Pretty much this.
City are decent, let's get it right. And they gave us a dose of ''deer in the headlights' last night. As you commented, as soon as they look slick and get the one touch flow going you realise the ball is moving faster than we can run, and as a player you don't know whether to stick or twist. Maybe Poch should step in at this point?
What City do well is create overloads. They are quite happy for KDB Silva or Gundogan to come right over wide and high up the pitch to team up with walker and sterling or sane and Delph. Of course this is risky because it leaves the middle very empty (probably why the scousers have success when they succeed with their rabid press) BUT generally they have so much confidence in there passing they think it's worth that risk.
We still have our men (dembele/dier) sticking to the middle and not helping out wide so Tripps/Davies get exposed hoping that Dele or Pamela come back to help and also relying on Jan or Sanchez to come across from the centre.
Of course this process is reactionary and disjoints us and pulls us all over the place ironically creating space elsewhere for other City players (remember they're moving the ball quickly amongst quick players).
They've done it to many teams, and you can wish for all the fast starts you want, but City haven't come to be steam rollered.
We are very very competitive on the whole. We generally only struggle (but even then sometimes overcome) against other top sides now. Those top sides come prepared as well, they are battles and some we will lose. We will have another (probably ugly one) next week.
