"Disappointing" attendances

[gordondaviesmoustache]

There is something edifying about cadaver dicks.

You are chair of the Manuel Pellegrini appreciation society and I claim my £5.

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

The reaction amongst fans is because he’s touched a nerve. Our supporter numbers haven’t grown as I’m sure the club would have hoped and the atmosphere is often shocking.

It’s all those FOCs in CB3 who are to blame.

 

[give it to gordon]

The reaction amongst fans is because he’s touched a nerve. Our supporter numbers haven’t grown as I’m sure the club would have hoped and the atmosphere is often shocking.

Touch a nerve ! Yea the atmosphere can be crap but this season I have never been around so many away fans , that doesn't help the atmosphere, and VAR has well and truly ruin the atmosphere.
The only nerve it hit with me is well if giving up my weekends at home, and days of work unpaid, staying over for weekday matches and spending over 2k a season on coming to matches , and our manager doesnt understand that I chose the Wednesday match over the sunday. And travelling over 600 miles per game Perhaps it's time I knocked going to matches on the head. Just the Wednesday match is costing me
55quid on 2 tickets 30 quid to stay over and 60quid on fuel =£145 than add food and two days lost pay.....following City isnt cheap and Pep should know that !!

 

[bobbyowenquiff]

Irrelevant really. He wasn't asked about Barcelona and didn't compare us to Barcelona other crowds, so I fail to see any relevance in this at all.

It is relevant because Pep has often spoken favourably about these big clubs and their rich history. It also shows that not even the largest clubs are immune to the same sort of issues wth attendances . City remain one of the best supported clubs in England and have been for more than 100 years. Pep needs to respect us fans more than he does.

 

[BlueMoonRisin’]

Not convinced about that. Too cheap and people snap up the tickets but see the weather/feel the hangover etc and can't be bothered to turn up.

40,000 was a decent road under the circumstances.

I'm not quibbling the odds of a few fair weather stayaways not going, but cheaper tickets would have undoubtedly had a considerably higher attendance. And those attending for the first time would most probably want to return. But the greed in PL football of fleecing hard up fans to stay away will bite harder on match going attendances if prices are hiked up year on year as they have been. And ours have increased all but one season since the takeover.

 

[supercity88]

It is relevant because Pep has often spoken favourably about these big clubs and their rich history. It also shows that not even the largest clubs are immune to the same sort of issues wth attendances . City remain one of the best supported clubs in England and have been for more than 100 years. Pep needs to respect us fans more than he does.

I am hoping he was aiming it more at the board. He should have said he knows it is tough financially for fans. The numbers City have had through the gates are incredible considering every game is on TV pretty much. Surely he knows why they didn't turn up on Sunday. Because of pricing and the amount of other games and the relative cost. If you can buy a ticket for a home CL game in March now...against Real Madrid. You buy that over the home game against Fulham. He gets the fans he wants in the CL but to the detriment of the attendance in the FA Cup. It is quite simple. Our top dogs aren't stupid. They just want money. 15000 empty seats will be balanced against dropping prices. They want Madrid to sell out at the higher price.

 

[jimmygrimblesboots]

That may be true but it sure doesnt help when our manager brings it up without any prompting from the interviewer....

Agree Gordon , but it doesnt change the fact that our media team should inform Pep that the subject is taboo , we dont need our own manager loading the bullets for our gutter media/press

 

[Blu3m00n91]

The atmosphere at most big clubs isn’t great for a large majority of matches but in all the big games in recent years that we have had, has the atmosphere ever been disappointing??. I think it’s time to stop living in the dark ages and introduce safe standing. Bundesliga has it right, always cheap tickets, people can have a drink in their seat and each ticket includes free transport etc. There’s so many things that City and the league could do. But they are more arsed about the corporate side and introducing gimpy walk to the match bands

 

[OB1]

Yes, I agree. It’s obviously a very touchy subject amongst fans. He’s only saying the same thing that most of them say, too.

