Are we getting tired ... not much rotation in key spots

[hejammy]

10 hours ago, Pliskin said:

Mahrez is doubles up on, then De Bruyne is free, Sterling is free Jesus can get involved as can their deeper midfielders who are all capable...

 

Its so easy to sit and criticise the way to approach City.... but when they’re on it you’re screwed either way. If we pressed they would have passed around us, if we double’d up on Mahrez it isolates our other players against equally as dangerous players. 
 

They were up for this today, when that happened a it’s a bad day for anyone. 

Although this is kind of true, Barnes did need to get back to help Chilly more. He didn't really press at all from the middle of the park or further back. Man City being at the best coupled with most of our players having a poor game and lacking the effort of pressing resulted in us being convincingly beaten. You could argue with tactics were not right also but ultimately its the players on the pitch that also had a poor show. 

[SheppyFox]

Let’s get spending! 

[Facecloth]

11 hours ago, Chrysalis said:

Mahrez should have been doubled up on by Chilwell and Barnes, Barnes like the rest of the midfield and wingers didnt do any pressing.

If the midfield had tracked De Bruyne then Chilwell would have coped better with Mahrez. He spent all afternoon cover two players.

[CosbehFox]

You’ll look tired if you’ve had two days rest whilst one of the best teams in the world have a week (their team in the week was full of kids). 

 

If we’ve got a fatigue issue now, next season ain’t looking promising 

[Foxhateram]

2 hours ago, Lesta2014 said:

In answer to the thread title yes. We need 3/4 top signings to maintain our position! Only really Praet on the bench who can come on who you would say doesn’t make us weaker! We need to be able to have equally as good players in the bench which I know is difficult trying to get and keep them happy but we have to find a way to do so. Otherwise we will have good starts and ultimately the big 6 will pick off the ones from us they want and it’s another rebuild job! 

I'd argue Albrighton and Nacho have both been useful off the bench this term. Gray has also improved dramatically. 

 

I think we just need to remember that we are a young side that is still learning. Man City have that experience in their squad and it showed yesterday. We panicked a bit and were lost when the game plan wasn't working. 

 

Our young players will learn from that though, Rodgers will have us analysing that game inside out over the next few days. Got a good feeling about the Liverpool game. Think we'll come out with a point to prove and the KP will be rocking. 

 

I was furiously fighting the Facebook warriors last night, slating our players, especially Chillwell. We need to stick by our team, we are second in the league at Xmas! That is incredible for a young team like ours! Celebrate, don't dig. 

[Pliskin]

Thing is, we’ve done the whole spend £80-£100m on several players in the past, and it didn’t work. We’re never going to go out and buy five or six top class signings, we just can’t do that... look at Fulham last season, and Villa this, they spent big money on a bunch of average players, and it’s done them no good at all. 
 

Our current position just shows how brilliant Rodgers is as a coach, a lot of our younger players are no where near the finished article, yet we’re second in the premier league.... Second. And during that 8 game unbeaten run we had some of our less impressive performances, but we’re still able to get results. We’re still only a signing away from being a top, top team. 
 
Rodgers isn’t daft, he knows we need new signings and we will definitely go for one in January, we’re currently ahead of our time and still improving, we were bound to lose eventually, how we react to this is important, I think the lads will be hurting today, and I fancy us to shock Liverpool. 

[sdb]

Chasing shadows is always tiring! Hopefully we give liverpool a really good go and then our second string can give WH a good go for 60-70 mins 2 days later. 

[deep blue]

15 minutes ago, sdb said:

Chasing shadows is always tiring! Hopefully we give liverpool a really good go and then our second string can give WH a good go for 60-70 mins 2 days 

This first sentence is so true. No matter how much energy it takes to make the runs and space so that you can dominate a game and pull the other team around, it is far more sapping to be the team that is dragged all over the pitch to the opposition's tune.  It also makes it more difficult for individual substitutes coming on to make any difference.

 

That's why I am always disappointed to see my team give up the initiative to the opposition as we did yesterday. We behaved similarly at Man U with the same result.

 

I hope it was more a tactical issue than a tiredness one, and that with a different mindset we can not only put in a much more positive performance against Liverpool but also recapture that confident approach in the rest of the season.

