Two of the best teams in the world are playing in Premier League under generational managers in Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp. Both City and and Liverpool have dominated the domestic league and have done exceptionally well abroad. For last few years, Chelsea has been trying to catch up with them but if you ask me, Chavs have a lot to do to reach their level!
There is no single 4th best team. It’s been a fight between Arsenal, United, West Ham and Tottenham to grab the Champions League spot and we will soon find out who gets to play at the grand stage.
Coming back to City, Pep relies more on the midfield control, ball retention and possession play. He is such a brilliant manager that he has not missed one of the best strikers of premier league in recent times in Aguero and has been mostly playing without one. This is possible only because of the class he has in midfield.
Klopp on the other hand loves gegenpressing. Having a high line of pressing, working in a fast paced countering football. He has his 3 machines up top in Salah, Mane and Jota/Firmino who can be a nightmare to defenders.
Mikel Arteta, having worked at City under Pep – is thought to have a similar play from the back, possession football and we were for a good part (except last 2 games) played without a striker. Yes, though Laca is a CF, he was doing the link up play and had scored next to nothing! We let go Aubameyang and has only started playing Eddie because of Laca’s illness.
Lets compare the top 2 teams in the league. While most of the goals for Liverpool have come from the front 3 of Salah, Mane and Jota; City has a bunch of players who have contributed in their tally of goals.
Liverpool :
Mo Salah – 22, Diogo Jota – 15, Sadio Mane – 14, Roberto Firmino -5, Fabino – 5
Manchester City :
Kevin De Bruyne – 11, Mahrez – 11, Sterling – 10, Phil Foden – 8, B Silva – 8, Jesus – 7, Gundogan – 6
I have only mentioned players with 5+ goals to keep it simple. Only Pep can play a season without a striker and still wins the League. Liverpool on other hand has probably the best front 3 on the planet currently. Where are we?
If you check for Arsenal, we have 4 players with 5+ goals this season : Saka – 11, Emile Smith Rowe – 10, Odegaard – 6, Martinelli – 5.
We don’t have a Salah-esque level player dropping 20+ goals a season. We don’t have two other players scoring around 15 goals each. Our goal scorers are wingers and midfielders, similar to City but the difference is City has almost double the no. of scorers and of course they are better quality wise (for now).
Arteta’s expectation for scoring has been from the midfield. Partey’s flying rockets are the proofs.
Coming back to the question of whether we need a striker – yes, we do in my opinion. We don’t have a midfield of City in terms of class and number. We don’t have a billion dollar lying around in fridge to always buy some more. In last 2 games, we saw how important it is to have a genuine CF. Eddie’s presence not only threatens defenders, it also allows the midfield to only work for delivering the ball to someone who can do the job.
Auba thrived in an environment of feeders and we need a similar player, only better in work rate. We have a midfield who can score, adding a striker will solve most of the problems.
What do you think you would like to see? Can you imagine playing without a CF which requires players like Saka, ESR and Martinelli to step up and score more?
Let us talk in comments!
Mb,
Having a few technical difficulties with the site,is it me or are you having the same? The comments aren’t updating unless I go in and refresh the page myself. Also your new post isn’t on the home page. I wonder could you change the time aswell, must be something to do with daylight savings but the comments are be logged at an hour behind their posting time. It’s easy to forget that and not realise that the last comment was only a few minutes ago.
Mb,
I’d agree very much with your post, we are a team that needs to play with a striker. Very few teams can afford to build a midfield of goalscorers, they are too bloody expensive. And rare! How many KDB’s or Bernado Silva’s are there. One good striker, while expensive, can carry a team far. I know he’s an extreme case but look what Benzema is doing for Madrid. The question for me is,even if money isn’t the problem, what game changing striker would come to us?
Kroenkephobe,
Williams under pressure, did well to get out 8 all. Ronnie still flying.
The brother can’t explain the growing enmity on Merseyside but the taunting is not humorous anymore he said,from either side.
Does Iago remind you of anyone??? I always have him in mind when doing Othello.
You missed an incredible semi final tonight, city must be the unhappiest winning team ever after allowing Real to stay in the tie. We’re lucky over here, all the CL games are still on terrestrial TV. As a result most people see more European football than premiership. It’s a funny old game…..
I messed up something, will fix it today..
Comment posting should be fine though, hosting provider was spursy yesterday.
CL football on terrestrial TV? I don’t think that’s happened on the side of the Irish Sea since the 20th century.
City are a strange lot aren’t they. Some genuine old skool support but also a high quotient of plastic Johnny come latelys.
Very few setbacks and so there’s a sense that following them must become predictable and a little ordinary. I think when we were in our pomp all those years ago, we probably knew deep down that it would never become permanent domination (and so it was proven).
Ambarish – I love your fixation with all things North London football. Even crap web providers are spursy! It’s amazing how momentum has swung back in the space of 5 or 6 days. I’d be delighted if that was the last swing, the only downside being the little guy with the plucked eyebrows will still be doing his raindance on the touchline next season.
Oh, and I’d say the person in question, although at times an ersatz Iago for sure, is also akin to Hamlet.
Chronically indecisive, erratic, prone to temper tantrums and steadily going bonkers.
Or Julius C, ie a huge ego who doesn’t listen to others and who grows to rely on sycophants and hangers on.
