content – Page 5 – Gael Clichy Fan

PEP GUARDIOLA 2-3-5 FORMATION MASTERCLASS

Going by the Premier League games so far, this season promises excitement, with top quality managers in various clubs vying for glory.

The first round of games showed the quality of Man City boss Pep Guardiola. The tactical variety was effective as he deployed a rare 2-3-5 formation, using the players available in the best possible way. He is known to be one of the most creative managers in the modern era and he showed it in his first game in charge.

Guardiola used the “inverted full back” squad method. His first game was the most anticipated in the opening game day. Apparently, it could be seen as a 4-3-3 but when Man City were able to get three-quarter of the possession, veteran city players Bacary Sagna and Gael Clichy moved to the centre to join Fernandinho. The wingers remained Raheem Sterling at the right and new signing from Spain Nolito playing in the left. A fit David Silva joined Kevin De Bruyne in central midfield as they edged closer to Sergio Aguero at the front. John Stones match with Aleksander Kolarov at the centre back position formed the known 2-3-5 formation very well.

The formation allowed for new passing angles, as a winger and full back were not on a vertical line. Guardiola used one of his known methods at Bayern Munich, placing a player wide and at the middle to create more options. The squad didn’t create as much chances as expected, but they were able to convert an opportunity to get their second when they needed it, sending the coach into frenzy. They had scored the first when Sterling was fouled in the box and Aguero scored the penalty, hitting hard to the left and beating the goal keeper. Sunderland equalised and Davis Moyes rejoiced but City had the last laugh.

GAEL CLICHY LIKELY TO RETAIN SPOT AHEAD OF NEW SEASON

Gael Clichy is reported to be likely retained for the coming season to help the likely change in central defenders.

Incoming coach Pep Guardiola wants to add fresh legs in the defence as it is a critical area that suffered last season.

With Captain Vincent Kompany out till October, only Nicholas Otamendi and Eliaquim Mangala are available for the start of the season in August. Guardiola is looking at landing defender John Stones despite the refusal of Everton to sell him. Manchester City lost out on signing Aymeric Laporte from Bilbao. Man City had been tracking the player to join in bolstering the defence but the price tag of 40 million Pounds held City back until he renewed his contract with the club to remain there till 2020. City claimed they were hesitant because of the serious back injury the player is just recovering from.

Chelsea tried to sign John Stones but could not land the defender last season but Guardiola wants to package a bid that would be difficult to refuse. Everton rejected a bid of 38 million Pounds from Chelsea FC last season but a transfer bid of upwards of 40 million Pounds might trigger his release.

Gael Clichy enjoyed a decent season in the last campaign and is believed will get at least a year deal ahead of the coming season, at least to help in the transition wave going on at the Etihad. The competition for the player in Aleksander Kolarov and even Zabaleta are likely to shipped out. Clichy still has his age issues but he is set to likely have a go for the coming season. Though he had a few concerns at the back, the support he gave the attack helped balance his performance.

GAEL CLICHY SET TO REMAIN IN MAN CITY NEXT SEASON

Gael Clichy is believed to remain at the club next season as newly appointed coach Pep Guardiola resumes at the club.

The tactician is asking for a total overhaul of the current squad and Clinchy was initially among those who might lose his first team action, if he remains at the club but indications as the season ended show that the right back might just have a spot on Guardiola’s team.

The player struggled at some point in the season with consistency. Kolarov was Clichy’s competition but lacked that attribute that used to make him indispensable. The Sky Blues defense section had one issue or the other all season but Clichy was able to manage a decent performance despite struggling with defensive errors at some points in the league.

One of the most recent being his near own goal, which later turned a goal in the penultimate game in the league against Arsenal where he misjudged heading the goal back home from a cross. It caused a corner kick which resulted in a goal. Overall, he improved this season and managed his position well.

It is believed that Guardiola will retain the player in his position as he is a reliable option, especially as there are lots of other holes in the team to be fixed. His pass accuracy this past season was 80.9% in all competitions, though as an injury candidate he made 20 starts.

His decent defensive stats helped him as he made, on average, Clichy made 4 interceptions and 3 clearances per game. Kolarov meanwhile managed to average only 1.6 interceptions and 2.4 clearances each outing. When compared, Clichy has a very high chance of remaining in the elite team of Manchester City, even as Guardiola resumes.

GAEL CLICHY HAILS TEAMMATE, KEVIN DE BRUYNE

Manchester City player, Gael Clichy hails team mate, Kevin De Bruyne for his impressive performances since returning from injury.

The Belgian forward has contributed immensely to the resurgence of the Sky Blues since returning from injury concerns. Gael Clichy says he disagrees with his Head Coach’s comment that multiple injuries to City stars have left the team in shambles this season.

Manchester City player, Gael Clichy hails team mate, Kevin De Bruyne for his impressive performances since returning from injury.

Manchester City have seen key first team players get injured at critical parts of the season. The players include captain Vincent Kompany, main striker Sergio Aguero and playmakers Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva and Samir Nasri.

