Liverpool has dropped 3 huge points at home to Crystal Palace. City are 2 points ahead having played an extra game than us. We win today and we go back to the top. We win today and we go three crucial points ahead of Liverpool with only 6 games to go. Every game is a cup final now for the boys and Mikel.
Team News
Strange decision to start Zinchenko ahead of Kiwior, because Kiwior has been doing better than Zinni and one bad game doesn’t mean we are going to hamper his confidence. If it’s purely for rotational purpose, I can live with it. Gabriel Jesus makes his way into the starting XI with Rice anchoring the midfield alone with Havertz playing the more forward role today. Trossard starts today ahead of Martinelli whom I think will come-in at some point to give Saka some rest.
Frankly, I had hated the concept of playing Havertz as CF but he has been doing better up top than he does in midfield. Gabriel Jesus does the dirty work but is not as clinical in front as you would expect your CF to be. Trossard gives me some hope though.
Liverpool is suffering the way we did last season. One loss and everything has gone bonkers for them. They were unbeaten at home from god knows when, and suddenly Atlanta wins 3-0 and they can’t even keep Crystal Palace to a draw. City, on the other hand, have gone full beast mode.
We need to win today. At any cost. First, because Pep is not going to drop any points now and the only way we win the league is by winning all our games. Second, I hate Aston Villa.
Right, a very short one today. See you during the game.
Tony-in regards to the issue you were pondering, we were too narrow, until Marts entered the fray…when you have Tross on the left and Zinchenko tucked inside, it makes things far too easy on the midfield, especially when the opposition knows we very rarely attack with pace and numbers…in a sense the tactic wasn’t wrong, in theory, but only if we had the personnel required to execute said plan…just think about it, Havertz ran untouched and unmarked on several occasions, until they adjusted at half, but he’s woeful in the final third…he’s constantly second guessing himself, unless he’s making a 2 yard pass to a trailing teammate, and he’s a grade school level finisher…I would suspect that MA felt that he could catch them offguard, which he did, with Luiz unable to play, but we were unable to take advantage of this scenario because of our lack of passing guile and finishing skills with a combo of Havertz and Jesus…so in a way, if it weren’t for MA’s recruitment shortcomings, the tactics would have been on point…Cheers
Tony-one other point to add to the above post…to complicate matters, Unai had Diaby and Bailey play high and wide at certain times, so as to make it more difficult for Zinchenko to come forward as often as MA might like, which left Rice isolated in the middle of the pitch whenever Havertz sought more advanced spaces
in a press conference earlier today MA spoke directly about watching Leverkusen game film in a search for tactical insight before Wednesday…smart idea of course, except for the fact that Xavi deploys far different tactics than our one-trick pony manager…with this in mind, here’s what Muller said following a one-sided 3-0 loss to Lever this past February:
“What we’re missing is the guts and some freedom to play.
“Leverkusen were taking risks, looking for solutions and playing football.
“We’re playing from A to B, B to C, and nobody plays freely or takes risks.”
hardly a comforting notion, as our brand of football sounds far more like Muller’s description of his own club than that of their competitors’ on that evening…furthermore, Xavi deployed his preferred 3-4-3, with his buccaneering wingbacks constantly exploiting Bayern’s weaknesses in wider spaces…this is why I had so hoped that MA would have adopted a far more aggressive approach when it came to the first leg…regardless, anything can happen, especially against this particular Bayern side who have struggled at times this season
sounds like both Saka and Ode will need to pass late fitness tests in order to play tomorrow, which certainly isn’t the best news…maybe ESR will be in the mix from the offing
no one could ever suggest that PSG and Barca don’t give you your money’s worth in the CL…another riveting watch…meanwhile, the other fixture was just as exciting, if not more so…just flipping back and forth like a fucking mad man for the better part of two hours…maybe this bodes well for us tomorrow evening, as even a road side found a way to get their business done
Brokelona got fucked over by PSG, couldn’t happen to nicer bunch of mafiosos. On to Dortmund doing the same to the despicable Mbappe dross.
tonights match will not define our season but it will go a long way towards it. A cautious El B vs a desperately seeking silverware Kane. A win is a must for El B – will he do it?
