Solid, Palace 0 vs 3 City [FAC 4th Round]

“I'm the happiest player on Earth”, Vincent Kompany – 29/01/2017.

Goals: ;Sterling (43' pen), Sane (71'), Toure (90+2)

Line Up (4-2-3-1) (match ratings intentionally blank); 

Caballero ( )
Sagna ( )
Koloraov ( )
Kompany ( )
Clichy ( )
Toure ( )
de Jesus ( )
Delph ( )
Silva ( ), (Fernando 78' ( ))
Sane ( ), (Nolito 84' ( ))
Sterling ( ), (Navas 66' ( ))

Referee; Michael Oliver (7.5)

Stats;Possession, 40%/60%; Shots, 8(3)/15(6); Corners, 3/9; Fouls, 13/19

No member of the blog team managed to get to Palace, for what looked on Periscope (thanks blue) to be a comfortable win.#CTID. 

@l0ngwayfr0mh0me

Robbed Blind, City 2 vs 2 Spurs

“ 'I'm so happy with the performance. I feel sorry for the players. When we play s***, I will say we played s***'”, Pep Guardiola – 21/01/2017.

Goals: Sane (49'), De Bruyne (54'); Alli (58'), Son (77')

Line Up (4-1-4-1) (match ratings in brackets); 

Bravo (5.5)
Zabaleta (7)
Kolorov (6)
Otamendi (5.5)
Clichy (5.5)
Toure (8)
Sterling (7), (de Jesus 82' (7))
Silva (7)
Sane (7.5)
Aguero 45' (6.5)
De Bruyne (7.5)

Referee; Andre Marriner (4)

Stats;Possession, 55%/45%; Shots, 17(7)/6(2); Corners, 5/4; Fouls, 10/7

I'm pretty much sick of writing about the appalling state of  refereeing in the Premier League, particularly when it comes to officiating City games. This was a game where on 76 minutes with City bossing the game, Raheem Sterling apparently made the "mistake" of staying on his feet when blatantly pushed in the back by Kyle Walker. On any other day for any other team that would have been not just a nailed on penalty, but a dismissal for Walker as he clearly denied a goal scoring opportunity, therefore nullifying any "double jeopardy" excuse to stay on the pitch. The referee did nothing. Allowing Spurs to waltz up the other end of the pitch an equalize. As time continues to march on with no changes to the refereeing qualifications or review system, and no sign of technology being considered to bail the FA out of the hole they have dug through no openness, governance or accountability for poor standards, refereeing just gets worse and worse, and the bias to which bad decisions go against Manchester City would now make Donald Trumps spin doctors blush. 

So with that all too familiar rant out of the way, what of the performance? 

Sensational for much of the game, City out thought and out fought the Premier League's top form team. Lots of players deserve praise for the movement and effort both on and off the ball, the first twenty minutes flew by, with Spurs pulled completely out of shape by the front five; eventually forcing a change in formation from Pochitino. Yaya, playing a sole holding role was pivotal, breaking up play and distributing the ball efficiently and accurately. DeBruyne bossed the game going forward. The obvious missing ingredient was a goal, and although Spurs do have the best defensive record for two seasons now, City should have gone in at half time at least one goal to the good. 

It was Sane that changed the game. Playing with two wingers has seen the best of City this Season, and his full return from injury was a breath of fresh air. On 49' he collected the ball on the edge of the penalty area from De Bruyne, and with Lloris having put himself in no mans land and unable to use his hands, Sane just strolled it in, 1-0. 

Fine minutes later De Bruyne made it two. A quick break down the right this time with Sterling putting the ball in with a good cross and De Bruyne latching onto Lloris's spilled ball, 2-0. 

That should have been that, Spurs had not had a shot on target, but of course that is City's Achilles heal. The first attempt on target a header from Alli wasn't dealt with and it was 2-1. The cheat of an equalizer was more disappointing defence  wise, but neither goal were particularly Bravo's fault. However the keeper now finds himself on the end of a statistic which means he's let in first attempts on target in 8 of his last 13 games. 

Luckily the refereeing brain fart, and Spurs' equalizer was not the end of the story. Fans did get to see a cameo from great Brazilian hopeful Gabriel Jesus. With his second touch he had the ball in the net latching onto a another DeBruyne cross, although the goal was immediately correctly given offside. It will be very interesting to see how Pep handles the introduction of the youngster over the coming weeks. The front five played well, but with Aguero and Sterling unable to buy a goal at the moment you would think regular game time is not far away. #CTID. 

