Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
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I'm Alexis Yunus alongside Stevie Nicol who's got a cute little grin on Stevie and Ale Moreno. Later on we're going to be talking about Igor Tudor's spicy press conference. Here's to Ale. I tell you who is not grinning though, Igor Tudor. Like I said, we'll be talking about that.
But to start things off, we are still talking about that big result for Real Madrid over Manchester City in the Champions League. It is the fixture that keeps on giving in Europe and it's one that Real Madrid, as you can see, have absolutely owned over the last couple of years. This is City's third loss in their last four meetings. So Pep Guardiola has been on some
Heavy criticism for the XI that he chose, but he backed his decision in his latest press conference. I cannot play the same XI, same XI, same XI in three days. That is not going to happen, of course, when you change it. But I'm not thinking about it. I truly believe otherwise it will not be possible. The amount of Premier Leagues we've won in the last years is not important in every single game.
I have an opinion about the game at Madrid. completely on opinion and there's going to be change. So I would need mistakes of my own decisions on opinions, not about what happened, the results or whatever. I had my opinion and did very, very good things. And the other ones, it would be better. Yeah, of course. And the emotion was involved in the moment that we have
In the first half, especially the first 90, 20 minutes before the first goal, it was exceptional. I would say one of the best we have played that in terms of we come here to make a threat and we were threatening. But after that, the emotions come, concede one goal immediately. You know, I lost many times in Champions League on stage, many, many, many times and have been...
massacred and decisions and what happened so it's not first time and I know but in the same time still I'm here in that position and until the last day I will take the positions like and I can argue why the decision was the team selection. I will not convince you because we lost.
All right, now you know that any time Manchester City lose, we like to call it a mini-crisis, and we cannot pass up the opportunity to throw salt in Natum Anua's wounds. So Natum Anua is joining us right now. Natum, I know you got your defensive grin on, but you heard from Pep Guardiola right there.
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Chapter 2: What were the key moments in Real Madrid's victory over Manchester City?
I think those first two goals were essentially individual mistakes from his side. And before you know it, 2-0 down at the Bernabeu, I think they suffered the same fate that so many teams have done before. Yes, Stevie, we talk about this fixture being one of the marquee fixtures that the Champions League just keeps throwing up.
So if you're Pep Guardiola, why would you play this XI in such a big game? Well, I wouldn't if I was Pep Guardiola. You know, I wouldn't have played Nico Reilly at left-back. We've been saying since Nico Reilly got on the Manchester City team that he's not a full-back. And so to turn around in such a big game and say, well, yeah, he's at fault for two of the goals...
I mean, tell us something that we haven't been talking about that could possibly happen against different opposition. And I don't understand why he didn't play Nico Gonzalez in the middle of the pack either. You know, defend with six. Six defenders and attack with your four. I mean, I don't get it.
It's happened to him so many times and it just seems to me as though he's going, you know what, we're going to go to the Bernabeu and we're going to blast them out of the water without thinking about the consequences if it doesn't quite happen. Now the fact that they played really well, fantastic as far as Pep's concerned, but they didn't score the goals.
And you've got Nico O'Reilly at four, but you've got to look at Donnarumma as well, who's two yards inside his own goal, but yet doesn't put his arm out to stop the ball. So, yeah, from a defensive point of view, they were awful and they didn't have enough defenders on the field.
So, yeah, I think... How many times have we sat here and said, seems like Pep's got a bit too clever at the wrong time? It kind of feels like that. Ale?
Yeah, and I know where Pep Guardiola is coming from and essentially addressing the media and saying, well, it's easy to criticize post, and it's easy to criticize after the result, and because we lost 3-0, I'll never convince you that my decision was correct.
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Chapter 3: How did Pep Guardiola's team selection impact the game?
Here's the thing, though, and it's something that I spoke about on Wednesday. When you're coming up with a game plan, Your game plan already has flaws, even before you kick a ball. The case of Nick O'Reilly is one thing. If we have seen Nick O'Reilly play, yes, left back most of the season, and we have been saying, as Steve just mentioned, that he's out of position.
That's made even more apparent, and it's much more of a clear picture when you watch him play in the midfield. And you see what he can do for this team out of the midfield. And I bring that up not just to highlight the mistakes of Nico Reilly.
