Manuel Pellegrini may be revealing much during his lunchtime presser although he is generally a guy who says little keeping his cards close to his chest ahead – and often – after games.
However, truth is he has loads and loads of options this weekend and that will ensure that he can put out what he considers his best team for the game against Newcastle.
And to be fair given that the Geordies will approach the match in much the same way as Sheffield United did last weekend it will be interesting to see whether he makes several changes or leaves things as they are.
It will tell us a lot about his mindset but we really do need to play the game changers of which Manu Lanzini is most definitely one.
Tony Cottee suggested in a CandH blog yesterday we need our luxury players on the pitch in Anderson and Lanzini despite Manu not being at his best right now as form could return at any time.
Should the boss go that way then presumably one of Snoddy or Yarmo will need to go and it would be ishould he decide that creativity and an attacking policy is what’s required.
Newcastle are likely to park the bus and thus it looks as though – as Tony Cottee suggested in a blog with CandH yesterday that creativity will be the key requirement.
Given all of that and following Tony’s view could this be the team: Roberto; Fredericks, Diop, Balbuena, Cresswell; Rice, Noble, Snoddy, Anderson, Lanzini, Haller.
Too many of the game changers we have are not game changers, there is a lack of pace and intensity in those replacements. We are missing Antonio, Hernandez and Lucas Perez for that matter who when hot made a difference. We need runners in behind the lines and players that can pass the ball into the gaps for them to run onto.
Am afraid as much as time and again he shows how valuable he is for me Noble is the one that needs to miss out.
We need a better version of Noble…a ball carrier and distributor and playmaker and for me that has to start becoming Lanzini.
I’d like to see us pair Lanzini alongside Rice, get Yarmalenko in alongside Haller, with Masuaku in front of Cresswell on the left and Anderson on the right (until Antonio is back available and Anderson can go back to the left).
Masuaku would give us natural width and pace, Lanzini gives us mobility and quickness of thought in the middle with Declan, and Yarmalenko and Haller up front give us strength and goal threat.
Now i’m pessimism againts toon army, last time we lost 1-0, next it’s bigger score
But we did the double over them last season – you talking about China?