@l0ngwayfr0mh0me

Posession With No End Product Everton 4 vs. 0 City

“Of course we can do better ...”, Pep Guardiola – 15/01/2017.

Goals:Lukaku (34'minutes), Mirallas (47'minutes), Davies (79'minutes), Lookman (90'+4minutes)

Line Up (4-2-3-1) (match ratings in brackets); 

Bravo (3.5)
Sagna (5)
Stones (4)
Otamendi (5)
Clichy (3.5)
Toure (6)
Sterling (6)
Zabaletta (5), (Iheanacho 62' (4.5))
Silva (5.5)
Aguero (5.5)
De Bruyne (6)

Referee; Mark Clattenburg (3.5)

Stats;Possession, 29%/71%; Shots, 6(4)/13(5); Corners, 3/7; Fouls, 3/6

What a difference a week makes. A lackluster performance, with every mistake punished by an Everton side which actually didn't need to play well to take the points . 

This was terrible to watch, but was a script many City fans could have written once the referee was announced as the infamous Mark Clattenburg. 

1. Big decisions change matches. Nil-Nil, 11 minutes, Sterling through on goal is clearly fouled by Robles in the area. Clattenburg decides to give the benefit of the doubt to the keeper. 

2. The FIFA rules on fouls and yellow cards do not have a time clause. Clattenburg further sets the tone of the match by allowing all Everton players to go unpunished for a succession of niggly and late challenges, designed to break up City's momentum in possession. Davies and Mori in particular got away with murder.

3. What happened to City's own pressing game? Seen with devastating effect verses West Ham, this was almost completely absent verses Everton, and it showed. 

4. The Bravo experiment continues to be a disaster. Up to Bravo's first weak attempt at a save today, he had failed to stop 7 out of 12 shots on the City goal, resulting in goals for the opposition [source Opta]. Heaven knows what that figure looks like now. 

5. The defence needs a leader. If solid shape is given as the excuse to continue to pick a keeper so bereft of goal keeping acumen, then that also is a miserable failure. On seven occasions this season with Bravo in goal and using the "controlled" build up, City have conceded from the first attempt on goal. No-one in the back five is taking responsibility, or is as verbal as Joe Hart or Vincent Kompany , put this together with the constant errors in the left back position and its a recipe for disaster. Txiki needs to act in this window.

@l0ngwayfr0mh0me

Seconds Out and Onto Round 4, West Ham 0 vs. 5 City [FAC 3rd Round]

“It's important to win away but it's not easy. I'd like to involve the fans and make them believe we are good. We are the good guys - we run a lot and fight”, Pep Guardiola – 07/01/2017.

Goals: Toure (33' pen), Nordtveit (41' og), Silva (43'), Aguero (50'), Stones (84');

Line Up (4-1-2-1-2) (match ratings in brackets); 

Caballero (6.5)
Sagna (6.5)
Stones (6.5)
Otamendi (6)
Clichy (6)
Toure (8), (Delph 78' (5.5))
Sterling (7)
Zabaletta (7.5)
Silva (9)
Aguero (7), (Nolito 58' (6))
De Bruyne (7.5), (Garcia 68' (7))

Referee; Michael Oliver (7.5)

Stats;Possession, 33%/67%; Shots, 7(2)/18(11); Corners, 3/7; Fouls, 5/9

The travelling faithful (possibly up to 8000), braving a Friday night kick off, train woes, and sweeping rain, were fully rewarded for their efforts with a polished performance from a strong line-up. The team calling bull*&%! on the media's appraisal of Pep's City side being in crisis  . 

This was easily the best performance since the defeat of Barcelona back in October. So what were the possible game changers which helped lead to this devastating dismissal of the Hammers? 

1. Four at the back. This was a big attacking performance, but for the first thirty minutes at least, West Ham were still very much in the game. The defensive line-up could, on paper, be seen as the strongest at City's disposal, and they were helped by a reversal to a four, and easily dealt with West Ham's more direct approach using Andy Carroll as the focus. The line up also allowed the full backs to stretch the width when on the attack. 

2. Silva still the City Wizard. This was a masterclass by City's favourite Spaniard. He was at the heart of every wonderful flowing attack, whilst creating and drifting into spaces between a ten man defence, a joy to watch. 

3. New roles for Zaba and DeBruyne. The game saw Zabaletta re-run his midfield performance from European Cup game against Celtic pre-Christmas, fitting right into the gap left by Fernandhinho's ban and the injured Fernando. He also did not restrict himself to a covering role, getting forward at every opportunity and winning the initial penalty on 33' with a run into the box latching onto Silva's reverse ball. De Bruyne also played deeper helping construct the play from the left but also covering far more than normal for the attacking midfielder. 

