2020/21 Carlo Ancelotti

[Thomasc]

I’m doing first, last and anytime

Love a bit of Barry White

 

[BlueToff]

Genuine question though, why does it work better away? Not a loaded question, I genuinely don't understand. If this season is different and home advantage has gone out of the window, what is it about home games that's so different to away games? Normally the difference would be that there's more pressure on you to attack at home because the crowd will get restless etc, but that isn't the case now, so what is it? Theoretically all that should happen if home advantage isn't an advantage anymore is that the 'better' team should now win every time, regardless of whether they're away or not. That would make sense. Being good away but not at home doesn't really make sense, there's no obvious reason for the difference.

We actually aren't playing the same way at home that we are away though - apart from against those sides that are 'better than us'.

People blaming the players are missing the point that it is on Carlo to get us to beat teams we should (on paper) beat at home. What he's trying isn't working so maybe he should just accept that we have to get the basics right. That probably means at least three CBs in the back four, and just playing a solid midfield. Let the attacking players do the business and as long as there's athleticism in the team (which in the likes of Doucoure there is) that can help us.

The system he played the other day was ludicrous and people are going to some strange extents to defend the decision. It was just bad, and then he compounded it by not changing it until it was far too late.

 

[Jim Hopper]

Because we have a limited squad that can only play one way and at the moment that set up works better away from home than at home. I’d love to have both but if we did we’d be runaway leaders at the top of the league. Does a squad containing Siggurdson Davies Coleman Gomes Bernard with no backup strikers and no decent right back strike you as one that could tear away with the premier league?

So we just accept that it’s okay to lose at home to cannon fodder because a load of professional footballers can only play one style of football and we have nothing, absolutely nothing that we can work on to improve? I can’t buy into that. I get the squad isn’t full of word class City-esque players but I’m not having this current set of players can’t be set up to beat Newcastle United & Fulham at home.

 

[TheBigIguana]

We actually aren't playing the same way at home that we are away though - apart from against those sides that are 'better than us'.

People blaming the players are missing the point that it is on Carlo to get us to beat teams we should (on paper) beat at home. What he's trying isn't working so maybe he should just accept that we have to get the basics right. That probably means at least three CBs in the back four, and just playing a solid midfield. Let the attacking players do the business and as long as there's athleticism in the team (which in the likes of Doucoure there is) that can help us.

The system he played the other day was ludicrous and people are going to some strange extents to defend the decision. It was just bad, and then he compounded it by not changing it until it was far too late.

The problem is largely our attacking players aren't doing the business and we are really just flirting with a long run of not scoring if we decide to go more defensive.

 

[chippy1722]

Who has said that and where please?

I like Moyes but I’m glad he didn’t come back. He would be blamed for everything, imagine the stick he would take for playing Gylfi, Davies etc, then having no backup striker on the bench.
Carlo and Brands get away with a lot that Moyes would not have.

 

[BlueToff]

The problem is largely our attacking players aren't doing the business and we are really just flirting with a long run of not scoring if we decide to go more defensive.

Yeah I agree too. I don't mean it's 'just' on Carlo.

But... we don't create a lot of chances. I've actually just looked at the stats and it's scary - we're below Newcastle... Obviously, we have games in hand, but look at Villa, who have played the same amount of games as us...

This is it ordered purely on the number of chances

This is it ordered on 'big chances'

 

[TheBigIguana]

Yeah I agree too. I don't mean it's 'just' on Carlo.

But... we don't create a lot of chances. I've actually just looked at the stats and it's scary - we're below Newcastle... Obviously, we have games in hand, but look at Villa, who have played the same amount of games as us...

This is it ordered purely on the number of chances
View attachment 118100

This is it ordered on 'big chances'

View attachment 118101

We've been scarily bad going forward since we had that bad run after the derby. Carlo got scared and packed it in massively. We've yet to recover and look good in attack again. A bit of good finishing, set plays, and a sprinkling of luck have kept the results up.

