re: Manchester City 2015-16 thread "The Pepectations are high"

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You don't fall that far in one year strictly due to age.

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Especially for someone like him. He isn't the most athletic player on the pitch. He thrives off of vision and his glue like feet.

i don't think they're going to sign pogba, so there's that

i legitimately believe if real keeps zidane, they ship him out isco at a discount b/c everyone knows they're selling him.

they are famous for this

they paid 30M euros for him and i doubt they can sell him for that much in the offseason

i'm curious if they take a bath on james. he developed very bad blood very quickly with zidane and was very expensive

i honestly think they sell bale to united (while he still has max value) so they can sign the new galactico (pogba)

james and isco are shipped out if zidane stays

benzema may be shipped out (lukaku is the biggest name replacement i've heard but i could see them doing something cheeky and signing lacazette or maybe zlatan as a stop gap). this is all assuming auba stays true and stays with BvB

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His original draw to Manchester was Pellers, who knows if he'll want to come with Pellegrini out.

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well if pep runs a 4-3-3 without a dedicated CAM then he probably won't come. that's his problem with real (same with james)

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Isco has played CM at Madrid too.

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under anchelotti but he also was upset and that's where the original linking to city began

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City starting XI vs. Newcastle: Hart, Zabaleta, Kompany (c), Mangala, Kolarov, Fernando, Delph, Navas, Toure, De Bruyne, Aguero

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I'll be interested to see how this group lines up. It'll show whether Pellegrini is committed to De Bruyne playing in that 10/second striker role or not.


Also, Sterling back on the bench.

None of Kolorav, Kompany or Yaya can start against Real. What I just watched was atrocious from each one of them.

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None of Kolorav, Kompany or Yaya can start against Real. What I just watched was atrocious from each one of them.

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I don't expect Kolarov to start regardless. Clichy needed rest for his back. I THINK Pep finally realizes how important Clichy is to this squad.

IF Yaya starts, he can't be playing back with one of the Ferns. He doesn't give enough defensively. That goal was on Kolarov, but Yaya did absolutely nothing to help prevent it. Horrible.

Vinnie is a different story. I don't think he's ready and I think today showed that. When he's healthy I put him in 110% over Otamendi or Mangala....but he's not.

Unfortunately for the Real match, their strength is our weakness. They can kill on the wings. The Ferns can boss a midfield but we'll be super vulnerable with Zaba/Kolarov outside. They may not be the sexiest going forward, but we need Sagna and Clichy.

Aguero
Sterling - KDB - Navas
Fernandinho - Fernando
Clichy-Otamendi-Mangala-Sagna
Hart

That's my lineup. Normally I like the 4-3-3 we've run in the group but KDB is so damn nasty lately...you need him there.

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i feel like every one of my posts lately has been bashing yaya, but he has no place in this team right now. he's playing with 25% effort, which is low, even by his standards.

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He's so obviously checked out. He's had like one game in the past couple of months where he played hard. It's like playing with 10 men. Even offensively, his decision making is slow. He isn't picking out runners, and he's constantly losing possession/getting caught with the ball. He's such a liability at the moment.

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That goal was on Kolarov, but Yaya did absolutely nothing to help prevent it. Horrible.

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I think Delph's role in the goal is being overlooked. Delph is supposed to be Kolarov's wingman. Delph is just chilling in the middle of the box leaving Kolarov 1v1. It's an easy win. No other team in the league leaves their fullbacks 1v1 on the wings. It was inexcusable what Delph did on that play. I was extremely disappointed with how he played the entire night. He was as dreadful as anybody else that played. I've never seen him have a good game on the left.

I really want him to be successful at City, but I don't see where he gets game time in a Pep squad if this is how the plays against Newcastle.

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He's so obviously checked out. He's had like one game in the past couple of months where he played hard. It's like playing with 10 men. Even offensively, his decision making is slow. He isn't picking out runners, and he's constantly losing possession/getting caught with the ball. He's such a liability at the moment.

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Shameless Yaya white knighting. the WBA game changed when he came on. Granted, KDB came on at the same time but still...he looked solid. He didn't look bad against PSG when he subbed in. He wasn't great against Chelsea, but he did solid work on set pieces and pushed forward hard when we won the ball. He was pretty shite today but honestly, who wasn't?

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. It was inexcusable what Delph did on that play. I was extremely disappointed with how he played the entire night. He was as dreadful as anybody else that played. I've never seen him have a good game on the left.

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That's the problem though...Delph isn't a wide player. Hit him all you want but he was played out of position in a spot where he isn't strong and has little experience. Why the hell would Pellers play him there? Kolarov has been a LB on this team for 5 years now. He's shite in defense and ultimately that's his responsibility.

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I really want him to be successful at City, but I don't see where he gets game time in a Pep squad if this is how the plays against Newcastle.

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He's a role player at best on this squad and that won't change with Pep. If nothing else, Pep will play him in position.