75 | Nico O'Reilly - 2024/25

[sir baconface]

According to Romano Chelsea have made inquiries for Nico.

They’ll soon have a starting XI of City academy graduates and probably be a major contender again in a season or two. Already got three.

 

[M16 citeh]

So, they’re good enough to play with men, but not men enough to take some stick?

I used to get it from FOCs at the side of the pitch telling me “You’ll never be as good as your Father!” At the time, I was playing at school, for my region, for a club team and Sunderland…and I was 14!

Taking stick, both on and off the field, has always been part and parcel of being a footballer.

When I was that age, I once turned out for our pub team (I grew up in a pub!) because we were short of players. Some guy goes in a bit reckless and one of our lads goes, “Leave it out, he’s only 14 and plays for Sunderland Youth Team!”

Next time down the muddy pitch, I’m running with the ball, fella slides in, takes me and everything else (which was considered a great sliding tackle back in the day!). I’m lying on the floor about to get up when he rolls towards me and hits me, full fist, smack dab in the face, and says, “Yer playin wiv big boys today!” 47 years later, and I remember it like it was yesterday!

I went with the manager when Jimmy Adamson moved from Sunderland to Leeds United and at about age 16, Terry Connor and I had a private training session with Dave Merrington. He liked what he saw and next day I trained with the First Team…for about an hour!

We did drills and played some small games and then played some situational one on ones. Harvey was in goal and Merrington knocks a ball into me from the sideline (I played center forward). I collect it and bring it down and I’m supposed to try to turn, get past Byron Stevenson, and see if I can score.

I shield the ball and quick as a flash, I turn, nutmeg him, run past him laughing, and have a crack. Harvey saves it! A bunch of the first team laughs at him, and me, for the nutmeg.

“Again!”

Merrington knocks it into me again and as I’m trying to bring it under control, I get knobbled from behind. Absolutely leathered and I’m not even sure I can get up, let alone walk away. Stevenson stands over me, glares, and tells me not to nutmeg him or laugh at him EVER again!

As I try to get to my feet, Merrington sees I’m in pain and tells me to get up and go see the Physio. And that was that!

Football is a cruel mistress and you’ve got to be ready for everything she throws at you. I thought I’d made it training with Terry Connor and then the first team, but it took one laugh (which was stupid, but reflexive) to tell me I needed to grow up some, toughen up some, and actual BE a man, not just have a few skills that men had, before I could even entertain the man’s game.

After that, I knew I needed to go to Uni and not chase the almost impossible dream without a solid fallback position. I’d seen my Dad be an almost man, even though he was great, broke records and was a worldie at Alty in the 70s. But, in my heart, I was a player who could play really good, not a really good player! I did play pro, but nothing to write home about, and I did have an education to fall back on, which many don’t. Here’s hoping Nico doesn’t need to be smart arse!

When you see the swagger of players like Grealish, Foden, KDB, it’s because they know who they are. They know it’s THEIR LEVEL, THEIR STAGE, THEY BELONG THERE. Young players have to develop that, no matter how precocious they are. They have to hold their own, physically, but also mentally, with men for whom this is just another Tuesday, because this is who they are.

THAT is when you know he’ll have made the leap. Take a tackle and bounce back up. Give a tackle and bounce back up. Play a worldie pass and keep going like you not only meant it, but you do it all the time. It’s about stature, how you carry yourself, how you react to being clattered, how you receive a ball and release it…it’s EVERYTHING about the way you interact in “the arena of men.”

Nico O’Reilly, good as he is, isn’t that…yet…but I think he can get there. He’s big, he’ll get stronger. He can pass, he’ll learn to pass quicker. He can run with the ball, he’ll learn when the ball needs to do the running.

It’s an entire “thing,” and you see it in some players and you just don’t see it in others. It’s one reason I don’t think MacAtee will make it at City. Even now, he doesn’t come on and look like he belongs. He drifts around. He provides little to no impact off the bench. He’s 6’ tall but doesn’t seem to have developed any “football” strength on the ball.

I hope Nico can develop it, but for some it takes time and for others, it’s like a light switch. Savinho…instantly looked like he was at home on the pitch. He wasn’t afraid to be who he was. He wasn’t afraid to run, put in a challenge, take a player on, and take a lump or two. You could just tell…PLAYER!

Nico needs to not look out of place when he’s lining up at kick off. He needs to look like he’s confident and the players around him have confidence in him. Sadly, we saw the exact opposite in Khusanov when he started against Chelsea. He showed timidity and panic, but then Bernardo took him under his wing for 5-10 mins, took the pressure off him and it allowed him to grow into the game.

After 20 minutes, he didn’t look out of place. He wasn’t tearing up trees, but he survived an almost unfair baptism by fire. He’ll never forget it, just like the FOC taunts, the punch in the face, the leg breaker from behind from a Welsh ****.