 

[BlueToff]

We've been scarily bad going forward since we had that bad run after the derby. Carlo got scared and packed it in massively. We've yet to recover and look good in attack again. A bit of good finishing, set plays, and a sprinkling of luck have kept the results up.

A massive factor in that imo is our lack of a ball carrier. It is imperative we add that player in the summer - it's something Brands has been a massive failure with. Brought a lot of technical players, decent passers, but so one-paced.

It's fine to sit deep because we're much better defensively that way. But it does mean we tend to have James dropping right back to the edge of our own box and then what can he do? He has to pick a Hollywood pass (and usually doesn't have many runners to find anyway) or he has to lay it off short/win a foul.

Then, against teams that sit deep, they know just to press our back line and even thought that leaves a big hole in the middle, our midfielders don't have the ability to make the most of it, because they don't carry the ball.

 

[Eggsyblueskin]

A massive factor in that imo is our lack of a ball carrier. It is imperative we add that player in the summer - it's something Brands has been a massive failure with. Brought a lot of technical players, decent passers, but so one-paced.

It's fine to sit deep because we're much better defensively that way. But it does mean we tend to have James dropping right back to the edge of our own box and then what can he do? He has to pick a Hollywood pass (and usually doesn't have many runners to find anyway) or he has to lay it off short/win a foul.

Then, against teams that sit deep, they know just to press our back line and even thought that leaves a big hole in the middle, our midfielders don't have the ability to make the most of it, because they don't carry the ball.

Is it that Brands has failed to recruit a ball carrier or that Ancelotti has not prioritised the acquisition of one?
Without intimate knowledge of the discussions between the two men, culpability has to be shared, (if there is any to be shared of course).

 

[BlueToff]

Is it that Brands has failed to recruit a ball carrier or that Ancelotti has not prioritised the acquisition of one?
Without intimate knowledge of the discussions between the two men, culpability has to be shared, (if there is any to be shared of course).

Well I just mean in general terms over the three years Brands has been here

 

[hallamblue]

We did try and get Sissoko to be a ball carrier, but when we didn't get him we bought different types of players. Maybe Klassen was supposed to be that player?

 

[Osamabindiesel]

We actually aren't playing the same way at home that we are away though - apart from against those sides that are 'better than us'.

People blaming the players are missing the point that it is on Carlo to get us to beat teams we should (on paper) beat at home. What he's trying isn't working so maybe he should just accept that we have to get the basics right. That probably means at least three CBs in the back four, and just playing a solid midfield. Let the attacking players do the business and as long as there's athleticism in the team (which in the likes of Doucoure there is) that can help us.

The system he played the other day was ludicrous and people are going to some strange extents to defend the decision. It was just bad, and then he compounded it by not changing it until it was far too late.

I felt he made the wrong changes as well which exacerbated the problem. And walking into that one with a new center back partnership was a dare to the other side.

 

[everton1953]

Has the Turk gone? I can't remember. Stick him on the bench to frighten City. I am sick of the whole shambles and when I said to my son tonight it does not really matter so much cos we got our money back he rightly told me off. This is Everton and it hurts, so even using the off switch does not protect you entirely.

 

[riddick]

I just said in my example that we win every game with a last minute goal so we would get champions league and win the cup if that happened.

Obviously if we don’t do either then this season is a failure.
If we finish seventh but seventh place gets europa league then we’re in a better position to recruit better players than if we finish eighth and aren’t in Europe. In this instance I’d rather win one extra game and finish seventh with a bunch of lucky victories than absolutely smash a few teams but have less points.

Seventh doesn't get you Europa this year, it gets you that stupid 3rd tier Europe competition. It's like someone asked "get you know how Europa isn't that popular? How can we add another competition and make that a step down from the Europa?

 

[Sporting Billy]

I like Moyes but I’m glad he didn’t come back. He would be blamed for everything, imagine the stick he would take for playing Gylfi, Davies etc, then having no backup striker on the bench.
Carlo and Brands get away with a lot that Moyes would not have.

Moyes wouldn’t touch Gylfi with a barge pole