Discuss Pellegrini (Pt 4)

[gordondaviesmoustache]

I cant be arsed arguing any more. I know what we have with Pellegrini and I know what we are building right now under his leadership and im going to enjoy it.

It would appear that Yaya and the players are too.

There's no need to argue about anything. Yaya said his team talk was inspiring which is great news. The one thing I've been concerned about is his apparent lack of personality when he's in front of the press. As long as he acts different behind closed doors to the players then that concerns gone.
My only point was that of all the players to mention the team talk it was one who didn't look very inspired. It was more to do with Yaya than Pellegrini - who just to reiterate, I'm more than happy with.

In front of the press he is professional and polite. he answers questions truthfully and he very cleverly manages those who are starting to piss him off and then he goes about organising us and getting us playing like we did on Sunday.

Of course we could have a personality like Holloway but that's all he is......

He isn't here to make people smile and giiggle, he isn't our "Happy Harry", he is here to do a job.

You forgot some other big football manager characters like "Big Sam", "Big Ron" and "Big Joe Kinnear".

All.......err........big, big characters.

 

[TCIB]

Yeah i would shag him after a few pints.

 

[Cobwebcat]

Haha,

Its nice to hear comments like that from a City player.

I've noticed Yaya describes everything as sensational and amazing he's a positive guy and probably my favouriye City player of all-time.

I think Yaya would always support whoever the Manager is and rightly so.

 

[FantasyIreland]

Pellegrini's transfer dealings haven't received enough praise for me.

He has brought in five players from foreign shores who,with the exception of injury to one,have adapted superbly and are looking like they have been here years.To a man each of them also look like team players who are here predominantly to play football and give their best for the club.

It seems he has the ability to spot players with excellent character to compliment ability,a winning combo and superb work from the boss.

I think it's fair if everyone involved in this summer's transfer dealings (Txiki, Ferran, MP, Khaldoon) should all get a pat on the back. Not just for how well the new players have equipped themselves, but also for managing to get excellent value for money with nearly every signing.

That's very fair comment.

 

[dancity19]

What also got on my tits is all the bollocks about 'football like you have never seen before' as if we had been playing Fat Sam's 'punt it long game' prior to Pellers and co showing up. You couple the rhetoric with the reality and ever shifting sands of excuses and people understandably get a bit testy.

Bollocks ?

In 40+ years of watching City live, I've probably seen us score 6 two or three times live, in the last 3 matches I've attended, we've averaged 6, how much better do you think we could be playing ?

Its a serious question, and I know about the away form and all, but we are playing football like I've never seen, just not every game yet, he has only been here 18 games.....

As its a serious question I'll give you a serious answer. First off the numbers of goals scored doesn't automatically make it the best game ever. The one game that still gives me goosebumps looking back is the 1-0 against ManU at home with winner takes all. Everything about it still gets me in the gut. The atmosphere, the tension, the game itself. Taggart doing his utmost to stop us and bottling it. The stakes were huge. Bigger than huge. According to Micah the players knew they were going to win. That level of self belief I like. A lot. And them having no shots on target in what was ultimately a showdown for the title. That blows my mind in a way stuffing 6 past a hapless Spurs doesn't. Just everything about that ManU game has lasted for me. I still savour it.

Sunday was great fun. Still haven't stopped laughing because if one team deserves every bit of grief it can get its Spurs. And I don't rate AVB so its even funnier. But it won't last long in the memory banks. There is no right or wrong its just different people react to different games and what they take away from it. The bits too savour were the superbly executed goals. Other bits like parking the bus after going 1-0 up I wasn't too keen on. It didn't look like design. That it worked was down to us defending with men behind the ball and Spurs total lack of creativity and wit beyond the half way line. If a team dominates our midfield and has creativity and fire power it could spell trouble. If it was by design then fair play because a bit of rope-a-dope is football I have seen over the past few years. Even if it was happy accident and we use it in future games where appropriate then that is also fair play to the management team.

My take on Pellers is the constant, nagging doubt over the right mentality. Pellers said we couldn't play any better. No. We could play better. We can always play better. We can always strive to play better. My nagging doubt is that Pellers is a man who can be satisfied with what he has seen. And that will win you nothing.

I agree its a perception and that I have no idea what he is like behind the scenes. But that is my perception and until I see something that changes that perception it will remain. Just as certain games linger with me, the managers or coaches I would prefer to have in charge of City are narcissist obsessives with egos the size of planets who insist on having the training ground grass cut to a certain length and then measure it themselves to make sure its millimetre perfect. Or ban the colour purple. Otherwise known as nut jobs who you wouldn't want to share a lift with - à la Apple employees and Steve Jobs.

That for what its worth is my take on the situation. I like thumping Spurs 6-0. I like thumping Spurs full stop. I liked it when Mario broke their hearts in the 3-2. I liked Sunday. But I still have concerns over mentality in the camp and how that will play in the months to come given it has already in my view being the reason for losing 4 games so far in the PL.

You have compared a game that pretty much had the title resting on it, to a game that is the same as any other game in the season, except against a good team.

Really strange comparison. Of course the game against United would mean more and stay longer in the memory.

 

[Anonymous]

Haha,

Its nice to hear comments like that from a City player.

I've noticed Yaya describes everything as sensational and amazing he's a positive guy and probably my favouriye City player of all-time.

I think Yaya would always support whoever the Manager is and rightly so.

