₦airaland Forum

kokaneprodigy:
To be fair Mou wasn’t always like that early in his career.
The defensive approach all started when his success got into his head, he became arrogant, boastful, insulting other managers and acquired a blabber mouth. Having done all these it was very important to him to never lose to his rivals, reason he would always prefer a draw to risking losing to a rival. It’s an ego thing and it subconsciously became a part of his tactics.

I think you are right. Little wonder they say pride goes before a fall.

homesteady:
I'm still in shock

10Dove:
Isco is better than Phil did I hear you say Phil has better vision? EPL the toughest in the world! I'll revisit this topic come may

Lets leave this for now... Anyone who watched the Clasico via Bein Sport would attest to the many things Ray Hudson said about him. But for now, lets forget about it, afterall no way he is coming to our club.

Neymar1095:
He will turn Neymar to a demon Jor. Look at his Madrid team of 2011-2012. Counter attacking demons. scoring 121 goals in season a record I think in LA Liga.

Lies!!!

patrickmuf:
Whose fault that we invested in average players? The coaches ask for players and the club set about purchasing them...Mourinho in his time here has gotten just about all the players he asked for bar Perisic according to available information so what exactly is the fuss about lack of investment? He got Pogba, Mkhitaryan, Bailly, Lukaku, Lindelof, Matic, Ibra (On a free but very high wages)...Pray tell, how many coaches are opportuned to get all of such quality in barely 3 windows? That's more than 300m worth of talent and you want us to sit back and go with his narrative that it's because we're not spending enough? Or just so we're not tagged naive or Mou haters? Hell no, we have spent hugely and that's not taking into context the huge outlay on transfer during the Van Gaal and Moyes Era...
And to correct an impression, I think all top coaches spend heavily thus I'm not one of those who refer to Mou as a cheque book manager but in this instances after spending over 300m on players, your least excuse should be investment related...
The only thing City has over us is a better bench (And you can quite comfortably argue for or against this) and a coach who is more expressive in his approach.

I dey feel you bruv...

patrickmuf:
What is it I'm reading here, what exactly is lack of investment after spending so much over the past couple of seasons or do you not know that investment should go hand in hand with on and off the pitch improvement? Granted we're doing very well off the pitch but on the pitch, the quality of our football is poor and we've not posed the trophies that should match our huge outlays on transfers...Must it be PSG-level investment for us to accept we have been spending heavily on transfers?
One begins to wonder what would have been the case if we had Mou in the dugout in those years where the Glazers were tight fisted, I am talking about the years when fans got disillusioned and started a protest...Fergie managed to keep us winning and challenging for titles with little investment but look what we have now, a coach still complaining after spending so much on players... This investment line is just about the most ridiculous excuse for our underperformance yet...

Well said.

SIRcumalot:
Nothing has change from how we play.
We lost a few guys to injuries and suspension but we've not changed.
Jose will always play a more conservative style when we approach teams he thinks can play us out of the park that will never change.
It is true that we sometimes don't entertain but we've entertained more than we frustrate our fans and hate watchers.

I disagree. The way you approach games these days ain't the same with how you did earlier on in the season when you were scoring for fun.

LoRdCaT:
Bros what else does one need to keep winning if not form? Are you reading the rubbish you are typing? Is there any other special thing a team needs to be formidable? is a very good form not the main key to winning matches and ultimately trophies? If mourinho's brain is in form will we be playing this kind of trash? bros no let me vex pass this one oo, Mourinho has done enough already.

The all conquering FC Barcelona of the last decade that had their amazing run of trophies ended just last season how did they do it if not that they were in form? Ehn, I dey give E-slap oo

Gawd!!!

jonsnow92:
Well,Wishful to say the least cos no way we are getting Isco..But The thing is the fact that it was because Kovacic had to man mark Messi is kinda funny to me..Its like saying in our game against Chelsea next February, We bench Messi and start Arda Turan so he could keep an eye on Hazard..Whereas we all know Messi is our best player..If Isco is that good I think Zizou would start him in order to ENFORCE The play He wants on Barca.. Whereas He knows Casimero could do the job,Yet he benched Isco..I think its more than just the man-marking issue..If I get you correctly too You r saying Isco has the edge over Phil cos he could dribble out of tight spaces, Well Phil's technique and Link up play can bail him out too..And its not as though Phil isn't a dribbler too,He just doesn't dribble as much as Isco..Also Phil can play as an AMF,Winger,Support striker,CMF and as a Natural 10..These alone makes him fit better than Isco..And as for Xavi's replacement I've always said only a LA masia grad can replace a LA masia Grad..Which is Thiago would have fit in perfectly but What else can we say..

