Chelsea v MAN CITY: The PREVIEW – City’s Probable Team
24 Nov
Vincent Kompany and Gael Clichy both face fitness tests tomorrow to decide whether they will be able to feature, with Joleon Lescott poised to partner Matija Nastasic if our captain fails in his battle. If Clichy is absent I would expect Pablo Zabaleta to start on the left, with Maicon on the right of a back four.
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In midfield, Gareth Barry and Javi Garcia will both hope to start after sitting out the draw with Real Madrid, and their presence may enable Yaya Toure to operate from his more advanced role just behind the striker. James Milner is a Roberto Mancini favourite in important fixtures so he is in with a shout, whilst Mario Balotelli has recovered from a back injury and is now available.
Here is the side Mancini could select:
Referee: Chris Foy
William Hill have some excellent odds for this match: Yaya Toure to score the first goal is hugely tempting at 11/1 whilst Sergio Aguero to score first and City to win 2-1 is 51/1.
Prediction: Chelsea 1 – 2 MAN CITY – The arrival of Rafael Benitez at Chelsea will give them a boost after a string of poor performances, but he may also mke them a touch more circumspect and that could play into City’s hands. Goals to be scored by Sergio Aguero, Carlos Teve and Eden Hazard.
No Nasri?
You think that Mancini would play his best RB at LB so that his 3rd Choice RB can keep his scond best [but only just] LB on the bench, do you VFaB?
Keep on taking the tablets son
Alph
Wow that took some thinking about to understand, but as daft as the logic seems, it wouldnt suprise me if Mancini does what VFAB suggests. Plus its horses for courses, and you would have to consider if Kolarov has the pace and defensive ability to stand up to the task at Stamford bridge with Hazard et al in attack
I was quite proud of that BB
Alph
Yes, I do! We saw against Real how Mancini does not trust Kolarov defensively. And rightly so. I would not be at all surprised to see Zabaleta at left back if Clichy is injured.
It is tough to know with Nasri. Mancini likes him and usualy plays him if available, but if Yaya is deployed in his more advanced role, with Silva on form and Aguero scoring goals, it is likely to come down to a choice between Tevez or Nasri. And I think Mancini will opt for the harder working and greater goalscoring threat of the Argentinean.
while your answering questions, whats with the never predicting the same player to score twice? Yes i remember you predicting Balotelli to score twice a few week ago, but other than that it never happens
Not sure Garcia has quite settled in, I would love to see Barry, Milner paring. Ramiers pace is fearsome and I can not get over how easily he breezed through Lescott last season. I do hope we have Kompany and Clichy back. If there is one game that Kolarov should not be even on bench is this one. Hell, I even prefer Kolo as LB instead of Kolarov.
I’ve never supported any other team than City and I’ve supported City for more than 50 years, so I don’t know if the fans of other teams are as scathing about some of their players as many City fans seem to be about ours.
Over the years I have seen the confidence of some very decent players destroyed by the antipathy of their own supporters who have usually got their own way in the end with the player leaving, often to succeed elsewhere. In fact, I can never remember a season when there hasn’t been at least one!
Take Lily Savic for instance. Many fans, and I was one of those, considered that the youthful Savic had great potential, was comfortable on the ball, could pass well, but was raw and inexperienced. He had a couple of games in which he made some damaging errors, lost his confidence and although Mancini seemed willing to give the lad time to rebuild, he was never given any hint of a chance to rehabilitate by large sections of the crowd.
I was pleased to read an article this week about how Savic has rebuilt his career at Fiorentina and is now considered to be one of the stand out young CH’s in Seria A.
Kolarov’s defending was poor when he arrived at City and his much vaunted ‘go forward’ was only average. He was certainly no R.Carlos Esq., he struggled to settle in, but since then he has worked hard to make himself valuable. His defensive work is much better, his wing back play very good indeed. He offers great early ball from LMF and is an excellent dead ball man. IMO he has become a significant asset, not against every opponent by any means, but certainly against many.
Suggesting that Kolo would be a better choice at LB (if that wasn’t just a thoughless throw away comment)is to show a complete lack of understanding of the Mancini method. City play with touch players passing and probing, narrow and through the middle of the park with width provided by the FB’s. We don’t have big old fashioned centre forwards collecting high crosses that come from the bye line. In both of the last summer transfer windows Mancini tried to get wide players in the Andres Iniesta mode, with big bids for Alexis Sanchez and Eden Hazard, players with pace and movement, who can play wide as a winger or equally well narrow, and who can beat a man. He didn’t get these outstanding players so uses the sort of width that allows the ball to be spread, rather than classic winger play. In this role Kolarov is significantly better than Clichy just as Clichy is a significantly better defender than Kolarov.
Kolo Toure would be on his wrong foot when defending but adequate if he stayed in his own half. He would offer nothing going forward down the left.
VFaB may be correct in his choice of FB’s, but Zaba is in superb form, the form of his life, at both ends of the RH side of the park, so why limit that? Clichy would be my choice and 90% of fans choice if he is fit, but he isn’t in all probability. So does Mancini play a RB (Maicon)whose defending is little (if any) better than Kolarovs, so that he can play arguably his best defender of the season out of position?
If he does that would be a clear message from Mancini to Kolarov that he doesn’t have any future at City and he should then sell him in January and replace him with a player who can excel at both ends of the park.
Ah yes! A good point! There are not a lot of Roberto Carlos’s or even Cashley’s kicking around are there! Mind you there is a young lad at Arsenal who seems to have promise when he’s not injured, perhaps a quiet word with Arsene to cheer his Christmas……….
I don’t know that I can agree with the fact that if Mancini doesnt play Kolarov against Chelsea, then it’s a sign he has no future. I know your argument about square pegs in round holes, but against the real pace and threat that Chelsea carry, anyone would hesitate to play Kolarov in a defensive role. Kolarov is best suited for home games against teams who sit back and look to frustrate us, because with our style of play as you described above, this is where he is most valuable.
This has nothing to do with looking down on Kolarov. No player is perfect and each player has his own strengths and weaknesses. Leveraging those strengths and minimizing the impact of those weaknesses is what brings a player into life. Chelsea is team that plays with a very high-tempo. Rameries, Hazard, Oscar [just to name a few] are pacy players to the letter, and Kolarov track record against such players is abysmal. In such context, it is a mistake , in my opinion, to play him as defender while he can shine in other contexts as he has done in some games.
BB/Siamack
Mancini played Zaba and Kolarov in their correct positions and our back four were individually and collectively excellent with either Zaba or Vince probably MoM, take your pick.
You don’t have to agree with me but in any event I rest my case.
I think that if Kompany isnt avaliable we should go with the 3-4-1-2 because of the lack of adhesion and familiarity between Nastasic and Lescott and also the lack of central defensive options.
Zabaleta Nastasic Clichy
Maicon Garcia Barry Kolarov
Yayat.
Silva Aguero
That’s a 3511- more likely Martin, with no height at the back. It could work I suppose but it would be a brave call if it does and a foolhardy one if it doesn’t.
I think we will have a 4231 with both Tevez and Aguero starting, much as VFab has suggested, but with Kolarov starting if Clichy isn’t fit.
This team you have posted is potentially the worst team we could possibly play evern with injuries….
If VK is injured we will play the following i think…
Hart
Maicon, Zaba, Nastastic, Lescott, Clichy
Barry, Yaya,
Silva,
Tevez, Aguero
we were defensively excellent, but Kolarov suprisingly wasnt tested.Cant argue with that it worked today. Couldnt help but feel though in time we would be more exposed if we played with this defense in other big games .