[Gazza M]

Our players should not be tired. Yesterday they looked tired as they were chasing the ball constantly as Man City had the majority of the ball. 

[Blanchflower78]

Dont buy this tired notion. We have a mentality problem at the big clubs, simple as that. Wolves went to the etihad and attacked, united for all their issues did like wise. I use both them as examples as I see them at our level, not Watfords etc who were mullered. 

 

We got battered at United and Liverpool,  to the point all 3 clubs including yesterday have no idea how we are doing so well. 

 

Brendan is paid top dollar and a fine coach but he has to address this, take your rose tinted glasses off folks. Norwich came to our place and refused to play the relegation fodder card, in truth they were better than us on the day. It can be done but you need to set up differently to how we are at present.

[Lesta2014]

2 hours ago, Foxhateram said:

I'd argue Albrighton and Nacho have both been useful off the bench this term. Gray has also improved dramatically. 

 

I think we just need to remember that we are a young side that is still learning. Man City have that experience in their squad and it showed yesterday. We panicked a bit and were lost when the game plan wasn't working. 

 

Our young players will learn from that though, Rodgers will have us analysing that game inside out over the next few days. Got a good feeling about the Liverpool game. Think we'll come out with a point to prove and the KP will be rocking. 

 

I was furiously fighting the Facebook warriors last night, slating our players, especially Chillwell. We need to stick by our team, we are second in the league at Xmas! That is incredible for a young team like ours! Celebrate, don't dig. 

For me chilwell should have been demanding support from Barnes to help him and double up on Mahrez but didn’t see them as much as communicate once and I though he was poor. He doesn’t need replacing though, every player has off days! 

 

No suprise an ex player has a stormer against us! Just a shame that our players never have stormers against their former teams! 

[sdb]

20 minutes ago, Lesta2014 said:

For me chilwell should have been demanding support from Barnes to help him and double up on Mahrez but didn’t see them as much as communicate once and I though he was poor. He doesn’t need replacing though, every player has off days! 

 

No suprise an ex player has a stormer against us! Just a shame that our players never have stormers against their former teams! 

Barnes was clearly instructed to follow Walker, who was dropping inside. Why the instruction didnt change after about 5 mins is what I can't work out. 

[jim5000]

4 hours ago, Deeg67 said:

Only good thing about all the wingers being equally mediocre is you don’t really seem to lose anything when you sub them out.  Barnes, Perez, Gray and Albrighton are pretty much of a muchness.  

First team wise it’s our wide forwards that are the difference between us and Liverpool / Man City. Defence and midfield are fine (if lacking depth) but we only have Vardy upfront who offers a real threat, our wingers are all lower half stuff. Whereas Liverpool and City have three devastating forwards and the likes of Agureo sitting on the bench.

[twister]

look being tired is normal, not every team can the sort of super human levels of stamina that a liverpool team for example have.

 

[sphericalfox]

We weren't in a position to go balls out against a team like Man City, and for me we need to pick our battles. Against a tired Liverpool at home we can do just that. Sure they'll be buoyed by their silverware, but this for me was the game to try get something out of between the two. there will be a rotation of players after this which is hoping that they can step in/step up. There are a couple of players which do seem a bit jaded, and protecting Vardy's longevity over the season is crucial to wherever we finish. I'd be surprised if we bring in a striker in the January window, and though we could do with improvement on the wing, I'm not sure we'll address that issue either, it's just too expensive a window.

[reynard]

We're basically play a hard press game and that is tiring game in game out. If you look at our squad the bench simply isn't good enough at the very top level. We have some decent players as back up but they all pretty much seem to be good for 20 minutes as a sub but not much more.

Gray is the prime example of this. Has looked good coming off the bench this season but less so when starting.

I'd say the same about Barnes and also Praet and to a lesser extent, though we haven't seen much of him Kelechi.

I'm sure someone will be able to answer this but how many of our players have played every league game? Don't forget may have also has internationals as well as the League Cup. Ok we're not in Europe but look at the squads of those that are. They are not having players of the calibre of Gray and Praet on their benches biut ones of far greater quality.

Interstingly Vardy looks a better player now and with as much as energy as ever since he essentially stopped chasing down every defender and sliding into challenges.