TRVL
Thanks for your insight. It fills in the blanks for me. Something I can look for in tonight’s game. It’s 2am for me, and I just got back from an uneventful 4 hour run back up from BKK, so a bit frazzled and in need of a delicate indica hybrid grown by a Thai Dr friend. It’ll slow my forever data gathering ADHD brain.
I don’t get important game late fitness tests. If needed the player will never be at his best, which is needed tonight. Neither Saka nor Ode are effective when not 100%, so their inclusion I fear won’t bode well for us. They will be easily nullified.
Nelson and ESR are fresh with points to prove, but game rusty where this game is too big for such staleness.
At least Havertz should be back at 9 and part time CB. If we can give him 6 guilt edge chances, he should score 2.
Norg
Not sure I agree because if we go out badly it will make our last 6 games much tougher with teams playing with more belief and us with less.
Our Alonso wannabe or is it a Unai wannabe manager doesn’t understand how really limited he is as a PL manager. Zero consistency with a complete inability to be effective at in game management.
I expect Kane to get on the scoresheet early to deflate us and we will be making up the numbers for the rest of the game.
I’ll stay up for it, but I doubt I’ll watch the full match opting to watch the 2nd in the morning.
I wish I could be more positive but two away goals is the killer because Bayern will score tonight.
See you all at the game………
knowing that Saka and Ode are nowhere near 100%, I would try to rope-a-dope the fuck out of this Bayern side by starting my most defensively-minded lineup, which would include Tomi at LB, Rice, Jorginho and Partey in the midfield, and Havertz, Jesus and Marts up top…I feel that this group could grind away at Bayern for just long enough that Tuchel might make some more aggressive changes to appease what will undoubtedly be a restless fanbase…if we can make him blink first and choose a more offensive course, MA should immediately flip his script and bring on Ode, Saka, Tross and ESR for Jorginho, Partey, Jesus and Havertz, then stretch the shit out of them and go into full-bore attack and press mode…now I very much doubt that this will happen, as it would require more tactical acumen than MA has shown in the whole of his time here, but it would be so encouraging to see signs that a managerial learning curve actually exists at the Emirates
to be fair, I totally get why it might be difficult for MA to adopt such a plan, considering the 2-2 scoreline and the fact that this would invariably expose him to criticism should the plan fail, but if we simply go into rinse and repeat mode and provide no tactical deviations, minus the whole Rice and Havertz’s front 2 nonsense that cost us in the first leg, he’ll undoubtedly face a bevy of criticism anyways and nothing will have been learned again
it’s important to remember that this particular Bayern team is unusually vulnerable…with Davies suspended, Gnabry and Coman out with injuries, and Sane banged up, this side is ripe for the plucking…that said, it’s never easy to go to the Allianz and win outright, especially when it matters most, but if we get the tactics right and find a way to be even somewhat clinical in front of goal, we should be heading to the semis for the first time in seemingly forever
Would be lovely to watch some real tactical thinking.
FotMob have our line up at havertz replacing injured Ode with Jorginho and Rice in midfield.
If Rice is contained then watch Jorginho get caught on the ball repetitively. Havertz as our 10? Chief creator? Oh deary me if true.
Kiwior at LB for probably 60 minutes and then zinchenko out for his casual stroll around the park.
Up top Saka, Jesus and Martinelli.
Make of that what you will.
Tony-you would think, if this is the lineup for today, that maybe Rice will sit deep, Jorginho will play the Ode role and Havertz will try make the same sort of up-the-pitch runs he made against Villa in the first half…hopefully he won’t look like a bag of toys again with the ball at his feet
I’m so jacked up about this second leg that I’m going to do a handful of tropic of thunder hash bts, put on my over-ear Sennheisers and listen to the extended version of LIve at Pompeii, then go for a rainy day hike for the next 90+ minutes…Cheers
TRVL
I like your adventurous line up but what chance El B would go with it – a big fat 0. Sadly I believe we will go out with a whimper.
