My post Man City thoughts

[Matt10]

Overall, I think it was a solid performance. I definitely do not think the sky is falling. Man City is the best team in the league, so what honestly could be expected here? I came into it just looking for good individual performances, a bit of defensive shape improvement and solid passing sequences.

4-3-3 formation

Rico - Felt he had a good match. He sure can kick the ball can't he? Great to see how reliable he is there. I thought he made some good saves as well. The 2nd goal was unfortunate as he just made a brilliant one against Gabriel Dejesus. I'm warmed up to him now that I've seen him play.

Odoi - Had no issues with him at all. He was ball watching a bit, but honestly who isn't when you play City. They are a notch above the rest with their varying runs that seem to defy logic. He played square passes where he could, and cleared when necessary. Again, I'm warming up to Odoi because he is so solid, but hard to think of another CB with his frame that can do what he's doing.

Ream - We play a very narrow defense, so this pulls our CBs out of position. Ream was left on an island several times, as was Odoi. I think Tim's been a concern since he's been back. Not able to pull off the same type of things he could last year. Both our CBs are getting pushed back more than they should, and Ream's becoming a casualty in a system that is built around offense and nimble defenders - but the premier league quality forwards do not mess about as they are both strong and agile.

Fosu-Mensah - Switched off in spurts. There were times where I'd look at him just completely flat-footed. He does not look to open his mouth to communicate, and seems to reluctantly cover or face up against the ball carrier. Tremendous athleticism, but it can only take you so far. He's young though, so hopefully he starts to get engrossed and brings a bit more energy to the table.

Sess - An incredible professional. Can he do no wrong? As solid as I've ever seen him play at the LB position - which was no easy task against City. Diaz tried to shake him multiple times, but Sess just held his ground. Problem was the press that City bring was overwhelming Sess multiple times, so he was dispossessed a couple times as a result. Going forward, I'd still want him higher up the pitch, and LeMarchand can take his place at LB until Bryan is healthy.

Seri - Probably his best performance defensively. Not necessarily in just tackles, but more so in shielding the ball, gaining position on players, a lot of physical strength from a small player like him - really surprised me. His composure is incredible, think he had like 90% pass today. That combo of Seri-Zambo-Cairney could very well work moving forward.

Anguissa - Oh, Zambo... I will say that I can see a better effort made in this match, but still have that sense of apathy when he does not have the ball. Or just this overconfidence that looks like he does not care, when he has the ball. It is so strange, because when he actually had some aggression and bullied players, he looked frightening. A beast. Exactly what we need there. I've been hard on him, but honestly this was his best performance so far.

Cairney - Maintains possession in so many instances we could have lost it. A lot of composure on the ball, and is learning to stay a bit higher on defense to find Schurrle or Mitro. Basically, different than it was last year with Kmac and StefJo being his outlets. This is why our counters looked as good as they did. When we started moving the ball, Cairney was at the heart of it all.

Schurrle - Cannot believe the hate he receives. Yet, I am pretty sure he didn't miss a pass. He took a total of 2 shots, 1 which he was isolated at the top and chose to cut in and shoot instead of pass off to Sess, and another in which was ill-advised as we had built numbers. Personally, I do not care if he takes shots. He's our 2nd top scorer for crying out loud. He's got the confidence and the drive to be positive and score goals, then so be it. If those 2 shots went in, noone would be complaining or slagging him. In a system that supports a 1 forward set up, it should not be a surprise that when we get into position to shoot, we take the chance.

Vietto - MOTM for me. All over the pitch. That low center of gravity and close control, it gave City some difficulty. He was fouled, not called, he was tackled and rightfully so. He wasn't perfect with his passing, but at least he was positive in trying to recover. I think I saw his heatmap literally go from box-to-box. I made a joke somewhere earlier about if I had to choose between our two RBs of Christie and FM, I'd pick Vietto for sheer energy's sake. In all seriousness, he's got something special, and hopefully matches like this breed confidence, especially more confidence to shoot on-sight.

Mitro - He just does it all. Crowded out several times, just never gave up. Tracked back to help the defense, I can't remember that happening at all last year. Wish he had more pace on him, but regardless, he is our striker. Unfortunately did not get any crosses into him, and the shots he was able to take were tightly contested.