I bring that up to highlight of what could have happened and what could have been for Manchester City had he been playing in the midfield and exploited some of the areas that areas of weakness for Real Madrid. The midfield for Real Madrid hasn't been all that strong and having a guy like Nico Reilly that can
hold on to the possession of the ball, but can also go and press the ball, would have allowed you, if you're Manchester City, not only to press with that first line of pressure, but actually have, more importantly, that second line of pressure that doesn't allow the outlet pass, that doesn't allow the transition pass.
Not just the first pass, but the transition pass that really springs everything open for Real Madrid and moments of transition. And that was happening time and time again. Why was that happening time and time again? Because there was only one guy, really, Rodri, that was holding, and everybody else was just running around without any sort of organization.
Semenyo, who has been outstanding for Manchester City in wide areas. In wide areas, he has been outstanding. And you're playing down the middle, Erling Haaland. So you have him there.
You have Zemeno, and instead of playing him where he has been outstanding for you, you now put him in a role in which he's kind of with Haaland, but he's kind of underneath, but not really, and it's not what he does best.
Either you play him down the middle or play him down the side, but this sort of in-between thing doesn't work for him because now he doesn't get to show all the attributes that he has in his game. We can say post-match that it didn't work.
And it's confirmation of what we already knew coming into the match when you see the lineup and you see the matchups and you just kind of go, this doesn't make sense. Now he's going to say that the first 20 minutes they were excellent, that they were outstanding, they were fantastic. Yeah, game is 90 minutes, first and foremost.
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Chapter 4: What are the criticisms surrounding Pep's tactical decisions?
There needs to be a little bit more activity from him. And so the lack of touches affect his level of activity and, of course, affect the level of performance. Surely you've got to thank some men. You're playing underneath him. It doesn't help him either. Is that what's throwing him off? Well... It's not just that.
But at the end of the day, you know, if you've got the two guys wide and it's not quite happening, you've got to find another way. And the only way you can do it through the middle is a battering ram, basically, with Semenyo and Haaland. Because Semenyo's not a guy who's looking for little passes and little slipping balls in. He wants to get on the end of things as well.
But you've got Phil Foden, you've got Shevkiy.
Chapter 5: What does Nedum Onuoha think about Manchester City's performance?
it's just another look and a different way of breaking the team down. So from that point of view, he didn't help Haaland, in my opinion, in terms of his service. Well, it's easy for you to say now that they lost 3-0, Stevie. Apparently.
But an interesting thing, Natum, that Stevie has brought up in terms of Erling Haaland playing with Antoine Semenu, because he only has one goal from open play since Semenu kind of was thrown into the picture as well. And Semenu has kind of replaced Haaland's output. So what is it about them two that's, I suppose, throwing him off? I wouldn't necessarily say throwing him off.
I think that does feel a little bit harsh, but it is strange that the two of them haven't been able to operate together as such. But in my mind as well, for Erling Haaland, when you see some of his best football, especially whilst he's playing for Manchester City, it's been with the likes of Phil Foden, Kevin De Bruyne behind them.
And yes, those are like when they're at their best, elite level number 10s, but more so like passing 10s, always looking to sort of stretch the game or say look for Haaland as soon as he makes his runs. I think, as the guys have said to many, that's not necessarily a big part of his game as such. I think when he's out wide, he's got the ability to beat people inside, outside.
He's got finishing right foot, left foot. But him finding little spaces and turning and trying to feed, say, someone like Haaland, that's not necessarily a strength of theirs. And I think another thing as well from City's perspective, and I found this the other day in the Real Madrid game,
think how many times we've seen Haaland across the last few years getting you know headers on the ball where somebody's crossing the ball in like a Mateus Nunes for example or somebody on the other side he's so good at timing his runs and getting his head to things but all of a sudden when things become more central he's no longer the focus and if he's not the last person to say get that touch for a for a finish in that sort of golden area just outside the six yard box
then unfortunately the link-up play is just not the same. And I think Semenyul's rise in some ways. He's hit the ground running. He's been voted Premier League Player of the Season for February. That's great. But the league's top scorer seems to be suffering somehow. So maybe bring back someone like Asherki and see how we can provide for him.
Right, well, this is the third show in a row and we're still talking about this game, but that's because it was quite a surprising result, even from the Real Madrid perspective, considering how they've been playing in La Liga. Well, Trent Alexander-Arnold had this to say, I think the size of the game is the main thing.
I don't want to say that the other games are less important, but when there's so much hype around a game and so many eyes on it as a player, you know you need to perform, especially when you play for a club like this. There are no excuses. You have to win. Stevie, your thoughts on what Trent had to say about this one? Seriously.
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