They either add to you or they take something out of you, and I desperately want Nico to add these experiences to his game and develop, mature, fill out, and become a man in a City shirt.

Early days.

Fantastic post mate!

 

[supercity88]

So, they’re good enough to play with men, but not men enough to take some stick?

I used to get it from FOCs at the side of the pitch telling me “You’ll never be as good as your Father!” At the time, I was playing at school, for my county, for a club team and Sunderland…and I was 14!

Taking stick, both on and off the field, has always been part and parcel of being a footballer.

When I was that age, I once turned out for our pub team (I grew up in a pub!) because we were short of players. Some guy goes in a bit reckless and one of our lads goes, “Leave it out, he’s only 14 and plays for Sunderland Youth Team!”

Next time down the muddy pitch, I’m running with the ball, fella slides in, takes me and everything else (which was considered a great sliding tackle back in the day!). I’m lying on the floor about to get up when he rolls towards me and hits me, full fist, smack dab in the face, and says, “Yer playin wiv big boys today!” 47 years later, and I remember it like it was yesterday!

I went with the manager when Jimmy Adamson moved from Sunderland to Leeds United and at about age 16, Terry Connor and I had a private training session with Dave Merrington. He liked what he saw and next day I trained with the First Team…for about an hour!

We did drills and played some small games and then played some situational one on ones. Harvey was in goal and Merrington knocks a ball into me from the sideline (I played center forward). I collect it and bring it down and I’m supposed to try to turn, get past Byron Stevenson, and see if I can score.

I shield the ball and quick as a flash, I turn, nutmeg him, run past him laughing, and have a crack. Harvey saves it! A bunch of the first team laughs at him, and me, for the nutmeg.

“Again!”

Merrington knocks it into me again and as I’m trying to bring it under control, I get knobbled from behind. Absolutely leathered and I’m not even sure I can get up, let alone walk away. Stevenson stands over me, glares, and tells me not to nutmeg him or laugh at him EVER again!

As I try to get to my feet, Merrington sees I’m in pain and tells me to get up and go see the Physio. And that was that!

Football is a cruel mistress and you’ve got to be ready for everything she throws at you. I thought I’d made it training with Terry Connor and then the first team, but it took one laugh (which was stupid, but reflexive) to tell me I needed to grow up some, toughen up some, and actual BE a man, not just have a few skills that men had, before I could even entertain the man’s game.

After that, I knew I needed to go to Uni and not chase the almost impossible dream without a solid fallback position. I’d seen my Dad be an almost man, even though he was great, broke records and was a worldie at Alty in the 70s. But, in my heart, I was a player who could play really good, not a really good player! I did play pro, but nothing to write home about, and I did have an education to fall back on, which many don’t. Here’s hoping Nico doesn’t need to be smart arse!

When you see the swagger of players like Grealish, Foden, KDB, it’s because they know who they are. They know it’s THEIR LEVEL, THEIR STAGE, THEY BELONG THERE. Young players have to develop that, no matter how precocious they are. They have to hold their own, physically, but also mentally, with men for whom this is just another Tuesday, because this is who they are.

THAT is when you know he’ll have made the leap. Take a tackle and bounce back up. Give a tackle and bounce back up. Play a worldie pass and keep going like you not only meant it, but you do it all the time. It’s about stature, how you carry yourself, how you react to being clattered, how you receive a ball and release it…it’s EVERYTHING about the way you interact in “the arena of men.”

Nico O’Reilly, good as he is, isn’t that…yet…but I think he can get there. He’s big, he’ll get stronger. He can pass, he’ll learn to pass quicker. He can run with the ball, he’ll learn when the ball needs to do the running.

It’s an entire “thing,” and you see it in some players and you just don’t see it in others. It’s one reason I don’t think MacAtee will make it at City. Even now, he doesn’t come on and look like he belongs. He drifts around. He provides little to no impact off the bench. He’s 6’ tall but doesn’t seem to have developed any “football” strength on the ball.

I hope Nico can develop it, but for some it takes time and for others, it’s like a light switch. Savinho…instantly looked like he was at home on the pitch. He wasn’t afraid to be who he was. He wasn’t afraid to run, put in a challenge, take a player on, and take a lump or two. You could just tell…PLAYER!

Nico needs to not look out of place when he’s lining up at kick off. He needs to look like he’s confident and the players around him have confidence in him. Sadly, we saw the exact opposite in Khusanov when he started against Chelsea. He showed timidity and panic, but then Bernardo took him under his wing for 5-10 mins, took the pressure off him and it allowed him to grow into the game.

After 20 minutes, he didn’t look out of place. He wasn’t tearing up trees, but he survived an almost unfair baptism by fire. He’ll never forget it, just like the FOC taunts, the punch in the face, the leg breaker from behind from a Welsh ****.