Positives as a team:

> Defensive shape - Much better. Still very narrow, but that is not going to change anytime soon. Rico is commanding the area well, and talking to his defenders and midfielders. Hoping for more effort from Fosu-Mensah going forward, and Ream start to get switched on more. I think LeMarchand brings in solidarity to the lineup, so hopefully that happens and Sess can go up top to score some goals.

> Midfield passing - We had some brief moments of slick passing sequences. Thinking the Seri-Anguissa-Cairney combo is one to stick with. Seri and Cairney read eachother very well, while Anguissa is still learning the trade as a premier league CDM. His body language needs a bit of changing for me. I want to see more of the beast to let loose, and look like he's having fun out there.

> Shooting on-sight - I welcomed it. If you get to Man City's box, and you have a chance to shoot, even if your Tim Ream you need to take that shot. If we were laying siege upon their goal that would be one thing to criticize Schurrle taking every shot, but it was not near the case. Call it selfish, call it confident, doesn't matter if they go in. I'm an effort guy, so I'll gladly take that in this scenario against City.

> Formation/System change - there were none! This is a positive for me. The subs that came in were contextual and like-for-like subs. Christie can play midfield, and he did coming in for Vietto. Ayite came in for Schurrle, same thing. Then LeMarchand coming in for Ream, again, same thing. We did not concede any goals when those subs were made. That's not to give them credit, it's more so to further confirm that there is not always this need to change system and formations when making substitutions. A sub alone can change the dynamics of the game from play style and tendencies. I hope Slav approaches it like this more going forward.

Negatives as a team:

> Switched off at the wrong time - Sane cut in on the left, and Vietto tackled the ball away from him, but the 2nd goal was more so a product of 3 Fulham players that ran into eachother: Zambo, FM and Seri, then decided to have a chat, and forget to drop back.

Sane starting to cut in...Vietto defending...


Ball deflects and Sane finds Jesus...see the 3 man cluster at the top...


3 man cluster remains at the top of the box despite how much time has passed and now leaving players open...


So, take my opinion how you will. I believe in staying positive, but cautious. I've been wrong about players, but I'll gladly change my mind if it's a logical point being made and not generalization that seems to be the trend lately. I think we've got incredible players that are very close to gelling, and more performances like this, regardless of the end result, will be a very small stepping stone. I do hope that our manager focuses on a less complicated system and formation going forward. Too many complications and moving parts, and that just introduces more chance of the unknown. This was an extremely tough match, but I am sure they see it as a positive more than a negative due to the strong moments, but there is still a lot of work to be done.

[hovewhite]

Considering the result in many ways a positive performance and bodes well for the terriers on Monday.

[FulhamStu]

Thanks, excellent read.

[@jolslover]

Good take

[KJS]

Cheers good summary for those of us not able to make it 👍

[Moltobueno]

Feel the same about schurrle.

Always puts his heart in the game, his touches look like robust ones but actually he rarely makes an error.

I like we have someone who takes a lot of shots. If you don't shoot, you can't score, simple :)

 

[colinwhite]

Well done Matt ,excellent post ,thanks.

[HV71]

Top analysis as always- I always look forward to your comments as they never appear to suffer from any bias

Thanks

[joeemslie]

he rarely makes an error. 

This is categorically not true. I like him too, but factually, you are incorrect. He makes so many 'unforced' errors where he confuses himself and loses the ball.

[Twig]

Thanks Matt, didn't see the game so I can't agree or disagree with anything you say. Just enjoyed the read, very balanced.

[OdecaMynoT]

Excellent report. Thanks.

[bog]

Excellent posting Mat. Did we nearly score right at the end when Sess set up Mitro?

092.gif

[Matt10]

Aw shucks, thanks, guys. I saw 11 replies, and I wasn't quite ready to get into a scuffle yet (it's 5 AM here!). Glad to hear it's not showing as wasted breath or any bias. I really do approach it with giving everyone a chance and try not to generalize without explaining specifics.

Excellent posting Mat. Did we nearly score right at the end when Sess set up Mitro?

092.gif

Yes, Sess could have gone down the sideline, but cut in and passed the ball square to Mitro, but the shot was just slightly deflected. Christie was on the backpost. I feel like he could have stretched or slid into the ball to give any kind of shot on frame, but he let it roll out for a corner. If that was Vietto, I'm sure he would have stretched as much as he could to get there. The corner, for some odd reason, was a short one. It's funny because the camera panned to Mitro this whole time, and he's motioning for a cross from the corner, but Seri and Sess play it short and eventually Fosu-Mensah is caught offsides. Go figure!

