Balotelli (continued)

[Deleted member 52846]

That's just not true. As I stated, I was sat in the North Stand and there were plenty around me.

I was quite taken aback, as I was only sat in there because I took my little boy and thought the Family Stand was a happy-clappers zone.

No doubt Watford fans were on his back, but they were not alone.

also sat in the north stand plenty of blues booing him

I was sat in the Colin bell stand and some people booed him and some started rowing with each other !

Some in the East Stand boo'd too. Not many. Seemed to be to my right which is heading down towards the Family Stand (I'm in 105) but still heard them. Can't believe people would boo a Blue, I didn't even boo Tévez when he came back and I fucking hated what he did.

 

[redmizzle]

Can't get my head around city fans booing one of there own players..

There are knobs everywhere.

 

[Marvin]

Wouldn't be the end of the world to sell balotelli without replacing him for me. In some ways having four big contract strikers gives us a headache as Mancini rotates to give them all game time. Guidetti could be fourth striker.

I agree. The Champions League exit makes it next to impossible to keep the 4th striker happy and match-fit.

If I had a choice I'd sell Tevez. He seems to have lost a little pace which hampers his game

Balotelli gets so much criticism for his footballing contribution but the reality is he gets 20 mins here,and 20 minutes there plus a start one game in 5. Players need to be playing regularly to operate at their best.

It wouldn't bother me if we sold Tevez, or Balotelli and used the fee / wages to bring in a wide forward. The squad is a little bit unbalanced.

In the short-term Aguero is going to be out. If I was Mancini I'd put Tevez in midfield and play Balotelli as a lone striker which is his best role anyway.

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

That's just not true. As I stated, I was sat in the North Stand and there were plenty around me.

I was quite taken aback, as I was only sat in there because I took my little boy and thought the Family Stand was a happy-clappers zone.

No doubt Watford fans were on his back, but they were not alone.

also sat in the north stand plenty of blues booing him

I was sat in the Colin bell stand and some people booed him and some started rowing with each other !

I saw that too. It was like the old days, I got quite misty eyed.

There were definitely some City fans booing him as he came on. I got quite upset at this and staring booing the booers, which I admit may have added to the general level of booing.

 

[johnny crossan]

Can't get my head around city fans booing one of there own players..

quite a contrast to the cheering throng as Mario arrived, it's funny how the ears of some are tuned in to hear what they want to hear. In the East Stand round me it was just applause and encouragement.

 

[SWP's back]

Thought he did more in his first 5 minutes than Dzeko had don in the previous 70.

He did yesterday. It is getting him to do that every game that is the trick. We know he can be unplayable having seen him do it several times. We just need him to be consistent and cut out the silly tackles given the way he is refereed.

 

[tolmie's hairdoo]

That's just not true. As I stated, I was sat in the North Stand and there were plenty around me.

I was quite taken aback, as I was only sat in there because I took my little boy and thought the Family Stand was a happy-clappers zone.

No doubt Watford fans were on his back, but they were not alone.

also sat in the north stand plenty of blues booing him

Not my sort of blues booing their own.

Whilst I agree entirely, I do see or sense a particular split between the opinions of generations?

I was sat in the North Stand and, like my little boy, the introduction of Mario, was greeted by excitement by most of the kids.

It was the adults, the parents and older ones who took it upon themselves to air their disapproval of him.

Two sides of the coin. The kids, younger fans see a name, a song, a mystique about Mario, the cult of celebrity.

The older fans will almost certainly have earned their dues watching City down the years, but some clearly don't think he is worth the continued effort.

The cult of the celebrity footballer is a strange thing, though. I never rated Beckham, but he took it upon himself to make himself the most marketable footballer the game has ever known.

Because of what he has achieved on that side, the waters are muddied a little, the wider public buy in to the belief that he must have been this great footballer.

 

[waspish]

Can't get my head around city fans booing one of there own players..

quite a contrast to the cheering throng as Mario arrived, it's funny how the ears of some are tuned in to hear what they want to hear. In the East Stand round me it was just applause and encouragement.

Yep I clapped him on the pitch, also watch the tunnel video on the website those kids were so excited when high five them all

 

[Didsbury Dave]

Wouldn't be the end of the world to sell balotelli without replacing him for me. In some ways having four big contract strikers gives us a headache as Mancini rotates to give them all game time. Guidetti could be fourth striker.

Wouldn't be surprised to see us go from one extreme to the other before our business is completed by the end of the summer window.

Meaning the departures of Mario, Dzeko and Tevez.

I agree, though, we certainly should be on the lookout for the type of attacking midfielder we thought we would be getting with Nasri.

It's been good to see Barry getting on the scoresheet in recent games, but prior to that, it has highlighted how short we are in terms of goals if Yaya hasn't chipped in.

Yesterday was the first time I heard boos towards Mario, certainly sat in the North Stand, there were plenty as he was introduced.

Would love a wide player but I can't see it happening. I don't really think its healthy for the club to be doing much business in January. Much fewer opportunities. Mind you, our summer business was poor so it's a chance to rebalance things a bit.

 

[bobmcfc]

I sit in the north stand and heard boos. Nobody around us booed him but I thought it was the Watford fans because it was stifled by cheers