Heart says unlikely win, a la Juventus away (in 79? in the CWC semi).
Head agrees with NORG. I’ll probably kill my Samsung if that lisping cheating ugly ballbag Arry (Herr Kunt) scores.
C’mon Arsenal.
let the games begin…not a big fan of the green kits
I can’t imagine us employing the same plan as against City away or in the Porto second leg with this lineup on the pitch, as we have several players who couldn’t possibly be fit enough to endure an extra time affair
what’s with the rough-like pitch…maybe Munich is hoping to slow things down a bit
dislike the notion of Tomi playing in the inverted role, as he’s not suited for it
Agree that pitch is shite. Difficult to get the passing going. BM also very passive
it’s a bit of a paint drying exercise thus far…hardly a surprise with Bayern not pressing high and hoping to counter and MA gladly taking all the useless possession they’re willing to concede
Tomi won’t survive the first half if the pitch monster gets him again
Fucking boring game going to switch to the city v real. AFC 1 attempt on goal in 20 minutes Bayern 3 attempts and 1 corner.
this reminds me of a first round encounter in the World Cup when both teams can get through with a tie
Tucehl has clearly done his homework in that he’s willing to be unusually passive because he knows we’ve struggled at times against teams who counter effectively with pace and numbers
the big question is do I feel more confident in Bayern scoring on the counter or us manufacturing goals with limited opportunities…history would suggest the former, but Marts looks lively enough to maybe find his way through or maybe earn a penalty while trying to carve out a chance
what’s the point of being a tall lanky fuck if you’re not willing to put your boot in there???
I feel like we spend a lot of time on the training ground, for whatever fucking reason, kicking balls straight at the Keeper’s chest
love when Bayern does us a favour and short kicks a corner
how did we not get a shot out of that Bayern cock-up? Havertz
when need to press the living shit out of them when they appear vulnerable
Trossard would have burried that one.
Tense and cagey. We grew into it as the half progressed. Good to see we’re not on the back foot. We’ll need more composure when/if a clear chance emerges. Two pretty even sides although Dier can be got at if Havertz can bring the ball down and run at him.
either Tuchel is rope-a-doping us and will completely revamp his tactics at half or they’re very nervous of the possibility of crashing out of the CL and the title race in the span of a couple days
we should be attacking their weakest link, Laimer…we should encourage them to have him on the ball and give him the illusion of having space to move up the pitch then press the shit out of him on two sides…he’s too slow and will cough up the ball…when he does there’s always space behind him because their backline is so stretched because of the presence of both Saka and Marts
KP-what I said above will likewise put Dier in positions he can’t handle as a makeshift CB
due to the presence
it will be very interesting to see who the first sub will be, as it will make a statement of tactical intent
12th man = our post
City back on the front foot meanwhile over in Munich ????
Fuck if that is not the last nail in the coffin for Jesus flag or no flag Arteta has to go. Either an all German final or a repeat PSG v Bayern.
out with a whimper was the call of the day…Tuchel made his push and it worked…instead of doing likewise, we simply waited for it to happen then took an obvious reactionary stance…this reeks of another try not to get embarassed gig…then Tuchel made another savvy maneuver by changing his LB, so he could press Saka harder without fear of another potentially problematic booking…why the fuck did we keep bloody Havertz on the pitch and take Marts off., as he didn’t nothing once again
Woeful. No composure in their half and everyone switched off for the goal. Passing was terrible and he brought on Eddie Unket! We need to get Arteta out of this club because we’re not making any real progress.
another toothless, guileless, blunt instrument performance by our settling manager…like I’ve said time and time again, Havertz will be another albatross purchase by a manager who appears bereft of ideas when it comes to properly redressing our most glaring weaknesses