Epitomises what a nonsense this playing out from the back obsession is.

Pickford played it to a defender under pressure. Who is then forced to lump it less accurately and half the distance a keeper can kick it from a dead ball. Against a team as good as city.

I really dont understand the obsession with it.

Doesn't seem to be a problem for us!

Leisure wrote:Doesn't seem to be a problem for us!

It nearly was for Lloris.

When done well, like city, it’s a great tactic to open up the pitch. However, when not executed well, it puts you under huge pressure.
City have the personnel to play that way. Other teams don’t but still feel it’s the way forward.
There is also an obsession with playing pretty football. The way the media go on, the team who has the best stats and plays the nicest football gets the 3 points.

If you’re good enough to do it then it works a treat. If not you’re shooting yourselves in the foot. The trick is being able to use the goalkeeper as the extra man. Could Everton’s full back not have played it back to Pickford?

I can understand why teams do it as, at a rough guess, you probably lose possession about half the time when a keeper goes long. I also imagine teams like City are hoping other sides press on in the hope that it opens up gaps further forward. However, one mistake can lead to a simple goal. Would you really want to lose a Champions League final like that?