Ricardo's report v Palace

[ricardo 8,109]

Conditions were perfect for a good game tonight and although I have felt relegation to be nailed on since well before Xmas, recent results have veered towards the positive and although still highly unlikely an escape remains a possibility. With that thought in mind we pedalled off to CR hoping the good vibes would continue.

City kicked off towards the Barclay end for a change and before many were in their seats the ball was in the back of the Palace net, Milot Rashica picked up the ball in midfield and scooted round Ward and left him for dead with a strong run down the wing before delivering a low cross that Idah touched back to Pukki about twelve yards out. The City talisman wasted no time in slotting the ball past Guaita and in off the post. Cue early pandemonium and just the confidence booster that was needed in a tight contest.

Stung by this early setback, it took the visitors a while to get into their stride and I thought City were good value for their lead in the opening twenty minutes. They might well have had another when Pukki nearly got his head on another Rashica cross and then a couple of minutes later when again Rashica set Pukki up again only for him to dally too long before taking the shot.

It was encouraging stuff but Palace gradually began to turn up the wick and the City defence began to spend long periods at very nearly full stretch. Thanks to some good work at the back Gunn was not unduly troubled but the omens did not look good. Palace may be only a mid table outfit but the looked stronger, quicker and more capable than the home side in most departments. City resorted to the long ball in desperation at times but the visitors quickly regained possession with Olise and Zaha having far too much room on either wing.

Just before the break the ball was in the City net but Mateta was clearly offside when he latched onto the pass.Thankfully City reached the break with the lead intact and went off to good applause. If they hadn't taken that 39 second lead there might well have been a different reaction because in truth they were for the most part comfortably second best.

I thought Smith might boolster the midfield for the second half but that didn't happen so it was no surpise that the game resumed its earlier pattern. Apart from a run and shot that went wide from Rashica, it was mainly backs to the wall stuff and it looked like just a matter of time before the wall broke. Gunn had to pull off a fine save diving to his left to preserve the lead as Palace continued to force the issue. Smith seemed to be contemplating a change but it was far too late because on the hour Zaha found just enough time to shake off Aarons before curlin a shot beyond Gunn into the top corner. Nobody could say that it hadn't been coming.

A couple of minutes later it should have been game set and match when Aarons was done again and had to bring Zaha down in the box. It was a clear pen and that should have been that, only for Zaha to surprisingly scuff his free shot a yard wide. Gilmour came on for Placheta but the last twenty-five minutes was all one way traffic apart from a City corner where Idah's deflected header nearly crept in. Gunn again was the saviour when diving to his right to palm away a goal bound shot from a dangerously placed free kick.

Norman finally made an appearance for the final fifteen minutes and helped shore up an overworked City defence as they clung desperately to a hard earned point. Make no mistake this was a point gained rather than two points lost and plainly revealed the yawning gap between us and what is a good mid table outfit.

Still a long way to go and there may be three teams weaker than us but I somehow doubt it.

Rashica, top marks for the outfield players with Hanley and Gibson also turning in good performances but I'm giving my MOM to the much maligned Angus Gunn, two fine saves and looked solid throughout.

 

 

Edited February 9, 2022 by ricardo

[Midlands Yellow 4,714]

1 minute ago, ricardo said:

Conditions were perfect for a good game tonight and although I have felt relegation to be nailed on since well before Xmas, recent results have veered towards the positive and although still highly unlikely an escape remains a possibility. With that thought in mind we pedalled off to CR hoping the good vibes would continue.

City kicked off towards the Barclay end for a change and before many were in their seats the ball was in the back of the Palace net, Milot Rashica picked up the ball in midfield and scooted round Ward and left him for dead with a strong run down the wing before delivering a low cross that Idah touched back to Pukki about twelve yards out. The City talisman wasted no time in slotting the ball past Guaita and in off the post. Cue early pandemonium and just the confidence booster that was needed in a tight contest.

Stung by this early setback, it took the visitors a while to get into their stride and I thought City were good value for their lead in the opening twenty minutes. They might well have had another when Pukki nearly got his head on another Rashica cross and then a couple of minutes later when again Rashica set Pukki up again only for him to dally too long before taking the shot.

It was encouraging stuff but Palace gradually began to turn up the wick and the City defence began to spend long periods at very nearly full stretch. Thanks to some good work at the back Gunn was not unduly troubled but the omens did not look good. Palace may be only a mid table outfit but the looked stronger, quicker and more capable than the home side in most departments. City resrted to the long ball in desperation at times but the visitors quickly regained possession with Olise and Zaha having far too much room on either wing.