He's a model pro ... arguably the best midfielder of his kind in the world ... it's always curious the amount of criticism he takes for supposedly being lazy. The fact he so often takes the captains armband when Vinny's out speaks volumes about the kind of professional he is.

 

[The Fat el Hombre]

Haha,

Its nice to hear comments like that from a City player.

I've noticed Yaya describes everything as sensational and amazing he's a positive guy and probably my favouriye City player of all-time.

I think Yaya would always support whoever the Manager is and rightly so.

He's a model pro ... arguably the best midfielder of his kind in the world ... it's always curious the amount of criticism he takes for supposedly being lazy. The fact he so often takes the captains armband when Vinny's out speaks volumes about the kind of professional he is.

He IS often very lazy on the pitch though mate, and that's coming form one of his biggest fans

 

[Didsbury Dave]

Haha,

Its nice to hear comments like that from a City player.

I've noticed Yaya describes everything as sensational and amazing he's a positive guy and probably my favouriye City player of all-time.

I think Yaya would always support whoever the Manager is and rightly so.

He's a model pro ... arguably the best midfielder of his kind in the world ... it's always curious the amount of criticism he takes for supposedly being lazy. The fact he so often takes the captains armband when Vinny's out speaks volumes about the kind of professional he is.

I was ranting at someone for calling Ya Ya "disinterested" yesterday. That and the "lazy" tag really bug me.

Ya Ya wouldn't look pumped up if he was being chased by Freddy Kreuger. His demeanour never changes. But he's totally committed for every game (and I'd fancy his chances against Freddy)

 

[jollylescott]

Pellegrini's transfer dealings haven't received enough praise for me.

He has brought in five players from foreign shores who,with the exception of injury to one,have adapted superbly and are looking like they have been here years.To a man each of them also look like team players who are here predominantly to play football and give their best for the club.

It seems he has the ability to spot players with excellent character to compliment ability,a winning combo and superb work from the boss.

I think it's fair if everyone involved in this summer's transfer dealings (Txiki, Ferran, MP, Khaldoon) should all get a pat on the back. Not just for how well the new players have equipped themselves, but also for managing to get excellent value for money with nearly every signing.

That's very fair comment.

I remember reading somewhere that Txiki had a little black book with the attributes of many European players. I have to give him the most enormous complement. We could have spent 100 million like the Spuds and landed in a right pickle like them.

On the contrary we have done the most fantastic business imaginable. I love the Beast, but it's our new midfield engine (Fernan) that really impresses me. His work rate is phenomenal.

 

[BlueAnorak]

Not at all Billy. The strange thing for me is out of all the players to come out and mention how inspirational the talk beforehand was, his performance was probably the least inspiring on the pitch, certainly for 40. Minutes or so.
So no problem, just an observation.

His performance may have been the least inspiring to you - but I'll ask once again - why the need for the snide comment? Does it hurt your feeling that one of the players praised something Pellegrini did because frankly, that's how your comment comes off.

Not looking to start a fight btw, just genuinely baffled as to why you'd make a snarky comment like that. Surely if Pellegrini's dishing out inspirational team talks and we're subsequently beating teams 6 - 0 this is something to be happy about. Not something to instantly find fault in.

It wasn't a sarky comment, I was at the game and watched for most of the first half as Yaya was off the pace and struggling to get a foothold, as we're the rest of the midfield for chunks of the first half. So I found it strange that of all the people to come out and say he gave an inspirational talk beforehand, his performance was probably the least inspired.
If you want to turn that into me not being happy with the end result, or even that my feelings may be hurt after a 6-0 win against a team I dislike immensely then go ahead mate but you're off the mark.
Long may his team talks have the same affect.

Oooo, Pablo1, don't be critical of anyone who praises Pellers - The Cult of Pelladon will be on you having a go before you can say Jack...

I agree with you YaYa did have a poor first half - though he more than made up for it in the second. The rest of the team were excellent all game at defending and getting the ball forward quickly so it didn't really matter that much.

The general level of football at home is great and I'm loving it.

Sadly away from home it's pretty poor and against the best (Byern) it was woeful. Worst of all the same mistakes are being made game after game and Pellegrini seems to be doing very little about it. To blame bad luck and the football Gods with his "That's Football" quip would, if said by Mancini, have got the cult members frothing at the mouth in anger. What is the difference chaps?

You make your own luck in football by being the best you can be. More importantly, good defending wins trophies - not cavalier attacking. It is a truism that applies across all team ball sports.

Pellegrini has to do two things have to be done away from home (and against the best teams at home):
- We need to play with a more solid defence (rather than the open gate we have been using till now). Defending well will silence the opposition crowd
AND
- Improve the attempts to goals ratio (currently at 10%) nearer to the 1 in 3 we are getting at home. Confidence will help here but we need to threaten the goal with more shots and runs at the massed rank defence. Improved corner delivery will also help (we don't clear the first man for around 33% of them).

I happen to think that the way we played against Spurs by defending in depth and hitting the opposition on the break is the way forward away from home . Some though don't even recognise that we defended more deeply than in previous home games (which is rather bizarre to say the least).

If Pellers sorts it out he will stay, if he doesn't he will be given the boot. I personally think he will be given the boot if he hasn't sorted it out by Christmas as there is no such thing as being given 'Time' to develop a team in this day and age. Indeed if he doesn't sort it out over the next 4 away games he deserves to be given the boot as our Champions League qualification for next season would be put in jeopardy.