4. Yaya's renaissance continues. Football seems so effortless for the big Ivorian, and with his new found positive relationship with Guardiola both on and off the pitch, Yaya's footballing nous could prove vital in the coming months. As well as another well taken penalty (100% record maintained, although Joe Hart is adamant that he is awful in training), he also provided the assist for the much needed goal for Aguero on 50'. 

5. The press. No not the media, but the return, from minute one to the final whistle, to closing down every West Ham player when possession was lost. Last seen to this intensity and effect in the Barca game this has to be the way City approach every game to make the difference needed to build on this result.#CTID. 

@l0ngwayfr0mh0me

True Grit City 2 vs 1 Burnley

“We won against a lot of circumstances, in a tough game, and we're happy for that”, Pep Guardiola – 02/01/2017.

Goals: Clichy (58'), Aguero (62'); Mee (70')

Line Up (4-1-4-1/3-1-3-1-1) (match ratings in brackets); 

Bravo (5)
Sagna (6)
Kolorov (6.5)
Otamendi (5.5)
Clichy (6)
Toure (6.5)
Sterling (7), (Stones 89' (5.5))
Fernandinho (Red 32' 4)
Navas (5.5), (Silva 45' (7))
Iheanacho (5.5), (Aguero 45' (8))
De Bruyne (7)

Referee; Lee Mason (3.5)

Stats;Possession, 56%/44%; Shots, 13(3)/11(3); Corners, 8/8; Fouls, 11/11

Any regular readers of the blog, (about 60 at the moment and we thank you again for your support) will be well aware of our thoughts on refereeing standards in the Premier League. As time marches on with no changes to the refereeing qualifications or review system, and no sign of technology being considered to bail the FA out of the hole they have dug through no openness, governance or accountability for poor standards, refereeing just gets worse and worse.  Lee Mason was today was the epitome of where that leaves the game, i.e. in the land of refereeing randomness. I say this not for the red card. It's not Mason's fault that many other referees have given nothing or yellow for the same offence, but for the complete lack of consistency of what did and did not warrant punishment for a string of nasty challenges by Burnley which went unacknowledged by the officials. 

So with that all too familiar rant out of the way, what of the performance of a much changed City team? 

This was a big three points, as perhaps all points will now be between now and the end of the season. The win was all the sweeter as it came under pressure. A big performance was warranted after dropping points at Anfield (though I still don't believe it was that bad a game by the blues; on their travels at a ground where we have not won in thirteen years). City were then reduced to ten men having squandered a couple of decent chances early doors. Iheanacho was preferred to Aguero, and his finishing was not up to his usual clinical best, placing his shot too close to keeper Heaton when put through by Sterling on 6', and then found another shot blocked when played through by Toure two minutes later; this time seeing the ball rise over the bar. City then should have been ahead again as this time Navas erred by choosing to pass rather than shoot when within site of goal from a break on 17'. Then came the straight red for Fernandhino, on the half hour, and the pressure was ratcheted up a couple more notches, with what could have been a game changing decision. 

It was Pep though that changed the game. Rather than play a more conservative possession game and hope City's class shone through; he went on the offensive at half time. Swapping the ineffectual Navas and Iheancho for Silva and Aguero. He also asked the team to play on the front foot, and placed Sterling directly behind Aguero to support the striker, whilst opting for 3 at the back (Sagna playing much nearer Toure than to his centre halves). 

The result was telling. Only occasionally was it noticeable that City had fewer men, and it was City's front four who made the better use of the space created. Then on 58' Pep's positivity was rewarded, from the most unlikely of sources, as Gael Clichy stepped in from the left of the penalty area and shot through a crowded box low and right of keeper Heaton, 1-0. 

Things got even better four minutes later, De Bruyne and Sterling reacting quicker on the break, Sterling fell over his own feet in the box before Aguero picked up the ball and smashed it home from an impossible angle off the right post, 2-0. Burnley again got the rub of the green, when on 70' Mee followed up a goal mouth scramble from a corner, the ball rebounding off the bar and just over the line; but City held on for a much deserved three points. 

Far from a vintage performance, the result leaves City actually five points better off than last season against the same fixtures. The top six teams are now however starting to boss the table, and this was the least of what was needed. A lot of hard work lies ahead to stay top four let alone challenge Chelsea, but City today showed that they have the grit needed, and if they can apply it consistently, stranger things have happened. #CTID. 

@l0ngwayfr0mh0me