Just before the break the ball was in the City net but Mateta was clearly offside when he latched onto the pass.Thankfully City reached the break with the lead intact and went off to good applause. If they hadn't taken that 39 second lead there might well have been a different reaction because in truth they were for the most part comfortably second best.

I thought Smith might boolster the midfield for the second half but that didn't happen it was no surpise that the game resummed its earlier pattern. Apart from a run and shot that went wide from Rashica, it was mainly backs to the wall stuff and it looked like just a matter of time before the wall broke. Gunn had to pull off a fine save diving to his left to preserve the lead as Palace continued to force the issue. Smith seemed to be contemplating a change but it was far too late because on the hour Zaha found just enough time to shake off Aarons before curlin a shot beyond Gunn into the top corner. Nobody could say that it hadn't been coming.

A couple of minutes later it should have been game set and match when Aarons was done again and had to bring Zaha down in the box. It was a clear pen and that should have been that only for Zaha to surprisingly scuff his free shot a yard wide. Gilmour came on for Placheta but the last twenty-five minutes were all one way traffic apart from a City corner where Idah's deflected header nearly crept in. Gunn again was the saviour when diving to his right to palm away a goal bound shot from a dangerously placed free kick.

Norman finally made an appearance for the final fifteen minutes and helped shore up an overworked City defence as they clung desperately to a hard earned point. Make no mistake this was a point gained rather than two points lost and plainly revealed the yawning gap between us and what is a good mid table outfit.

Still a long wat to go and there may be three teams weaker than us but I somehow doubt it.

Rashica, top marks for the outfield players with Hanley and Gibson also turning in good performances but I'm giving my MOM to the much maligned Angus Gunn, two fine saves and looked solid throughout.

 

 

As Hoggy says we weren’t trying to dominate the midfield, must be saving that for Man City and Liverpool. 

[ricardo 8,109]

Just now, Midlands Yellow said:

As Hoggy says we weren’t trying to dominate the midfield, must be saving that for Man City and Liverpool. 

Would probly need three subs on without taking anyone off to acheive that.

[priceyrice 133]

12 minutes ago, ricardo said:

Conditions were perfect for a good game tonight and although I have felt relegation to be nailed on since well before Xmas, recent results have veered towards the positive and although still highly unlikely an escape remains a possibility. With that thought in mind we pedalled off to CR hoping the good vibes would continue.

City kicked off towards the Barclay end for a change and before many were in their seats the ball was in the back of the Palace net, Milot Rashica picked up the ball in midfield and scooted round Ward and left him for dead with a strong run down the wing before delivering a low cross that Idah touched back to Pukki about twelve yards out. The City talisman wasted no time in slotting the ball past Guaita and in off the post. Cue early pandemonium and just the confidence booster that was needed in a tight contest.

Stung by this early setback, it took the visitors a while to get into their stride and I thought City were good value for their lead in the opening twenty minutes. They might well have had another when Pukki nearly got his head on another Rashica cross and then a couple of minutes later when again Rashica set Pukki up again only for him to dally too long before taking the shot.

It was encouraging stuff but Palace gradually began to turn up the wick and the City defence began to spend long periods at very nearly full stretch. Thanks to some good work at the back Gunn was not unduly troubled but the omens did not look good. Palace may be only a mid table outfit but the looked stronger, quicker and more capable than the home side in most departments. City resorted to the long ball in desperation at times but the visitors quickly regained possession with Olise and Zaha having far too much room on either wing.

Just before the break the ball was in the City net but Mateta was clearly offside when he latched onto the pass.Thankfully City reached the break with the lead intact and went off to good applause. If they hadn't taken that 39 second lead there might well have been a different reaction because in truth they were for the most part comfortably second best.

I thought Smith might boolster the midfield for the second half but that didn't happen so it was no surpise that the game resumed its earlier pattern. Apart from a run and shot that went wide from Rashica, it was mainly backs to the wall stuff and it looked like just a matter of time before the wall broke. Gunn had to pull off a fine save diving to his left to preserve the lead as Palace continued to force the issue. Smith seemed to be contemplating a change but it was far too late because on the hour Zaha found just enough time to shake off Aarons before curlin a shot beyond Gunn into the top corner. Nobody could say that it hadn't been coming.