If you don't know this yet, then there is no point arguing further. It's rather an open secret Kovacic was deployed just because of Messi. If you doubt me, ask usbcable and his goons. You don't read Marca I guess, if you do, even before the match you'd know Kovacic would get the nod because of Zidane's obsession with stopping or neutralising Messi.

That's all I have to say about this. I rest my case.

Baritone:
Matic alone covers their revenue.

If we struggle against such lowly oppositions, imagine what we'll do when we encounter other teams in our stratosphere. Madrid, Bayern et al.

There's nothing City has that's too extraordinary. You point out just one person, and I'll point out a like for like replacement..

Besides, I stopped being concerned after the Chelsea debacle. Mourinho only remembered to attack when Morata scored. #Coward.

Mourinho, the Special One.

Oasis007:

You sha want make me yab JM..... kolework!

Well... 31st December, 11:59pm can't come soon enough then.

codedguy1:
it doesn't matter, Mourinho is using too much water in the mixture to mould the defenders.

O Lawd!!!

Oasis007:


On Paper we get quality Midfielders like Mkhtaryan, Matic Pogba, Mata, Herrera and Co who are better than Liverpool Midfielders.

However, on the Pitch where the Results matter, Liverpool Midfielders are better than ours.

Who is at Fault....... JM or the Players?!

For me, it's clearly the coach"s fault.

phaamsaam:
NO use arguing with epl deluded fans bro... Just sarcastically tell him, he is the right one

It's painful how he wants to undermine Umtiti because he isn't hyped as many other defenders are.

Baritone:
It's frustrating really.

Imagine drawing at home against Burnley and all you could come up with was that City have spent more. Were they the reason you drew your match against Burnley?

I'd bet just Pogba would buy almost the entire Burnley team and yet someone had to blame his rival for his side's mediocrity. Smh.

jonsnow92:
The narrative of goals and assists with Iniesta was flawed because He was the illusionista in his A days..Shekpites knew Lampard had nothing on Andres so they brought the stats about goals..They said Lampard was better only because he scored goals more than Andres..Andres for all his Brilliance scored as well.Decisive,Important goals..I will pick Phil over Isco not only because Phil scores more,I listed a couple of things there with goals among the list..Phil has more Vision on the ball than Isco, Phil is more decisive Bruv..Phil is inconsistent and that's solely because he is mostly in the sick Bay which is clearly not his Fault..Which is why I was a bit skeptical about getting him last season, This season Phil has been consistent and He is ready to make that move now..Isco isn't anywhere consistent too and they are both 25..Isco can't command a starting Berth at Madrid Yet..2 different clubs Yes but Last Saturday Zizou started Kovacic and didn't even Use Isco at all..It says something about the coach still not trusting Isco's ability doesn't it?..Isco has only had one good season(Half a season if I'll b critical)..It doesn't make him better than Phil.

Nah... The fact Isco didn't start the Clasico wasn't because of trust issues with the coach. On the contrary, he has been the coach"s best berth thus far. The ONLY reason Isco was dropped wad because the coach wanted Kovacic to repeat the feat he did against Messi in the Super cup. That was the only reason why Kovacic started ahead of Isco and not because he (Isco) hasn't earned his trust. Isco is the most in-form player in Madrid currently.

Meanwhile, I still think Isco suit us more. Infact, my thoughts about the aforementioned pair has always revolved round how they both would fit into our system. I look at Isco and I see Iniesta in him. He is still evolving and not there yet, but he has almost all the attributes of Iniesta. Now, no matter the kinda midfielder out there, a fully fit Iniesta with age on his side would start over any other midfielder the world has to offer presently. But in some other teams, that may not be the case. So like I said, its always in relation to how they would fit in our system.

I so wish we could get Isco and Thiago Alcantara. Both would fit as good replacements for Xavi and Iniesta. Thiago passes the ball clean and controls the temple of the game just the way Xavi did. Not saying he is at Xavi's level, but he is the closest thing to Xavi, coupled with the fact that he is skillful and he shoots too. Then, while he is playing the Xavi role, Isco is doing his Iniesta-esque kinda thing.

Well.. Those are just wishful thinking.

.

Oasis007:

Seem the Bricks are made of sand only?!

Cement no dey market ni?

larride:
If Umtiti is going to be characterized as World Class to you then what will Ramos be called? Super world class? because obviously Umtiti is not on the same level as Ramos et all.

Don't start with the he's not playing in the epl rubbish, Ramos, Chilleni, Alaba n co didn't play in the epl and no one is denying that they are world class, so try another excuse.

Your argument is so flawed. Damn!

Are you saying all world class players are on the same level? Gosh! Is Ronaldo not world class? Is Messi not world class? Is Neymar not world class? But are they all in the same level? Mehn, you dey fall your hand big time. By your logic then, if Neymar is world class, Messi should be Super world class, abi? Smh for you.