“We know we have a strong team and we know what we did wrong during the year.

“We won’t hide behind injuries because injuries affect any team in the league so it’s not an excuse but we know if we play well and the way we want to play that we’re a difficult team to beat,” the Frenchman said.
On his team mate, Kevin De Bruyne, he said:

“I’m not the kind of person who likes to say this player has been missed or this player should have been fit but the stats talk for him and it’s hard to pretend that we couldn’t have had a better season if he [De Bruyne] was fit.

“When you come back from two months injured it’s hard to come back to your full flow but in the last three games he’s scored as many goals.

“He’s the kind of player who even if he doesn’t play well can give you something, a goal or an assist.

“He’s the kind of player you want in your team so of course it’s a bonus for us but again I’d like to think Manchester City has enough talent to cope with Kevin being injured.

“I will let people who analyze the game decide if we would have been higher or lower with him but he’s just a great player to have,” the left-back who was voted Etihad Player of the month of March added.

Gael Clichy Celebrates The City’s Win

When a team wins the best men celebrate. That’s what happened when Man City won over Aston Villa.

The French left back was counted among the stars. Gael on the other hand stated that he believed that the squad was ready to win the Premier League crown. If that happens, it would certainly be a win in a time span of five years.

Pictures of Gael and Nicolas Otamendi are all over the portals. Gael is definitely one of the star players of Manchester City, a team that has a good season so far. The team has definitely finished the seasons of Premier League successfully this year.

When a team wins the best men celebrate. That’s what happened when Man City won over Aston Villa.

That strengthens the belief of the players that they can certainly aim for the crown this year. As per the last game, Aston Villa was beaten by City for a score of 4-0. The game took place on Saturday. It was side by side with Arsenal and Tottenham who played to a draw of 2-2. It is hopeful that the City will be able to win over Arsenal. If they are able to go up on Arsenal they will be able to come close to Spurs.

In Clichy’s words, being at the top would definitely be better, especially if one could have a 20 point difference between the second team. He is optimistic that anything could be achieved. The feeling in the team is that everyone is willing to fight for the title and if the performance is kept up, then it might be possible to win the crown. The team had a bad spell in the league and hence, it is important that consistent performance is kept up. Then only there would be a chance of winning in the league. Clichy and his team members are definitely optimistic now.

Clichy wants Manchester City to be more clinical

Manchester City along with Leicester City, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are the current clubs in the Premier League that are positioned in the top 4 spots of the English League.

Manuel Pellegrini and his men could’ve been in pole position if they hadn’t dropped points against: Everton, West Ham United and Leicester City, these are all of the clubs that Manchester City has not been able to finish things off and win and have had to settle with a draw in each game.

Manchester City along with Leicester City, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are the current clubs in the Premier League that are positioned in the top 4 spots of the English League.

Manchester City faced off with West Ham United on January 23 and the final score was 2-2 and a few days prior to this game, they failed to score a single goal when locking horns with Everton in a match that finished goal-less.

In both of those matches, Manchester City were the clear favorites on winning and claiming all 3 points but after everything was said and done, things just didn’t finish off as it was initially expected and <a href="http://www.didierandnicholas.com".Gael Clichy believes that Manchester City can’t continue dropping points like this and have to learn how to finish games off.

‘’I think we can always do better. We conceded a couple of goals which tells you we can do better. Overall our performance was good but the second goal killed us a bit as we were on top of them. But that’s what happens if you don’t take your chances.It’s a hard place to go. We wanted the three points and we didn’t get them, but we will take the positives.I’m not surprised at how good West Ham was, they are a great team with great players. But we can do better and we have to do better’’ This is what Manchester City’s Gael Clichy said after his team settled with a 2-2 draw against West Ham United back in January 23 of the ongoing year.

Even with these dropped points, Manchester City has still managed to stay in the top spots of the Premier League and are one of the favorites on becoming the champions of England but they could’ve been in a more dominating position.

Manuel Pellegrini’s future at Manchester City has been thrown

Manuel Pellegrini’s future at Manchester City has been thrown into major speculation after several rumours that another club had agreed a deal with former Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola, who will be leaving Bayern Munich at the end of the season.

Guardiola is one of the sought-after managers in world football after having achieved numerous trophies in the last eight years.

Pellegrini was given a vote of confidence in the summer after his failure to win any major title with the blues last season. Nothing much appears to have improved at City despite spending vast sums of money on players like Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling.

The latest 2-1 loss against Arsenal has put the team several points behind table leaders Leicester City. Even though they remain in contention for all four trophies, it will now be difficult for City to concentrate on every one of them. The club has frequently maintained that their target is to win the <a href="http://www.didierandnicholas.com".quadruple this year. One of the biggest tasks now for Pellegrini will be to keep his authority at the club even as speculation about Guardiola increases. The manager says that the players will have no trouble dealing with such speculation since they play for him.