He says positive things, too, sometimes. “We has our people with us”, that kind of thing. It does matter to players. You can see it when they do that gee-up thing to the crowd sometimes. It raises them when they need it.

I don’t have an issue with Pep bringing it up but I do worry it will be a reason he leaves us.

There's no doubt the crowd can affect players in a variety of ways, good and bad.

It's possible that he may think why am I bothering? After all, the reason he tries to get his team to play attractive football is to entertain people and whilst TV rules in many ways, there's no substitute in terms of appreciation for people coming to the ground.

I realise Pep gets handsomely paid for his efforts but I doubt the money is a motivator.

I feel that Pep is underappreciated by our supporter base and it does concern me that might lead to him leaving sooner than he might otherwise have done.

Mind you, as long as the next guy wears a scarf and has nice hair, he'll be fine.

 

[oakiecokie]

It was our manager that started it, he should have treated the question with the contempt it deserved...baaabaaaa

Stop bleating

 

[OB1]

Not a bad thing mate. "Pile 'em high sell 'em cheap" is a good business philosophy.

Not necessarily.

If you dropped the price of each ticket by £5, you would need to sell out the rest of the ground at £13 a head to cover that price drop. Given that most of the adult tickets were priced between £10 and £15, I don't see the financial incentive for the club to have dropped prices like that: they would probably have ended up with less gate receipts and devalued the product.

 

[oakiecokie]

Unlike you Oakie, who in your own words 'couldn't be arsed going', the people probably most incensed by Pep's latest gaffe are the ones who actually bothered to turn up. I bet when you do go, you are an early leaver too judging by your self stated apathy.
You are the definition of a hypocrite.

Please explain.
I am not whinging if Pep wants to "have a pop" at people like myself who didn`t go to the game.But after watching the Blues live 1500 times over a 56 years period then I like anyone else has the option to attend or not.
The difference being that I`m not crying in my soup over something that Pep may have said that has "hurt others feelings".
After 56 years and at 69 years of age I`ve developed a spine ... something which a lot of others should do.
Next !!

 

[Cheadle_hulmeBlue]

The reaction amongst fans is because he’s touched a nerve. Our supporter numbers haven’t grown as I’m sure the club would have hoped and the atmosphere is often shocking.

I agree. However I don’t think any actual city fans care whether or not our supporter base has grown. Our support is largely made up of the same loyal support that went for years and now their kids. I’d rather have just kept the ground smaller and full as it’s clear we don’t have fan base yet.

the ones that care about it are the people in the boardroom, as it’s all about making money. They have neglected our core support and there is a disconnect now. It’s not just empty seats, you can feel it in the ground.

it doesn’t matter about winning or the trophies for me. I want to feel like the club has a connection with us. Ever since the Spanish guys have come in that’s gone. The whole match day experience has turned shite. I feel like I’m at Disney land at times - it’s not city.

poster will say well that’s just modern football. It’s not. The club have chosen to do this and we could easily go back. No more season ticket increases, stop giving tickets to agencies, sack off the cringy half time things. Just a few examples. Even just peps language towards us at times would help

 

[Cheadle_hulmeBlue]

Not necessarily.

If you dropped the price of each ticket by £5, you would need to sell out the rest of the ground at £13 a head to cover that price drop. Given that most of the adult tickets were priced between £10 and £15, I don't see the financial incentive for the club to have dropped prices like that: they would probably have ended up with less gate receipts and devalued the product.

Do you work on the board ;)

there is an obsession with financial incentives. How about just filling the ground, getting it packed and attracting thousands more fans who have been priced out.

it’s all about money. Making. Cup tickets really cheap isn’t going to kill the club. We are one of the most profitable well run clubs going.

the long term benefits of cheap tickets for just cup games far outweigh the financial gain of expensive tickets. The way your looking at it, is what the club do and one of the main reasons why many fans are packing it in

 

[WestGorton]

Somebody scoffed at me once when I said we should be enticing Scottish fans however the rags and dippers have got Wales and Ireland pretty much seen up. It's a 4 hour drive from the population belt and they may support a Scottish club but us as well. Few games ago there was a group of kids from there really into City and not just there on a school beano.

