Re: Bell, Lee, Summerbee, Doyle etc - All Twats?
I think its a cynical ploy trying to force your view on people by facing them with what seems to be a pertinent question but which has no basis in relativity. Trying to make people believe that unless they equate denouncing some of the best players that ever pulled on a city shirt with disagreeing with the present 'mutineers' is basically saying 'if you dont agree with me you hate city' Hardly the basis for rational debate.
The old guard were a very different crop of players in a very different situation and in a very different era. If you cut any of those players they bled blue. Can you honestly believe that the same can be said of Elano etc? By the same token, unless you hadnt realised, we have been catapulted with breakneck speed from being dirt poor and dangerously close to ruin to being the richest club the world has ever seen. Elano et al had been brought in on the cusp of the transition and it was and still is a precarious position for them to find themselves in.
I believe that there was bound to be a period of instability at the club after the new owners took over until we found the proper formula. Look at the sums of money being bandied about, look at the amount of different players we are linked with. The threat of losing your position in what appears to be a potentially very successful and definately very lucrative situation must be an immense burden to bear on the shoulders of, lets face it, kids who have the golden ticket dangled in front of their noses.
Personally, I believe that MH, all things considered, needs to be given a fair chance at showing what he can do with his own team. I believe that the owners put faith in him when they appointed him as manager and they saw something in him that said he would run the team in the way they saw fit. Half a season with someone elses team amidst all the turmoil that the takeover brought is hardly allowing MH to show what he can do. To that end, I feel that the fans should get behind Hughes. If people are going to judge him they need to have some substance behind their judgement. To date he hasnt been given the time or opportunity to realise his plans. Theres a split personality syndrome hampering the club at the moment. The only way to get rid of it is to find some stability and continuity.
Therefore, that being said, I cant accept your analogy and I wont be railroaded into making comparisons between legends of City and players of todays breed in the situation they find themselves in.