A couple of minutes later it should have been game set and match when Aarons was done again and had to bring Zaha down in the box. It was a clear pen and that should have been that, only for Zaha to surprisingly scuff his free shot a yard wide. Gilmour came on for Placheta but the last twenty-five minutes was all one way traffic apart from a City corner where Idah's deflected header nearly crept in. Gunn again was the saviour when diving to his right to palm away a goal bound shot from a dangerously placed free kick.

Norman finally made an appearance for the final fifteen minutes and helped shore up an overworked City defence as they clung desperately to a hard earned point. Make no mistake this was a point gained rather than two points lost and plainly revealed the yawning gap between us and what is a good mid table outfit.

Still a long way to go and there may be three teams weaker than us but I somehow doubt it.

Rashica, top marks for the outfield players with Hanley and Gibson also turning in good performances but I'm giving my MOM to the much maligned Angus Gunn, two fine saves and looked solid throughout.

 

 

Couldn't agree more. 

I do wonder what Placheta brings to the team. I'm really surprised by some of the boards decisions this season, surely Onel would be a better option than Placheta and Rowe. 

While this mini revival has given me some hope again this season, I just think this squad is short of quality and we have too much catching up to do. However,  keep working as hard as we have the last few games and you never know what might happen! 

Going to be an exciting end of the season!

[astro 423]

Great summary as usual, but I thought it was Placheta that Zaha did for his goal? Placheta showed him the inside instead of forcing him wide which was a bad mistake with Zaha. For all of their possession I’m not sure that they would have scored as I thought Hanley and Gibson had an outstanding game, and indeed it took a cracking shot for them to score. 

[sgncfc 1,345]

Sponsors gave MOM to our Man Utd loanee. I suspect they had our Chelsea loanee in second place despite him only being on the field for 20 minutes. Williams did OK, but Rashica and Hanley were both superb (until Rashica tired, at least) and Gunn did nothing at all wrong, saving two certain goals and faced down the pen and looked like he might have saved it if it had been on target. 

[canarybubbles 2,210]

I thought Williams had one of his poorer games (acceptable, but a long way off MOTM). No question for me, Rashica. If we had someone of equal quality on the other flank, we might even stand a chance of surviving.

Edited February 10, 2022 by canarybubbles

[Satriales 1,051]

I think BT gave Rashica MOM which I felt was the right choice.

[ricardo 8,109]

9 hours ago, astro said:

Great summary as usual, but I thought it was Placheta that Zaha did for his goal? Placheta showed him the inside instead of forcing him wide which was a bad mistake with Zaha. For all of their possession I’m not sure that they would have scored as I thought Hanley and Gibson had an outstanding game, and indeed it took a cracking shot for them to score. 

Yes, sorry about that, I need new glasses.👍

[Mr Angry 2,094]

Mitchell was the player that Aarons fouled for the penalty, not Zaha (it was Zaha’s pass).

 

[Hank shoots Skyler 2,094]

9 hours ago, priceyrice said:

I do wonder what Placheta brings to the team. I'm really surprised by some of the boards decisions this season, surely Onel would be a better option than Placheta and Rowe. 

This x100. 

Admittedly Placheta did have a couple of games during the injury crisis where he looked a real handful, but he pretty ran into blind alleys and offered absolutely nothing creatively last night, was a very disappointing performance. 

Hernandez has always looked the more dangerous player and based on Placheta's most recent games it is he who should be the loaned out!

Also quite worrying that Rowe, who hasn't exactly looked ready for first team football, now appears to be higher up the pecking order than Tzolis. Rowe is also over a year younger than Christos too, so hardly like he should be further into his development. 

[Parma Ham's gone mouldy 2,476]

10 minutes ago, Hank shoots Skyler said:

This x100. 

Admittedly Placheta did have a couple of games during the injury crisis where he looked a real handful, but he pretty ran into blind alleys and offered absolutely nothing creatively last night, was a very disappointing performance. 

Hernandez has always looked the more dangerous player and based on Placheta's most recent games it is he who should be the loaned out!

Also quite worrying that Rowe, who hasn't exactly looked ready for first team football, now appears to be higher up the pecking order than Tzolis. Rowe is also over a year younger than Christos too, so hardly like he should be further into his development. 

Hernandez is far too tactically callow for this level. 

As fans it is very tempting to see what a player can do and base one’s views on that. 

