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Manager Mauricio Pochettino

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I know it's an obvious thing but every team has a dip over a course of a season, under Poch ours is at the beginning of the season. But we always have a sensational winter, maybe our form in the winter is due to our slow starts? Maybe if we started like a stream train we might experience a dip in the winter??

We have had and will continue to have some challenges around playing in unfamiliar surroundings (Wembley and New White Hart lane). At least this season during our start we weren't outplayed, we struggled against teams that sat deep.

It's such a difficult one to assess, but I'm oddly comforted by the fact that there is certainly a pattern, it feels there is control. We play with control, with repeatable patterns of play to demonstrate we know what we are about and well drilled and if something doesn't go right it's easier to spot what went wrong, what we failed to do. I kind of feel this way with a view of us over the past three seasons.
They're usually fucked after pre-season...
 
Love Poch, but today's game highlighted a few repeat problems:

1. Won't drop favourites
2. Reacts slowly to the opposition manager's tactical changes
3, Makes subs way too late, almost never before 70 mins

I think he'll learn because he's really good.
 
Love Poch, but today's game highlighted a few repeat problems:

1. Won't drop favourites
2. Reacts slowly to the opposition manager's tactical changes
3, Makes subs way too late, almost never before 70 mins

I think he'll learn because he's really good.
For all three you could say that he has faith in his players and expects it repaid.
I really can't see him changing, he's young but has been in management at least 10 years. Hes not perfect, but no one is. Given the resources he's given he should be manager of the year every year
 
For all three you could say that he has faith in his players and expects it repaid.
I really can't see him changing, he's young but has been in management at least 10 years. Hes not perfect, but no one is. Given the resources he's given he should be manager of the year every year

I like him a lot, don't get me wrong, but this isn't a game for favourites I'm afraid. You've got to be ruthless - all top managers are. Kane needs to be benched at the moment, for one, he isn't fit and it's slowing our team down. All our best recent performances have been without him. I know it won't happen though.

If we're factoring resources into our judgment then Dyche is manager of the year, no question. Burnley are what, 7th and he's basically got no resources whatsoever, it's an incredible achievement. Poch is in the handful of best managers in the league for the last 3-4 years and there's an awful lot to like about him, particularly the way he treats opponents with respect.
 
Love Poch, but today's game highlighted a few repeat problems:

1. Won't drop favourites
2. Reacts slowly to the opposition manager's tactical changes
3, Makes subs way too late, almost never before 70 mins

I think he'll learn because he's really good.
You don't always have to make a sub to change things. He made tactical changes before he made his subs and they kind of worked we were much improved. I'd say we were worse when we made our subs (individually Lucas was good) but Son didn't add anything and we lost our shape having regained some control of the game following his tactical changes.

The 70min mark is when 90% of managers make changes, it's not a Poch thing.
 
It was a mistake to try to outfootball City and go toe to toe with them. They have more natural ''ballers'' than us hence we lost.

If you can't match their quality the only way to beat them is to play low block defense and hit them on the counter through quick transitions.

We had a better chance against them had we lined up like this

--------------------Lloris
Aurier----Sanchez----Verts----Davies

------------Dier----Dembele

Lucas---------Eriksen----------Son
----------------Lamela
 
It was a mistake to try to outfootball City and go toe to toe with them. They have more natural ''ballers'' than us hence we lost.

If you can't match their quality the only way to beat them is to play low block defense and hit them on the counter through quick transitions.

We had a better chance against them had we lined up like this

--------------------Lloris
Aurier----Sanchez----Verts----Davies

------------Dier----Dembele

Lucas---------Eriksen----------Son
----------------Lamela

What a shame you're not the man in charge.

Sign him up, Levy!
 
Does that support your theory or not Guido?
It agrees that Poch normally waits till around 70min, but then ranks him 18th out of 20 managers i.e. Eriks Hip proposition that he waits longer than most was right?
It neither backs it up nor makes it an outrageous claim. It does show the mean is around that mark give or take a couple of minutes. (I've seen subs standing on the touchline for a good five minutes waiting to get on).

Lots of things to consider here. If you are winning why make a sub at all (we are usually winning these days), if you do then it's one of two things a) To waste time so therefore the change is going to be made as late as possible b) The change is likely to be once to sure up the defence, e.g. this season bring on Wanyama or Sissoko again this is more than likely to be towards the end of the game rather than sooner.

So to make comparisons across all managers also distorts things as just like the reasoning above, to a winning team, a team towards the bottom of the table it's fair assumption to make that they are maybe losing at the 60min mark and/or chasing the game, the manager here has to make an attacking change, not a defensive one and he's more than likely going to do this sooner rather than latter.
 
