Bad game, it happens to all of us. However, Pedro's stellar form at the beginning of the season has taken a noticable dip in the past month or 2 or so, for sure. And on top of that he's still having trouble knocking in the goals.
What I notice about Pedro when he's out there... is that he's never looking threatening on goal. What I mean is... unlike an Eto'o, or an Ibra, or an Henry... you don't see Pedro's intent always looking on beating his defender, making a run for a great pass or opening himself up for a run towards the goal and looking to score... that kind of forward instinct is virtually wholly absent from his game most of the time I notice. He's just kind of running around up front, "creating space", playing balls etc. But really, I still maintain that as a forward, his most important job is to get the ball from the midfield to the back of the net.
I think he, as well as Alexis, should focus A LOT less on playing it safe (Read: mediocre) and always passing it back, and start CREATING danger and havoc going towards goal. With pure willful intent... fearlessly. Delofeu already shows MUCH more of that aggressiveness and attack-mindedness. Fabregas and Iniesta both show a lot more of it than Pedro and Alexis do and they're primarily "midfielders". It's almost as if they're afraid of attacking... they don't have the intent and the courage. So when it comes to their main job- scoring - they're useless, as they're track record shows.
Delofeu, Cuenca, Fabregas, Villa, and even Tello show a lot more attack-mindedness, confidence, aggressiveness and skill when it comes to ATTACKING the goal and trying to put the ball in the net than Pedro + Alexis. This is why I would honestly much rather see Villa on the left, Messi center and Delo/Cuenca (or Tello) on the right. Those two are incredibly dangerous and in my mind I feel our attack is much stronger and more creative with them attacking the net. I honestly can't remember the last time I got the feeling of "we are dangerous up front now" with Pedro or Alexis up there. But I always do with Villa, Fabregas and the rest that I mentioned.
I love Pedro, I know he has that killer instinct somewhere there within him... he just needs to rediscover it. I don't know how the coaching staff or anyone else can pull that lion courage and abandon that someone like Delo has out of him, but I think that is what he needs the most. That and a re-orientation from "play it safe" to "be a dangerous fucking jungle cat constantly stalking and looking to pounce the goal". That is the type of mindset Messi has, which is why he is so damn effective. Same like how Falcao is. The rest of our forwards (Pedro+Alexis mainly) need more of that. Once we have 3 players with that deadly finishing mentality rather than 1, we will be unstoppable. Even if our defense continues having lapses, having Messi + Villa + another deadly, creative, ATTACK-minded striker up front will almost guarantee us bucketloads of goals... especially when being backed by the likes of Iniesta Fabregas and Xavi.