[Bill2]

Excellent summary looking at the positives. At the game last night and agree with the majority. A big step forward for all involved.

[Mitch]

A very good post. I disagree on almost all of it, but it's an interesting view point with reasoning over just sheer blind positivity at least. Fair play.

[Nightwind15]

Excellent read! Worthy of note in any sports publication.  I have found some of our form this season to be lacking and it points to the quality of players we have vs the deep pocket teams in the league.   I love the attitude of the boys in the matches and there is a certain tenacity and never say die attitude each week.  A win would do wonders for the club at this point. 

[I Ronic]

Thanks for all of that  :54:

[Baszab]

Great review

But I thought (some) players looked disinterested - like going through the motions of a practise game that they knew they would lose - which is a bout right really

[nose returns]

Overall, I think it was a solid performance. I definitely do not think the sky is falling. Man City is the best team in the league, so what honestly could be expected here? I came into it just looking for good individual performances, a bit of defensive shape improvement and solid passing sequences.

4-3-3 formation

Rico - Felt he had a good match. He sure can kick the ball can't he? Great to see how reliable he is there. I thought he made some good saves as well. The 2nd goal was unfortunate as he just made a brilliant one against Gabriel Dejesus. I'm warmed up to him now that I've seen him play.

Odoi - Had no issues with him at all. He was ball watching a bit, but honestly who isn't when you play City. They are a notch above the rest with their varying runs that seem to defy logic. He played square passes where he could, and cleared when necessary. Again, I'm warming up to Odoi because he is so solid, but hard to think of another CB with his frame that can do what he's doing.

Ream - We play a very narrow defense, so this pulls our CBs out of position. Ream was left on an island several times, as was Odoi. I think Tim's been a concern since he's been back. Not able to pull off the same type of things he could last year. Both our CBs are getting pushed back more than they should, and Ream's becoming a casualty in a system that is built around offense and nimble defenders - but the premier league quality forwards do not mess about as they are both strong and agile.

Fosu-Mensah - Switched off in spurts. There were times where I'd look at him just completely flat-footed. He does not look to open his mouth to communicate, and seems to reluctantly cover or face up against the ball carrier. Tremendous athleticism, but it can only take you so far. He's young though, so hopefully he starts to get engrossed and brings a bit more energy to the table.

Sess - An incredible professional. Can he do no wrong? As solid as I've ever seen him play at the LB position - which was no easy task against City. Diaz tried to shake him multiple times, but Sess just held his ground. Problem was the press that City bring was overwhelming Sess multiple times, so he was dispossessed a couple times as a result. Going forward, I'd still want him higher up the pitch, and LeMarchand can take his place at LB until Bryan is healthy.

Seri - Probably his best performance defensively. Not necessarily in just tackles, but more so in shielding the ball, gaining position on players, a lot of physical strength from a small player like him - really surprised me. His composure is incredible, think he had like 90% pass today. That combo of Seri-Zambo-Cairney could very well work moving forward.

Anguissa - Oh, Zambo... I will say that I can see a better effort made in this match, but still have that sense of apathy when he does not have the ball. Or just this overconfidence that looks like he does not care, when he has the ball. It is so strange, because when he actually had some aggression and bullied players, he looked frightening. A beast. Exactly what we need there. I've been hard on him, but honestly this was his best performance so far.

Cairney - Maintains possession in so many instances we could have lost it. A lot of composure on the ball, and is learning to stay a bit higher on defense to find Schurrle or Mitro. Basically, different than it was last year with Kmac and StefJo being his outlets. This is why our counters looked as good as they did. When we started moving the ball, Cairney was at the heart of it all.

Schurrle - Cannot believe the hate he receives. Yet, I am pretty sure he didn't miss a pass. He took a total of 2 shots, 1 which he was isolated at the top and chose to cut in and shoot instead of pass off to Sess, and another in which was ill-advised as we had built numbers. Personally, I do not care if he takes shots. He's our 2nd top scorer for crying out loud. He's got the confidence and the drive to be positive and score goals, then so be it. If those 2 shots went in, noone would be complaining or slagging him. In a system that supports a 1 forward set up, it should not be a surprise that when we get into position to shoot, we take the chance.

