Quote Originally Posted by Peter View Post
I turned it off when they scored and went for a bath. I was confident we wouldn't blow it again but didn't want to watch it

There is a difference between seeing out a game and dropping back down through the gears. We got too casual in the last 10 minutes.
Apologies for going on about Pep all the time but back in his Bayern days he admitted motivating your players when they know they're so far ahead of their opposition, so dominant that it's ridiculous, was his toughest challenge.

He said players naturally switch off and take a step back when they believe the game is won. Getting them to keep playing forward as a team and as individuals; pushing for more goals, more assists, to be even better than last season was practically impossible, in the short term. It requires a complete change of mindset and given the traditional, essential, ebb and flow of the game, it's essentially ANTI-football.

But it was really the only way to be sure, defenders being what they are and defending, indeed Football Fortune being what it is.