 

We are clearly running out of steam but what options do we really have if we want to remain in the top 4. Our best 11-13 are good enough but the rest aren't I'm afraid or aren't yet.

 

Also feel we could do with a bit more expereince in the team. Young hungry players are all well and  good but sometimes their levels will drop and it is then that the senior pros come to the fore. I'm not sure we have enough of the latter of sufficient quality to help us through the tough times.

 

Edited 22 December 2019 by reynard

[Chrysalis]

On 21/12/2019 at 20:41, Pliskin said:

Mahrez is doubles up on, then De Bruyne is free, Sterling is free Jesus can get involved as can their deeper midfielders who are all capable...

 

Its so easy to sit and criticise the way to approach City.... but when they’re on it you’re screwed either way. If we pressed they would have passed around us, if we double’d up on Mahrez it isolates our other players against equally as dangerous players. 
 

They were up for this today, when that happened a it’s a bad day for anyone. 

We have other players who could have marked KDB, Chilwell was an odd one to pick given KDB played central.

[Chrysalis]

On 21/12/2019 at 20:41, Pliskin said:

Mahrez is doubles up on, then De Bruyne is free, Sterling is free Jesus can get involved as can their deeper midfielders who are all capable...

 

Its so easy to sit and criticise the way to approach City.... but when they’re on it you’re screwed either way. If we pressed they would have passed around us, if we double’d up on Mahrez it isolates our other players against equally as dangerous players. 
 

They were up for this today, when that happened a it’s a bad day for anyone. 

They may have passed around us but I think would be more errors, ironically when we pressed in the 85th minute, they passed back to their goalie, Gray started the press then our other players decided to join in.

 

Man Utd pressed them and it made life harder for Man City.

 

I think making them pass around us makes it harder for them than sitting back and allowing a world class winger as much space as he wants to cross in to the box.

 

Defending should be done as high up the pitch as possible not just waiting for the ball to come into your box.

[Chrysalis]

On 21/12/2019 at 21:33, Leeds Fox said:

 

Tracking back and pressing are completely different things. We tried to press from the front but with how Man City set up and the quality they have, it’s almost impossible to do it effectively. You can’t press on our left and double up on Mahrez at the same time. 

I didnt see any pressing from anyone but the back 4 and ndidi until the 85th min.  Its as if Tielemans, Maddison, Perez and Barnes thought they only there for the attacks and nothing else.

 

Nearly all top teams press, they do it when playing each other as well as when they play weaker teams, its about winning the ball back as high up the pitch as possible.  Even if you dont win it back you at least delay attacks, forcing passes backwards instead of forward.

 

A trait you see in weaker teams (usually relegation contenders) is sitting back defending deep, usually thats because they dont have the confidence to leave space behind.

 

Also bear in mind even our manager admitted we needed to press, he said in the post match interview, so you seem to be disagreeing with our manager as well.

Edited 23 December 2019 by Chrysalis

[Chrysalis]

On 21/12/2019 at 21:38, January47 said:

I thought we didnt press from the front but allowed their defenders to have the ball and then close their midfield...it didn’t work.

whereas they pressed our back four and it ended with evans kicking it long to Vardy on his own. 

 

Exactly.

[Chrysalis]

On 22/12/2019 at 07:49, Facecloth said:

If the midfield had tracked De Bruyne then Chilwell would have coped better with Mahrez. He spent all afternoon cover two players.

Not sure if you were disagreeing with me, but to clarify I agree with you.

 

I dont have an issue with Chilwell's performance, he was in a lose-lose due to the bad organisation.  We have 11 v 11 and somehow how Chilwell is 1 vs 2 when usually defenders out number attackers.

[String fellow]

Does BR read all this analysis? This is my take on it, with a little help from the Bard:

There is a tide in the affairs of Leicester City.
Which, taken at the flood, leads on to Europe;
Omitted, all the voyage of our season
Is bound in shallows and in mid-tableness.
On such a full sea are we now still afloat,
And we must take the current when it serves,
Or lose our fixtures.

[LinekersLugs]

We look knackered !!! 
 

second half of season is going to be be hard work now ! 

[ealingfox]

This is why Claude Puel made so many changes in League Cup games.

[FireFox]

To me, they look mentally exhausted and devoid of creativity, more so than physically tired.