There goes Shakespeare and his talent for summing up the human condition. Maybe Ambarish could let him have a guest slot on LiR. Oh, hang on…
He’d probably be a Coventry or Villa fan wouldn’t he.
What a crazy game of football between City and RM last night. That was as open as Bayern thrashing us 5-0 regularly during our hay days 🙂
Is anyone rooting for Villareal tonight? I for one will be all out for them. It will be magical if they can get a result at Anfield tonight. Though I lost it with Emery in the final days, especially when he played Cech in goal in spite of being in poor form, but criminally even after him confirming taking up a position with Chelski (at the end of season, which I felt was insulting to us), I have the greatest respect for him. Like Coq mentioned, it was the language barrier that proved decisive in his apparent failure. I wish him and his team the good luck and hope they take a 5-0 lead at Anfield and kill the tie……
I’m shouting for Villarreal too. Am hoping Emery can produce one more giant killing but I don’t think it’s likely, euro nights at Anfield v Klopp and that attack is probably the most difficult challenge in football today. The manner in which he was assessed for ‘his’ failings at Arsenal versus the perception of Arteta’s ‘inherited ‘ failures is very revealing in terms of the shifting goalposts type analysis that is now predominant around Arsenal. Nobody is rewriting Emery as a success, would simply like to know why the criteria for gauging a manager has changed so dramatically. It seems an agenda is being driven. Why and by whom?
Villarreal for me too, always the underdogs if we are not involved and I hate bin dippers any way.
Would make a great story if the impossible happens
Almunia
Indeed it’s the day light saving thing, theme I’m using only supports GMT. I thought it would be an easy one but I may have to get in the code. I will fix it in couple days, it should align to Premier League timings.
The yellow submarine (Villareal) to beat the hometown of the writers of the yellow submarine. Emery had some awful moments in North London towards the end. He needed to be relieved of his duties but I think he didn’t deserve to be demonised. He’s clearly got a great track record as a manager.
If there were ever to be a binary choice, I think I’d take him over Tets. He achieved a huge amount of success beating us last year and Manure in the finals. He didn’t crow about the two wins (as a lesser person might) and deserved the Cup. Brilliant manager – just not for us, nor PSG.
Almunia
Yan beating Williams 11-10. Hoping the man from Tredegar can prevail despite that mad fluke.
despite closing on emulating Hendry’s record of seven world titles, O’Sullivan is adamant that the Scot’s dominance of the sport in the 1990s still makes him the greatest.
Almunia
This from today’s Guardian.
Ronnie agrees with you. I don’t think it’s false modesty either.
Kroenkephobe,
Great comeback by Williams, he defies the ageing process doesn’t he. Quite incredible that if Higgins wins all three of the class of 92 will be in the semis. Trump v Bingham is going to be a cracker aswell. It’s just as well cos I have a nasty suspicion that it’s going to be very one way at Anfield tonight, will be turning it off if that’s the case. Beginning to tire of Klopp’s Cheshire cat grinning on the sidelines.
Pretty one sided affair, villareal offering nothing upfront without Moreno, it’s as easy a match as you could dream of in a CL semi. In hindsight its a pity Juve or Bayern aren’t here taking on Liverpool. The whole thing has been so predictable. I think Emery gets even more credit paradoxically for managing to get this lot to a semi. Coquelin was poor also,no regrets there.
You watching the snooker Kroenkephobe? Higgins struggling, may not get across the line though Lisowski is equally rattled.
Did you watch Villarreal or the walking dead? Is there a difference?
Bluebirds took another beating, season can’t end quickly enough I’d say.
True there Almunia. It was pretty much one-sided. Painful. Once pool got the own goal, switched off. I think to overturn this 2-0 lead could be almost mission impossible for the yellow submarines, but then stranger things have happened in football.
Also totally agree with you on your earlier comment about moving the posts, when evaluating managers. Did fluency in native language made people more gullible and move them posts? I’m as curious as you are.
Almunia
It was the walking dead rather than the Villareal version (led by a tongue tied Count Dracula!).
Do you remember a 70s show called the Banana Splits? Plenty of stuff on you tube and a catchy theme tune if you don’t. In essence, 4 people dressed as dog-o-bear hybrid animals (plus an elephant/pink mammoth thingy called snorky) dressed as fire fighters in a mad heath-robinsonian fire station. Yes, really. THE most LSD-inspired piece of art to come out of the west coast hippie scene ever. Well, cutting a long story short, Klopp with his mega bright, mega huge gnashers is the spit and image of a character in that programme called ‘Bingo’. Check it out mate – the perfect antidote to Othello.
Cardiff are going backwards. A team always known for its fight and grinding out results is fully on the beach. I’ll switch off for the rest of the season and reluctantly concede that need regime change. 4 defeats on the bounce. Its been a dog of a season for them.
So Ronnie v Higgins (boo!) and Trump v Williams. Three characters and a bit of a wrong un. Williams looks unbeatable at times but he is erratic. As long as Ronnie makes the final, I’m unfussed about his opponent. How will you be come Monday if – a big if – he equals Stephen H’s wc tally?
Tra la la. La la la laaa
Here’s the link Almunia. Don’t say I never look after you! Enjoy…
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XMl6HnhFFIA