They either add to you or they take something out of you, and I desperately want Nico to add these experiences to his game and develop, mature, fill out, and become a man in a City shirt.

Early days.

It remains, in my opinion, Pep's biggest weakness since he's been with us. It arguably hasn't cost us, but he isn't willing to throw many young players into the team. I don't believe you learn much coming on at 3-0 down and playing for 10 minutes. But I see the reasoning why you wouldn't throw someone in at 2-1 with 30 minutes to go when winning games is critical.

I don't think for a minute our young lads can't take the criticism or handle the pressure. But Pep doesn't rate academy level football in this country and he sees it as a vast gulf to then be in the first team. We've had quite a few players shine at academy level but not get a look in and others come from a lower standing, impress him in training and play in the league cup or a CL dead rubber. Contrast that to Barca where he managed the B team and they destroyed the first team in a training game during the season, which was ultimately part of the reason he got the job.

He's got an eye for talent undoubtedly, but he's been convinced the experienced players will find their form and perform and he's not been willing to try our younger more energetic players ahead of them. I'm purely guessing it's to keep them out of the firing line of course, maybe he doesn't think they're ready and it's as simple as that. Maybe, because of Palmer he wants to keep them at City and wait for them to hit a certain age or time with us before throwing them in. Hard to know.

 

[Xhavenjoe]

They’ll soon have a starting XI of City academy graduates and probably be a major contender again in a season or two. Already got three.

4

 

[Cheadle_hulmeBlue]

The need has been in the middle of the middle, and he just isn’t that player atm.

That position is so crucial to not only getting the ball out of the back, but in distributing it when we are going forward. He’s not shown anything near the quality for that job during the worst period in Pep’s career.

What games are you basing that on? He’s barely played. Salford? The community shield?

Maybe he could be good enough, but we won’t find out if he doesn’t play.

 

[TheBlueCat]

So, they’re good enough to play with men, but not men enough to take some stick?

I used to get it from FOCs at the side of the pitch telling me “You’ll never be as good as your Father!” At the time, I was playing at school, for my county, for a club team and Sunderland…and I was 14!

Taking stick, both on and off the field, has always been part and parcel of being a footballer.

When I was that age, I once turned out for our pub team (I grew up in a pub!) because we were short of players. Some guy goes in a bit reckless and one of our lads goes, “Leave it out, he’s only 14 and plays for Sunderland Youth Team!”

Next time down the muddy pitch, I’m running with the ball, fella slides in, takes me and everything else (which was considered a great sliding tackle back in the day!). I’m lying on the floor about to get up when he rolls towards me and hits me, full fist, smack dab in the face, and says, “Yer playin wiv big boys today!” 47 years later, and I remember it like it was yesterday!

I went with the manager when Jimmy Adamson moved from Sunderland to Leeds United and at about age 16, Terry Connor and I had a private training session with Dave Merrington. He liked what he saw and next day I trained with the First Team…for about an hour!

We did drills and played some small games and then played some situational one on ones. Harvey was in goal and Merrington knocks a ball into me from the sideline (I played center forward). I collect it and bring it down and I’m supposed to try to turn, get past Byron Stevenson, and see if I can score.

I shield the ball and quick as a flash, I turn, nutmeg him, run past him laughing, and have a crack. Harvey saves it! A bunch of the first team laughs at him, and me, for the nutmeg.

“Again!”

Merrington knocks it into me again and as I’m trying to bring it under control, I get knobbled from behind. Absolutely leathered and I’m not even sure I can get up, let alone walk away. Stevenson stands over me, glares, and tells me not to nutmeg him or laugh at him EVER again!

As I try to get to my feet, Merrington sees I’m in pain and tells me to get up and go see the Physio. And that was that!

Football is a cruel mistress and you’ve got to be ready for everything she throws at you. I thought I’d made it training with Terry Connor and then the first team, but it took one laugh (which was stupid, but reflexive) to tell me I needed to grow up some, toughen up some, and actual BE a man, not just have a few skills that men had, before I could even entertain the man’s game.

After that, I knew I needed to go to Uni and not chase the almost impossible dream without a solid fallback position. I’d seen my Dad be an almost man, even though he was great, broke records and was a worldie at Alty in the 70s. But, in my heart, I was a player who could play really good, not a really good player! I did play pro, but nothing to write home about, and I did have an education to fall back on, which many don’t. Here’s hoping Nico doesn’t need to be smart arse!

When you see the swagger of players like Grealish, Foden, KDB, it’s because they know who they are. They know it’s THEIR LEVEL, THEIR STAGE, THEY BELONG THERE. Young players have to develop that, no matter how precocious they are. They have to hold their own, physically, but also mentally, with men for whom this is just another Tuesday, because this is who they are.