Now, back to the nitty-gritty. You people sometimes misjudge people, especially rating someone because of their past exploits alone. Yes, being tagged world class shouldn't be a one season wonder thing. It should be that you've consistently performed at a high level for 2 or more seasons. No? Now, since Umtiti came to Barça, till this present day, while also taking cognizance of his Euro 2016 exploits, you still think he hasn't performed at a high level? Umtiti has been Barça's best defender since his first season. Yes, I said so and will defend it anywhere. Pique is good no doubt, but Umtiti is just a revelation and anyone with eyes would attest to this claim of mine. Infact, it's no rocket science. Every Barça fan knows this.

Now, is Pique not world class? And yet Umtiti is Barça's best defender. That should put things into perspective. Meanwhile, I'll drop a screenshot of Whoscored ratings between Umtiti and Ramos for your kind perusal. It's not all about hype bruv. It's about doing the thing.

Spy360:
Apart from Walker, Pep has not really used any of his new signings. He lost Mendy early in the season. Most of them are subs.

His success was playing De Bruyne and Silva in midfield.

Mou should learn from him rather than complain. He complains a lot and that is very sickening. All he does is blame others, blame everyone except himself.

Exactly! Every other person is to blame but Mourinho. Smh

sebod:
No be my fault bro, you can't just help but laugh out loud when you stumble on some posts made by these Epl boys in the past. Just I as could help itt when I stumbled on a post by weed taker on Bayern thread which reads thus;
"ancelotti 'll take dis same bayern team to de ucL finals."

How person go see that post and no go laugh?

Them no go kee person with laff ahswear.

IFearGod:
Argument of some people here in defense of Mourinho is just annoying. Mourinho is just a dumbass, kiss the truth! He's deluded and looking for flimsy excuse to bail himself out. Who would say £300Million isn't enough to assemble a wining team? Useless mofo!

He lacks good tactics and football intelligence. All he knows is his defensive way and he's such a dumbass that has refused to change.

I could remember in one of City's matches, there was a little pressure on the team and the defenders started volleying the ball but Pep shout at him and asked him to play the ball the down. They listened to him, got their composure back and won the match in styles. That's an example of a coach that has a philosophy and intelligence and stick to it because he believes.

I also think one of Mourinho's undoings is that he talks too much and this makes him to lose focus. Earlier this season when City was struggling everybody said many things against Pep; criticized his tikitaka philosophy, but rather than being distracted, he kept his focus and never blame anybody. He believed in his philosophy and kept to it.

There's no excuse for Mourinho. He's a failure and deserve to be kicked out of United if the club wants to move forward without destroying their brand.

It's a good thing some of you guys still have heads on your shoulders. Nice one bruv.

larride:
Umtiti World Class LOL. No wonder they call Barça fans barkadot.

The use of the term "World class" has so been bastardized. Umtiti world class. Lmao.

Of course it's understandable you have chosen to go this direction because he is not overhyped. That's really understandable. I bet you, if he were plying his trade in the EPL, then a different tune would be sung about him.

Meanwhile, I don't make silly assertions. If you like go with the usual Barça fans are Barcabots blah blah blah... It doesn't rile me a bit.

But just do me favour... Name the world class defenders you know presently.

sebod:
Anyone with half brain actually knows where krychowiak is now

I thought you are a Christian... I never knew you were this cruel.

afroduke:
Coutinho is good, but he does not guarantee you 30games a season because of his plastic legs. Isco might score more goals than coutinho but he is more creative and can hold possession in tight spaces and he has vision. He is the closest thing to iniesta's replacement.

Exactly!

jonsnow92:
1) Madrid would rather relegate than sell Isco to Barca.



2) Isco can't shoot better than Phil, He's not as productive as Phil, He doesn't score more goals than Phil, He isn't as decisive as Phil, I dont know but Isco doesn't Still look like a finished product yet IMO..The only thing Isco has an edge over Phil will be his Dribbling ability..I'll rather Have Phil as a carrier in a 4-3-3 than Isco.

Funny thing is... The same line of argument we use against the Shekpites when they compare Iniesta and Lampard is what you are using against Isco. I dare say if the above criteria were to be the yardstick, then we could also just agree that Lampard was greater than. Iniesta. No? That would mean the above criteria is flawed. Isco is a reincarnation of Iniesta and for me, I'd take him over Coutinho a hundred times over.

Meanwhile, Countiho is an embodiment of inconsistency. He is a fantastic player, don't get me wrong. But I'd take Iniesta Isco anyday of the week.

We both know Xavi and Iniesta were never known for goals, but what they did with thr round leather can never be matched by the so-called midfielders who were productive in terms of goals. Zidane today is one of the all-time greats, but how many goals or assist did he give? Even Alves an RB has better stat than him but does that mean he (Zizou) ain't among the greats? Nope...

larride:
I thought you are one of the most intelligent Barça fans on this forum, if you don't know the difference between world class players, average players and good players then we shouldn't be having this conversation.