Pellegrini may struggle to motivate the players in the coming matches. Manchester City are at home to Sunderland on Boxing Day.”I don’t think players (only) work for the manager – they work for the group, themselves, because they want to win.You have a good connection (with the players) and that is the most important thing to be a good manager.But I don’t think that a professional player will have any problems if he is listening or reading about things that may happen next year. If they do they are not professional players, they are not top players,” said Pellegrini.

The Sky Blues’ fans are absolutely furious

The Sky Blues’ fans are absolutely furious with the fact that Yaya Toure gave his jersey to one of the Juventus players when the game was still on at the Juventus Stadium last week.

Manchester City ended up getting beaten there to be displaced from the top position in Group A, but, more than that defeat, the burning topic at the end of the day was Toure handing his jersey to somebody from the opposition camp.

And, it’s not only the fans, some of the television pundits also did not like Toure’s act.

The Sky Blues’ fans are absolutely furious with the fact that Yaya Toure gave his jersey to one of the Juventus players when the game was still on at the Juventus Stadium last week.

And, it’s not only the fans, some of the television pundits also did not like Toure’s act.

Harry Redknapp, the former Queens Park Rangers boss, was quoted as saying on a television channel, “It’s something I would not like to appreciate. You can do it when the match is over, that’s understandable. But, to do it in the middle is very inappropriate in my view.”

Toure is a pretty modest man and he was requested by that particular young player, who must have been his fan growing up, for the jersey. All he did was he obliged that, but, was it really as big a crime as it has been made to look?

After what the Ivorian has done for City over the years, does he deserve to be blasted in such a manner for that?
Swapping the jerseys is nothing new in the game of Football. Yes, as Redknapp said, it is more appropriate doing that when the match comes to an end.

You don’t expect it to be done during the half time break, but, it’s certainly not something for which a player should be handed as much flak as been done especially if he is of the stature of Toure.

He commands a bit of respect, Toure. He is a City legend after all.

Manchester City almost dropped two more points

Manchester City almost dropped two more points in the Premier League after an error from goalkeeper Joe Hart.

The England international has already lost his place previously under Manuel Pellegrini’s regime, but the Chilean reaffirmed his faith in the goalkeeper despite his latest clanger. City were leading through Otamendi’s goal in the 67th minute, but it looked like the home team would be dropping two more points when Hart’s error led to Cameroon Jerome coming up with the equaliser. Since there were only seven minutes of normal time remaining, it looked like too little too late for City.

Yaya Touré proved to be the saviour with a late penalty goal, while defender Aleksandar Kolarov also had the chance to extend the advantage through yet another penalty late in the match. His failure to convert, though, did not matter too much since City kept their position as the table leaders. Russell Martin was sent off for Norwich after his handball, which also led to the penalty. After the game, Pellegrini refused to criticise his number one goalkeeper. It has been problematic position for City in the last couple of years and Hart’s replacement Caballero has not been the best around.

“It was unfortunate. Sometimes these things happen. Joe is human and he can make mistakes.Apart from that error, there were only two shots at him in the game and he saved those because he is a very good goalkeeper.We played against a difficult team that played very well.I think we deserved to win the game. We started from the beginning to try and score.Norwich played very well because they defended very well with 11 players near their box.It was very difficult for us to create space but we created three or four chances that we missed,” said Pellegrini.

Gael Clichy hopes that Manchester City can learn from Chelsea

Jose Mourinho led Chelsea to the 5th Premier League title of their history in what was a pretty convincing season as Chelsea secured the English title with 87 points meanwhile Manchester City was far behind with 79 points.

The previous season of the Premier League was a fairly disappointing one for Manchester City as they failed on winning any trophy after being knocked out from the Champions League and the FA Cup and losing the Premier League race against Chelsea which became the champions of England and now have the task of defending their title.

Despite having won the Premier League in a stellar form, Chelsea is being known for their playing style which is labeled as: ‘’boring’’ and Jose Mourinho has implemented a method which is known as: ‘’Parking the Bus’’

This boring playing style was especially evident a few years ago when Chelsea was playing the semi- finals of the 2011-12 Champions League against Barcelona and during the majority of the game Chelsea was playing defensively with almost all of the players of the English club holding their grown inside their own half and still managed to claim the victory and eventually went on winning the Champions League.

Manchester City’s Gael Clichy believes that if his teammates learn to play like that, they will be able to win more matches.

“Sometimes in football you just need to be able to win games, even when you are not playing well. People always seem to be talking about how certain teams are playing. With Chelsea they are saying Mourinho plays defensive football and his team doesn’t like to attack. They’ve won a lot of games by one goal but at the end of the day you just look at the trophies,”

“Our philosophy is to play attractive football and score lots of goals, but the bottom line is if you play for a club like City and have had the season we’ve had, it’s not good enough.” The French defender of Manchester City said.

Manuel Pellegrini only cares about winning titles and it doesn’t matter for him if the price of it is playing less attractively, it’s a price that the Chilean manager is willing to pay as he is under a lot of pressure as the owner and the head executives of Manchester City want to see him start winning major titles and if he doesn’t do it, he will probably be sacked by next season or maybe even sooner.