 

[Onholiday(somemightsay)]

This started with the 50th anniversary of Munich, and then the media reaction to the Tevez Poster

Only City spend £200m on Full Backs (it must be true because Mourinho said so)

Only City commit tactical fouls

Only City pay high wages

Only City inflate sponsorship dealings

Only City have empty seats

It’s the Law!

All very true statements - This club of ours.........

 

[philiph20]

Somebody scoffed at me once when I said we should be enticing Scottish fans however the rags and dippers have got Wales and Ireland pretty much seen up. It's a 4 hour drive from the population belt and they may support a Scottish club but us as well. Few games ago there was a group of kids from there really into City and not just there on a school beano.

Nothing wrong with that all it makes sense the borders, Dumfries and Galloway, Ayrshire etc, I remember there was thing a decade or so ago there was a smallish link up with Selkirk probably something to do with Bobby Johnstone but it was never really pursued. You are spot on about Ireland and Wales As well, our pals from M16 could relocate to Dublin and they would be equally as popular.

We don’t seem to have made many inroads into towns close by such as St Helens, Northwich, Winsford, Warrington etc we seem to still be the 4th most popular club still. The Manchester United Foundation seem to have upped their game locally as well recently, the Club give the impression that they don’t want local working class Mancunians any more sadly.

 

[philiph20]

I agree. However I don’t think any actual city fans care whether or not our supporter base has grown. Our support is largely made up of the same loyal support that went for years and now their kids. I’d rather have just kept the ground smaller and full as it’s clear we don’t have fan base yet.

the ones that care about it are the people in the boardroom, as it’s all about making money. They have neglected our core support and there is a disconnect now. It’s not just empty seats, you can feel it in the ground.

it doesn’t matter about winning or the trophies for me. I want to feel like the club has a connection with us. Ever since the Spanish guys have come in that’s gone. The whole match day experience has turned shite. I feel like I’m at Disney land at times - it’s not city.

poster will say well that’s just modern football. It’s not. The club have chosen to do this and we could easily go back. No more season ticket increases, stop giving tickets to agencies, sack off the cringy half time things. Just a few examples. Even just peps language towards us at times would help

Pep should realise that his pal and the other cronies on the board have turned the Etihad into the ‘Theatre of Cheese’, I sacked it off 40 years at the end of last season mainly because I was going out of duty and in the end I felt a huge disconnect mainly due to the horrendous match day experience and awful atmosphere and I’ve felt no desire to return.

 

[Didsbury Dave]

I agree. However I don’t think any actual city fans care whether or not our supporter base has grown. Our support is largely made up of the same loyal support that went for years and now their kids. I’d rather have just kept the ground smaller and full as it’s clear we don’t have fan base yet.

the ones that care about it are the people in the boardroom, as it’s all about making money. They have neglected our core support and there is a disconnect now. It’s not just empty seats, you can feel it in the ground.

it doesn’t matter about winning or the trophies for me. I want to feel like the club has a connection with us. Ever since the Spanish guys have come in that’s gone. The whole match day experience has turned shite. I feel like I’m at Disney land at times - it’s not city.

poster will say well that’s just modern football. It’s not. The club have chosen to do this and we could easily go back. No more season ticket increases, stop giving tickets to agencies, sack off the cringy half time things. Just a few examples. Even just peps language towards us at times would help

I said earlier today: the south stand top tier should have been named “The New Kippax”. Season tickets capped at £300. 1894 given a block at the back. Banners and standing allowed. Beer easy to buy. First refusal at half price given to season ticket holders in the existing singing areas. That area of the ground could have retained the old school football culture and the rest of the cheesy stuff wouldn’t have mattered. Ironically, a loud singing end would enhance the product for the new fans and corporate customers.

That was the moment.

 

[kaz7]

Manchester City's average attendance in the Premier League this season is 54,391 - more than 98% of capacity. [via @spbajko]