In the modern Premier League it is fundamentally about weaknesses and what players can’t do.

Data and analysis focuses on weaknesses that can be exploited, so unless the balance sheet is in the positive column overall, a player is intrinsically a liability.

This is what Smith has focused on minimising. This is why we now play and set up how we do. Self-delusion has its place, though pragmatism must ultimately win out.

Parma 

[Hank shoots Skyler 2,094]

4 minutes ago, Parma Ham's gone mouldy said:

Hernandez is far too tactically callow for this level. 

As fans it is very tempting to see what a player can do and base one’s views on that. 

In the modern Premier League it is fundamentally about weaknesses and what players can’t do.

Data and analysis focuses on weaknesses that can be exploited, so unless the balance sheet is in the positive column overall, a player is intrinsically a liability.

This is what Smith has focused on minimising. This is why we now play and set up how we do. Self-delusion has its place, though pragmatism must ultimately win out.

Parma 

Fair points Parma, but where are our weapons? 😉 

[Badger 2,750]

Thanks Roberto - it was great to see Gunn beginning to play with confidence! A good sign for the long term.

[hogesar 10,949]

10 hours ago, Midlands Yellow said:

As Hoggy says we weren’t trying to dominate the midfield, must be saving that for Man City and Liverpool. 

We weren't, and Dean Smith said it himself post-match. What is it with you getting everything wrong, even in a poor attempt at sarcasm?

[yellowrider120 933]

10 hours ago, priceyrice said:

Couldn't agree more. 

I do wonder what Placheta brings to the team. I'm really surprised by some of the boards decisions this season, surely Onel would be a better option than Placheta and Rowe. 

While this mini revival has given me some hope again this season, I just think this squad is short of quality and we have too much catching up to do. However,  keep working as hard as we have the last few games and you never know what might happen! 

Going to be an exciting end of the season!

Agree with you about Placheta. We have hardly ever seen this 'blistering' pace he's supposed to have and he seems to always play with his head down so is unaware of what's going on around him. Sargent was a huge miss last night as was Rupp who could have done the right side role far better than Placheta.    

[Christoph Stiepermann 1,268]

17 minutes ago, yellowrider120 said:

Agree with you about Placheta. We have hardly ever seen this 'blistering' pace he's supposed to have and he seems to always play with his head down so is unaware of what's going on around him. Sargent was a huge miss last night as was Rupp who could have done the right side role far better than Placheta.    

From what I've seen his blistering pace can only be utalized when he doesn't have the ball, it allows him to get up and down the field quickly which is vital for a winger at PL level, in terms of making use of his pace though it's best used to float balls over the top for him to run onto or get him to double up with his FB and stay on a player like Zaha which he did well for 90% of the game with yesterday.

With the ball at his feet he isn't particularly fast because he doesn't have that dribbling ability or technique, he might beat Rashica for example in a straight sprint but Rashica moves with the ball much faster. Hernandez probably moves the ball quicker as well but doesn't work as hard off the ball and isn't any good at defending which is pretty much equally as important for us this year. 

[Parma Ham's gone mouldy 2,476]

3 hours ago, Hank shoots Skyler said:

 

   3 hours ago,  Parma Ham's gone mouldy said: 

Hernandez is far too tactically callow for this level. 

As fans it is very tempting to see what a player can do and base one’s views on that. 

In the modern Premier League it is fundamentally about weaknesses and what players can’t do.

Data and analysis focuses on weaknesses that can be exploited, so unless the balance sheet is in the positive column overall, a player is intrinsically a liability.

This is what Smith has focused on minimising. This is why we now play and set up how we do. Self-delusion has its place, though pragmatism must ultimately win out.

Parma 

 

Fair points Parma, but where are our weapons? 😉 

I would suggest that that is exactly the question that Smith and Shakespeare asked each other. 

The neat, pragmatic solution they came up with was that they would have to create a tactical system that acted as a weapon. 

They had to even out the playing field a little, negating the strengths of the opposition and our lack of top level quality.

Playing low-risk 442, using Idah as a disruptor, working intently on street smarts, taking rhythm and momentum out of the game (more or less from the outset of games note), hitting channels, turning defenders with balls behind, allowing our defenders to high low percentage, low risk balls, working hard on second balls, splitting and dropping strikers to negate full backs overloading inside midfield areas, dropping off into pockets at different times, focusing on defending only certain danger zones and consciously conceding space and possession elsewhere. Basically forcing better teams to be better. Open their shape. Show what they’ve got. Do something brilliant.