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It was a mistake to try to outfootball City and go toe to toe with them. They have more natural ''ballers'' than us hence we lost.

If you can't match their quality the only way to beat them is to play low block defense and hit them on the counter through quick transitions.

We had a better chance against them had we lined up like this

--------------------Lloris
Aurier----Sanchez----Verts----Davies

------------Dier----Dembele

Lucas---------Eriksen----------Son
----------------Lamela

I thought the way forward against City was to basically do what we did against RM away, go 4-4-1-1 with a slightly more compact formation. Our usual style leaves us vulnerable to a long ball/pass for fast forwards to chase.
 
It was a mistake to try to outfootball City and go toe to toe with them. They have more natural ''ballers'' than us hence we lost.

If you can't match their quality the only way to beat them is to play low block defense and hit them on the counter through quick transitions.

We had a better chance against them had we lined up like this

--------------------Lloris
Aurier----Sanchez----Verts----Davies

------------Dier----Dembele

Lucas---------Eriksen----------Son
----------------Lamela
Yeah so according to this post, Liverpool are at least the same quality as Man City. Lol.
 
It was a mistake to try to outfootball City and go toe to toe with them. They have more natural ''ballers'' than us hence we lost.

If you can't match their quality the only way to beat them is to play low block defense and hit them on the counter through quick transitions.

We had a better chance against them had we lined up like this

--------------------Lloris
Aurier----Sanchez----Verts----Davies

------------Dier----Dembele

Lucas---------Eriksen----------Son
----------------Lamela

Sorry but no. Literally the only teams to have got anything from City this Season (i.e. Liverpool) have pressed them into next week. In fact Bristol City did the same when they played them in the League Cup and gave them a very hard game. City are just better than most teams at playing around it. They are always conscious of the counter and tend to play a 2-3-5 shape when attacking, packing the middle in anticipation of moves breaking down. You could see Delph tucking in to cover when they got forward.

We struggled with consistent intensity when we pressed them last Saturday night and we were nowhere near convincing enough when we were in possession. Dembele was outnumbered in the middle but did slowly grow into the game. The killer blow came when they shifted to a back three and moved Sterling to the middle.
 
Alex Ferguson (I recall) usually made the first sub around 60-65 mins. More of a fan of this as it gives an extra few mins for the sub to influence the game. Agree with the rest of your post.
Assuming the sub actually effects the game as intended. Son (who I love) didn't effect the game in which Poch would have wanted against City, I'd say he upset the balance and we we worse within 2 mins of him coming on, we missed what Lamela was doing in the second half.

A sub isn't always going to work, I think we are far better served in changing things with the players on the pitch. Way to much importance is put on subs, unless this involves a tactical change too.
 
It neither backs it up nor makes it an outrageous claim. It does show the mean is around that mark give or take a couple of minutes. (I've seen subs standing on the touchline for a good five minutes waiting to get on).

Lots of things to consider here. If you are winning why make a sub at all (we are usually winning these days), if you do then it's one of two things a) To waste time so therefore the change is going to be made as late as possible b) The change is likely to be once to sure up the defence, e.g. this season bring on Wanyama or Sissoko again this is more than likely to be towards the end of the game rather than sooner.

So to make comparisons across all managers also distorts things as just like the reasoning above, to a winning team, a team towards the bottom of the table it's fair assumption to make that they are maybe losing at the 60min mark and/or chasing the game, the manager here has to make an attacking change, not a defensive one and he's more than likely going to do this sooner rather than latter.

A lot of criticism aimed at Poch with regard to timing of substitutions, but what i would say is that we've seen us lose two big games from the opposition manger making a tactical change that have resulted in a goal(s) very quickly after the change.

Even the most perceptive and reactive managers are going to struggle to instantly counter formation changes. Especially if the opposition make a change that is unpredictable.

Poch has to see the change, ascertain whether if it will cause problems then decide how he will counter it, relay those instructions to the pitch or if he needs to use a player on the bench get that player to warm up and instigate the sub - all whilst the ball is still in play.

Its very easy to say "he's not reactive" enough. But i think a lot of the time he has faith in the versatility of the players on the pitch and their ability to change shape dynamically as the game develops. He would rather allow them to show if they can handle a change in threat rather than relying on taking a risk on putting a "cold" player in.

Finally (i must make this point at least once a season), a manger takes a risk every time they change a game, a manager who makes a change that obviously wins a game (sub scores the winning goal for example) is hailed as a genius, but get it wrong and unless the sub themselves makes a drastic error then it won't generally be picked up.

If it were up to some of the reactionary posters on here we would see a triple sub at 20 mins unless we where 3-0 up.
 
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