer’ in my eyes and in-between those, I think you’d be wise to stick with something that has been working.
Kevin is NOT a defensive midfielder here – I’ve not put one in. He’s depicted as the slightly-deeper-lying midfielder because, in this line up, I can see him being the one to ‘pull the strings’ and pick the passes; perhaps swapping / sharing that role with Bernardo too. Phil has the energy to both harass & disposes the opposition as well as attack and…“attack” is the word here – plenty ‘in that 11’ to drive at Southampton’s defence with pace.
Need to then change that? Well, that’s why Fernandinho, Rodri & Gundogan are on the bench.
Notable absences:
- Eric Garcia – Injured for another 1-½ to 2 weeks.
- Oleksandr Zinchenko – Injured - both reason & length of time out still unknown at this stage.
Result? I’ve watched a fair few minutes of Southampton this season for some reason and I like what I’ve seen for the most part. I think they have a lovely balance of a strong, organised defence generally (although that can have its bad moments) and various attacking threats; all mixed in with a very good work ethic.
I’ll come straight to it – this is a draw for me (I hope I’m wrong in the right way of course because we now find ourselves in a position where even a win won’t pull us into the top 4…and it’s Christmas in a week’s time!).
Last season’s, corresponding pre-match prediction and result…
Prediction: Win
Result: Lost
(Pre-match blog posting from that game)
Expected weather conditions during the game: Dull…and that’s the forecast on our football at the moment. Sorry, I’ll stop now and will ‘shake it off’. Sunshine & showers is the flavour of the day on the south coast with a rather stiff, south-westerly breeze blowing-in of the English Channel. 11C is the rather mild temperature for mid-to-late December – that’ll be the wind direction for you…
Weather update for Southampton at 7:26am on 19.12.2020: Strong gusts of winds are now forecasted throughout the game of 40+ MPH. Keep the ball on the floor fellas!
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