He won’t worry for a second about Zaha’s goal for example. To bring it back to your original point, Placheta should have shuffled Zaha down the line, though Aarons was doubling up pretty close by and Zaha did trick to drive at the line. It was a technical error, though Onel would almost never be in the right defensive position at any time, let alone for a brief moment that allowed a superb player to power curl it into the top corner from 25 yards. 

Parma 

Edited February 10, 2022 by Parma Ham's gone mouldy

[ricardo 8,109]

9 minutes ago, Parma Ham's gone mouldy said:

that allowed a superb player to power curl it into the top corner from 25 yards. 

Parma 

"Power curl"

I may have to borrow that for future reports😉

[Parma Ham's gone mouldy 2,476]

It’s worth noting further that when fans comment ‘I don’t see what he does’ …

..at Premier League level they are very much stating a fact..

Fans want to see players do great things and that’s what they remember, though if you are worse overall as a team, then if you can spend 90 minutes ‘not doing much’ but also ensuring that your opponent ‘doesn’t do much’ then you have actually done an excellent job beyond percentage likelihood. 

I appreciate that this is not out-of-your-seat sexy, though it is a great improvement on where we were. 

We are giving away much less ‘tactical space’ to the opposition now. This is why you hear Smith talking about Palace ‘solving the problems we set’.

Parma 

[chicken 3,138]

On 09/02/2022 at 23:39, priceyrice said:

Couldn't agree more. 

I do wonder what Placheta brings to the team. I'm really surprised by some of the boards decisions this season, surely Onel would be a better option than Placheta and Rowe. 

While this mini revival has given me some hope again this season, I just think this squad is short of quality and we have too much catching up to do. However,  keep working as hard as we have the last few games and you never know what might happen! 

Going to be an exciting end of the season!

That would have been down to Webber and Farke and then Smith in the window just gone.

I think Farke made the comment that they would have looked to loan Placheta out were it not for him still recovering from long covid so unable to look at that option.

I don't think the option was Onel either. Or Tzolis for that matter. I think it was felt that Rashica and Cantwell would be first choice with the likes of Dowell, Tzolis and Sargent as back up.

One think that has surprised me a little though, is that with the form of Byram and Aarons, could could play Aarons further forward. In some ways, the same option down the left, with Giannoulis in front of Williams. We have quite attacking full backs as options if needed. Not to mention Mumba who was with us until going on loan in Jan.

This season though, is one of things not going to plan, sadly. Despite some incredibly horrific comments on here, no one could have predicted Cantwell's dramatic fall in form resulting in a move away. Perhaps a permanent move away if he was doing well, to another PL side providing us with funds to replace etc.

On paper, at the start of the season, wide players we had a plenty. 

Edited February 12, 2022 by chicken

[priceyrice 133]

1 hour ago, chicken said:

That would have been down to Webber and Farke and then Smith in the window just gone.

I think Farke made the comment that they would have looked to loan Placheta out were it not for him still recovering from long covid so unable to look at that option.

I don't think the option was Onel either. Or Tzolis for that matter. I think it was felt that Rashica and Cantwell would be first choice with the likes of Dowell, Tzolis and Sargent as back up.

One think that has surprised me a little though, is that with the form of Byram and Aarons, could could play Aarons further forward. In some ways, the same option down the left, with Giannoulis in front of Williams. We have quite attacking full backs as options if needed. Not to mention Mumba who was with us until going on loan in Jan.

This season though, is one of things not going to plan, sadly. Despite some incredibly horrific comments on here, no one could have predicted Cantwell's dramatic fall in form resulting in a move away. Perhaps a permanent move away if he was doing well, to another PL side providing us with funds to replace etc.

On paper, at the start of the season, wide players we had a plenty. 

Fully agree with all of this chicken, back at the end of the summer window we looked blessed with wide players. Unfortunately that has not turned out as we expected for the reasons you mentioned. I still think January would have been the time to recall Onel as he would carry more of a threat than Placheta and Rowe I would think. 

I agree re Dimi, surprised he hasn't got a look in further forward, especially during the December period where we were struggling for numbers. 

[Dean Coneys boots 1,550]

I think decisions made are financial not primarily football driven. So Onel put in the window looking to a future fee etc..