Simple question: Is Umtiti a world class player or an average player?

O Lawd!!! You are shooting yourself in the foot bruv. Chai. You wanna know how? Just read your previous responses to me as per this discourse and you'd understand what I am talking about.

The problem with your line of argument is that... You make use of the certain words almost interchangeably. I wouldn't presume you don't know the differences between them. I'll give it to you that it was a mere typo or rather misplacement of words.

Meanwhile, I don't wanna pursue this further. You are mincing words and it's boring. I already typed and pointed out all the loopholes in your argument, but decided to erase it cause it would only give rise to further arguments from you as you wouldn't wanna accept. I don't like having a merry-go-round of arguments.

As per Umtiti, he is already world class by every standard. Show me a world class defender today and tell me what he is doing that Umtiti ain't doing as much, or even better.

Baritone:
As far as I'm concerned. The undoing of Manchester United came when Mourinho prioritized and favoured defending a slim lead at all cost, above a wide margin score.

Our attacking game at the start of the season was fluid and functional.
We buried whatever team.

Guardiola simply stuck to what he had been doing since the beginning of the campaign which is Attack...
and a little tweaking here and there and not a change in pattern..

By the way from the little I've seen, Mata currently is the only United player with the best Positioning. For doubters, check the stats, he's the one in the squad with the highest goals so far.

Simple logic is get him involved.

The emboldened reiterated what I have been explaining since the start of the day.

ctuagent007:
Otamendi is world class cos utd also wanted him....

Its been 3-4 years fans worldwide including Utd fans, each thanking their various gods/stars that we dodged the "otamendi" calamity project but just this season people are now claiming he is world class
Capital cee said Ota was best defender @ Spain therefore that automatically qualifies him as the best, I wonder when football became 1+1.
Now the same calamity is better than Bailey & Jones I give up before person go say Stones/Mangala is better than ..............

The reality is they are accepting these just to justify themselves about Pep not doing anything special with those boys. I could remember how men were thanking their stars they didn't end up getting Otamendi. Now, he is the next best thing after séx. Alright!

larride:
Don't wet your pant just yet my man. the crux of the matter here is that Stones is not an average player while at Everton. I never claimed Stones is world class except you are having another argument with yourself in your head.

I still maintain that Stones was a good and highly rated CB before his move to City. Modric was term a flop the very first season he joined Madrid, we all know how that's turning out now ain't we? Unless you want to claim that Modric is an average player while in Tot, I don't know what straws got guys are holding on too.

All this shout of Stones this, Stones that, you could have thought he's the one marshalling City defense, scoring goals and all sort while in reality he has only started 8 games in the league and 4 times as a substitute. That's your gold people. LOL

Now what is the bone of contention? You said and I quote... "Stone wasn't an average player at Everton." And you also admitted he aint world class on the emboldened. Now, from the aforementioned premises, what do we make of Stones prior to joining City. Since you said he wasn't average and also wasn't world class, what was he then?

patrickmuf:
A team of super stars and average players playing together as a unit in attack and defense (Man City) is better than a collection of super stars and some average players playing disjointed football relying more on individual brilliance (Man Utd)...
The movement of our players is poor, you don't see our full backs overlapping to draw defenders away from the wingers. Most times, Young passes the ball to Martial and stops like a spectator to watch how Martial will go past 2-3 defenders and when he can't, he passes back to Young and back the ball goes to Matic, back to Jones and we repeat the sequence again...
Mou needs to work on our passing and movement and our forward play in general...We defend too deep thus whenever we recover possession, it we can't hurt the opposition immediately compared to City who press high up the pitch where they can hurt you if the chance presents itself...
Sometimes I wonder why we can't press high up the pitch like Spurs/City/Pool or Chelsea who are improving in this aspect, our players are way too comfortable retreating back and Mou has to take responsibility to be honest.

You sabi watch ball jare.

larride:
So you mean Barça was even interested in this same Stones we re talking about before Pep but it was Pep that turn him into a good player. Wow. Pep is indeed a magician. I guess it was Pep that was his manager at Everton when Barça were interested in him. You guys logic defiles reasoning walai.

You're being myopic! What we look for from a defender is different from what others look for. Would you have bought Bravo? Tell me! The same reason we bought him was why Pep bought him, because of his ball-playing ability. Does that make him world class because Barça were interested in him and eventually bought him? By your logic it's a yes, but that's absolutely wrong.

Don't get ahead of yourself. The reason we wanted him was the same reason Pep went for him, and not because he was world class. You just need to get over yourself and be realistic.

Ohh well... I guess Malcom is world class then since Man U are supposedly interested in him. Right? Smh...