THAT is when you know he’ll have made the leap. Take a tackle and bounce back up. Give a tackle and bounce back up. Play a worldie pass and keep going like you not only meant it, but you do it all the time. It’s about stature, how you carry yourself, how you react to being clattered, how you receive a ball and release it…it’s EVERYTHING about the way you interact in “the arena of men.”

Nico O’Reilly, good as he is, isn’t that…yet…but I think he can get there. He’s big, he’ll get stronger. He can pass, he’ll learn to pass quicker. He can run with the ball, he’ll learn when the ball needs to do the running.

It’s an entire “thing,” and you see it in some players and you just don’t see it in others. It’s one reason I don’t think MacAtee will make it at City. Even now, he doesn’t come on and look like he belongs. He drifts around. He provides little to no impact off the bench. He’s 6’ tall but doesn’t seem to have developed any “football” strength on the ball.

I hope Nico can develop it, but for some it takes time and for others, it’s like a light switch. Savinho…instantly looked like he was at home on the pitch. He wasn’t afraid to be who he was. He wasn’t afraid to run, put in a challenge, take a player on, and take a lump or two. You could just tell…PLAYER!

Nico needs to not look out of place when he’s lining up at kick off. He needs to look like he’s confident and the players around him have confidence in him. Sadly, we saw the exact opposite in Khusanov when he started against Chelsea. He showed timidity and panic, but then Bernardo took him under his wing for 5-10 mins, took the pressure off him and it allowed him to grow into the game.

After 20 minutes, he didn’t look out of place. He wasn’t tearing up trees, but he survived an almost unfair baptism by fire. He’ll never forget it, just like the FOC taunts, the punch in the face, the leg breaker from behind from a Welsh ****.

They either add to you or they take something out of you, and I desperately want Nico to add these experiences to his game and develop, mature, fill out, and become a man in a City shirt.

Early days.

One of the best posts ive read here. Thanks mate.

 

[ChicagoBlue]

What games are you basing that on? He’s barely played. Salford? The community shield?

Maybe he could be good enough, but we won’t find out if he doesn’t play.

You don’t prove you’re good enough in a big game with serious consequences on the line, you do it every day in training. THEN, you have to repay the trust you’ve been given.

Just like you don’t get a job requiring a degree while you are studying for the degree, you have to graduate, pass the interview, then show it every day at work.

This is a cut throat business, and Academy players know they’re the fresh meat. We have way too much romance about what is, in reality, a multi-million dollar business decision about their future.

City invest a lot of time, energy and money on each of these players. They want them to be a First Team player!

 

[Tevez City]

They’ll soon have a starting XI of City academy graduates and probably be a major contender again in a season or two. Already got three.

If they can get Maffeo, Diaz,Morgan & Delap they will win the league.

 

[Cheadle_hulmeBlue]

I don’t like this quote. Sounds like the only reason we are keeping some of the youngsters is because of injuries

 

[Gabriel]

I don’t like this quote. Sounds like the only reason we are keeping some of the youngsters is because of injuries

There’s also considerable football still to be played. We’ll be determined to have players fit for next season and not flog the injured/exhausted over another pointless summer. If we can now nudge ourselves up into the top four in the coming months, we can then afford to give game time to some youngsters in April/May and then again June/July.

 

[01cravend]

Most tackles and 2nd most chances created..Another good performance at LB

 

[FJRMCFC]

He’s got the tools to be a solid Premier League level pro. It’s just a matter of getting match experience

 

[balotelli's back pocket]

Not a left back and it's time to stop playing him there.

 

[ninjamonkey]

Doesn't get much from playing left back other than first team experience. Should be playing these kind of games in his actual position if he's to have a future here.

 

[WallyA]

Still solid, just not as dominant as he was in Salford, but that might be unfair as the whole team was worse.

This is where his minutee are, its fine.

In the summer he needs to be permanently moved to CM though.

 

[super_city_si]

Think hes in much the same bracket as Reis. Clearly a good player and has a good head. Just not quite ready yet. A mix of physicality and maturity short of being fully baked.

Hes one to keep for sure

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

Was probably our best defender today. We missed his height and speed when he went off.

 

[OrigamiNinja]

He’s definitely wasted at LB.

Why does our inverted full back always have to be the RB? I’d much rather see Nico moving into midfield than Rico.

 

[oldius]

He’s definitely wasted at LB.

Why does our inverted full back always have to be the RB? I’d much rather see Nico moving into midfield than Rico.

I read that Pep believes that he has the tools to play CDM but Nico doesn't think he's ready for the position. I suppose that playing FB allows you to gather some of the skills as you shift centrally.

 

[HoneyMonster89]

He was solid.

41/46 passes completed (89%)
5 passes into final 3rd
4 key passes
3 big chances created
5/7 ground duels won (71%)
3/4 tackles won (75%)

He would have benefitted from a loan this season. Look at how Donley is doing at Leyton Orient.