I don't think the kid was all that bad. Had a couple of iffy moments, but also some really good ones. I would have started Torreira and Xhaka. The whole point of getting Torreira is that Xhaka is not a 6 and never will be one. So putting him behind a marauding Guendouzi isn't any better than last year when Xhaka was having to back Ramsay or Wilshere. Xhaka is an 8, not a 6. Hopefully Emery learns this quickly. If he wanted extra attacking, which he seemed to want from the kid, then I agree he should have started Lacazette and Aubameyang together.
I feel like Emery felt that Cech deserved a chance to play before being sidelined. Xhaka wasn't fit, and had a lot of classic not fit moments. Douzy is ready, he looked nervy but considering the situation it was perfectly acceptable for him to be that way. But, I liked how vertical his play is. I think we should play a two striker formation and let Auba and Laca move in and out of the link position. I don't think Miki had the pass of the game this time out. He seemed slow, but I haven't watched him enough to know if he is just not fit. Losing AMN is a big blow in my books. He looked a big part of getting the ball out of the back to me. I'm curious about Welbeck in that position though.
Good possibility here. Also, given the importance of understanding between the back line and the GK, he may have felt Cech's experience was more valuable than Leno's ability to play with his feet. As the season progresses, that could easily change. I wonder how Douzy would be if he had an entire match with someone like Torreria next to him. Or even Neny. Xhaka was not the player to start alongside someone so inexperienced. So disorganized. Once Xhaka left Douzy improved.
I think both Cech and Xhaka are best suited for teams who play on the counter at this point. Xhaka's just a Mertesacker who's five inches shorter and can't read the game.
Agree with @footykid that xhaka wasn’t ready. He did nothing defensively the first half—zero tackle attempts, zero interceptions and no line breaking passes. He actually came into the match the second half before being subbed off so he may be better next week. I think he and Ramsey’s substitutions were pre planned based on fitness. Guendouzi was pretty good aside from his obvious errors. He had the most passes on the team and was more defensive apt than we are crediting him with—four tackles and four interceptions. Torriera was pretty positive coming on as well. Twice he targeted auba over the top—once just a foot offside from being a goal and on the other auba had a poor touch.
. Yesterday, Ederson wasn't very good with the ball at his feet either. Cech actually completed a higher percentage of his passes.
I agree on Cech. It gives Emery a pass to bench him. Maybe same for Mustafi and Ramsey who should eat bench after that performance. Hope Ozil goes back central. Mhiki best step up. I still doubt him and think we need more wingers there.
I don't have a problem with the result, and truth be told the performance wasn't _that_ bad even. The problem is that we didn't really learn much from the loss that we can use to get better going forward. We can, and probably should, be playing Leno in lieu of Cech and Torreira in lieu of Xhaka, so that's something. But what about going forward? Of all the attacking/creative players who played, only Lacazette acquitted himself decently well. Ramsey, PEA, Miki, Ozil were all anonymous, or poor, or both. Does that mean all these players suck? The were out of position, used the wrong formation, haven't adapted to a new manager, what? One game isn't that big a deal, but in terms of what we're gonna do to score goals, I fear we know less now than we did before we played.
If someone has less passes and they mess up once vs someone who has the ball at their feet Allot then it will look that way
Completion percentage isn't the right metric, IMO. City value Ederson because he's good at playing long passes in a way that allows them to beat the press. Those passes are inherently riskier than the short passes that Cech was playing, and the damage from missing on one of those passes is going to be a lot less than it will be from screwing up a pass to a CB just outside the box.
His bad passes were short passes, a couple behind or to far in front of a teammate that ended up going out of bounds in the defensive third, and one headed out of bounds that Arsenal bounced on to create one of their better chances.
Cech has been done for two seasons already Amazing he got picked vs çity despite being one of the worst performing keepers of last season
Huh? Per couldn't read the game? I thought that was one of his main assets. What he lacked in speed and agility, he made up for positional awareness.