I'm not saying this with any real objective view btw, just an observation really.
Man City never had the identity they do now, and Liverpool never had the heavy mental identity, until their managers made it so.
We are more used to attacking and direct football but the Martinez season was not that and it was the best we have played in this century. So I would be concerned if the club was pigeon holing us into an identity that might be regressive.
Even when we were good we never played an expansive style. I don't think we really ever have done - even the 80's teams were direct and passionate and quick - have we ever been a possession team since the 60's? I have no idea. But even under the best Moyes years we played quick, direct, powerful football. Maybe under martinez first season where he inherited the Moyes team and introduced his style, it seemed like the best of both worlds. But other than that?
Fuck knows. Out identity seems to be direct. For me, if that is our identity, we should look be like late 90s man u - they were direct, quick and full on but with quality players and skill and a never say die attitude. All we do at the moment is put it up. It's endless. Maybe statistically it works, I don't know.
…it’ll be a case of “thanks for keeping us up” and then please for the love of god just aspire to a more modern style of football, hire the people to make it happen and stick the plan until it works.
I’m utterly bored as arseholes of the way we have played for what seems like ages.
Whether or not it would be more fruitful is up for debate, but we don't need to play this style quite so brutally.
…and they’re perhaps an upper mid table PL side.
I look forward to the time when we don’t go into 95% of PL matches not expecting to play on the break because our midfield is too shit/told not to control the game.
For as ordinary as we were, I wouldn't have described their performance as anything special.
I did like Berge in their midfield though. He seemed to be in the right place at the right time to intercept or keep the ball ticking over well
Marco Silva with his 'the result is unfair' comments....
Stop crying la.
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