Vietto - MOTM for me. All over the pitch. That low center of gravity and close control, it gave City some difficulty. He was fouled, not called, he was tackled and rightfully so. He wasn't perfect with his passing, but at least he was positive in trying to recover. I think I saw his heatmap literally go from box-to-box. I made a joke somewhere earlier about if I had to choose between our two RBs of Christie and FM, I'd pick Vietto for sheer energy's sake. In all seriousness, he's got something special, and hopefully matches like this breed confidence, especially more confidence to shoot on-sight.

Mitro - He just does it all. Crowded out several times, just never gave up. Tracked back to help the defense, I can't remember that happening at all last year. Wish he had more pace on him, but regardless, he is our striker. Unfortunately did not get any crosses into him, and the shots he was able to take were tightly contested.

Positives as a team:

> Defensive shape - Much better. Still very narrow, but that is not going to change anytime soon. Rico is commanding the area well, and talking to his defenders and midfielders. Hoping for more effort from Fosu-Mensah going forward, and Ream start to get switched on more. I think LeMarchand brings in solidarity to the lineup, so hopefully that happens and Sess can go up top to score some goals.

> Midfield passing - We had some brief moments of slick passing sequences. Thinking the Seri-Anguissa-Cairney combo is one to stick with. Seri and Cairney read eachother very well, while Anguissa is still learning the trade as a premier league CDM. His body language needs a bit of changing for me. I want to see more of the beast to let loose, and look like he's having fun out there.

> Shooting on-sight - I welcomed it. If you get to Man City's box, and you have a chance to shoot, even if your Tim Ream you need to take that shot. If we were laying siege upon their goal that would be one thing to criticize Schurrle taking every shot, but it was not near the case. Call it selfish, call it confident, doesn't matter if they go in. I'm an effort guy, so I'll gladly take that in this scenario against City.

> Formation/System change - there were none! This is a positive for me. The subs that came in were contextual and like-for-like subs. Christie can play midfield, and he did coming in for Vietto. Ayite came in for Schurrle, same thing. Then LeMarchand coming in for Ream, again, same thing. We did not concede any goals when those subs were made. That's not to give them credit, it's more so to further confirm that there is not always this need to change system and formations when making substitutions. A sub alone can change the dynamics of the game from play style and tendencies. I hope Slav approaches it like this more going forward.

Negatives as a team:

> Switched off at the wrong time - Sane cut in on the left, and Vietto tackled the ball away from him, but the 2nd goal was more so a product of 3 Fulham players that ran into eachother: Zambo, FM and Seri, then decided to have a chat, and forget to drop back.

Sane starting to cut in...Vietto defending...


Ball deflects and Sane finds Jesus...see the 3 man cluster at the top...


3 man cluster remains at the top of the box despite how much time has passed and now leaving players open...


So, take my opinion how you will. I believe in staying positive, but cautious. I've been wrong about players, but I'll gladly change my mind if it's a logical point being made and not generalization that seems to be the trend lately. I think we've got incredible players that are very close to gelling, and more performances like this, regardless of the end result, will be a very small stepping stone. I do hope that our manager focuses on a less complicated system and formation going forward. Too many complications and moving parts, and that just introduces more chance of the unknown. This was an extremely tough match, but I am sure they see it as a positive more than a negative due to the strong moments, but there is still a lot of work to be done.

good post but do not agree with some of it... but love the pics. they show during the sequence that fosu/serri/anguiss are rooted to the spot and make barely nay attempt to get themselves in the box to help, i.e. they have given up! if teywould have tracked back, then there was a good chance that atleast one of them might have got a challenge in, if nothing else they would have added pressure on the player shooting.... fossu is dreadful in the sequesnce, anguissa as a supposed defensive midfielder not much better and serri as a quality addition has to do more in this respect.... that is why we let in so many goals, or at least one reason, the players are simply not trying anywhere near hard enough.  as for schurrle, i do not hate him, he is talented but totally selfish and not a tem plyer as was evident throughout the game, prefering to attempt impossible shots rather than using the overlapping player...we should get rid of him he destabilises the team.... how strange vietto posp up with such a refreshingly good performance... him TC and sess at least looked the part and put in the effort.

[YoungsBitter]

Nice thoughtful analysis, good stuff!
Everyone had been hoping we would field a team that could play and needed to play together, this is about our best line up currently. I still maintain Tim Ream is just too slow for this league and Odoi is too flat footed and error prone to start; I love them both for what they did last year but we will be relegated with them as our starting CBs. I am hoping that its a match fitness issue with Mawson and we see him with MLM on Monday night.
Hope TFM gets his act together quickly.