Ferran Soriano & Txiki Begiristain

[Bluemoon115]

Not only desperation but he can't even name a world class defender who is ok with being rotated out during a World Cup year. Ozil wasn't bought to sit on the bench for cover. Only on FIFA can you just "pay the fee" and not worry bout anything else until much later.

If he was a truly world class defender, why would he be rotated much, if at all? He would surely be first choice.

But that is not what hgblue wanted. He wanted a world class defender to step in when Kompany wasn't fit. We all agree that Nastasic if the player for left CB.

Toast buttered on all three sides please!

 

[Tim of the Oak]

I have to say that one of the most persuasive arguments in favour of them is what happened to United in the transfer window. Articles in the press this morning claim that it all results from Moyes having too little time to prepare for the window, not taking up the post at OT until July 1. This raises a lot of questions about many of the irrational, and clearly incompetent, things United did long after that date, and the argument put forward today as well that they actually secured all of their targets this window (!!!), but it also ignores City's experience in the window. Pellegrini was appointed long after Moyes knew he'd got the job - United were actually praised for acting decisively to prevent a messy takeover and ensure a seamless transition - and suffered the loss of his mother which obviously disrupted his early days at the club. But as we know, two players were already signed, with his agreement, and the others arrived quickly, with the exception of Dimichealis. I notice Comolli has said United would benefit from a Do F, but this has been treated with contempt by those who remember his days at Anfield! What the window may well show is that City have benefited enormously from having as good a one as Txiki!

Time will tell and hopefully Txiki has signed some legends to be.

Yes I agree it has been fun watching Gollum chase his tail and getting ridiculed in the press. We will how the season goes but if more of his targets had signed Gollum could have been faced with a dressing room feud. I couldn't imagine supergrass Patrice Evra taking being left on the bench too well.

 

[PragueBlue]

Not only desperation but he can't even name a world class defender who is ok with being rotated out during a World Cup year. Ozil wasn't bought to sit on the bench for cover. Only on FIFA can you just "pay the fee" and not worry bout anything else until much later.

If he was a truly world class defender, why would he be rotated much, if at all? He would surely be first choice.

But that is not what hgblue wanted. He wanted a world class defender to step in when Kompany wasn't fit. We all agree that Nastasic if the player for left CB.

Ok. I'd happily have taken a world class centre back though to fight for a place with Kompany and Nastasic.

 

[hgblue]

Not only desperation but he can't even name a world class defender who is ok with being rotated out during a World Cup year. Ozil wasn't bought to sit on the bench for cover. Only on FIFA can you just "pay the fee" and not worry bout anything else until much later.

If he was a truly world class defender, why would he be rotated much, if at all? He would surely be first choice.

But that is not what hgblue wanted. He wanted a world class defender to step in when Kompany wasn't fit. We all agree that Nastasic if the player for left CB.

No it isn't. Don't be silly it doesn't help your argument.

 

[BoyBlue_1985]

In fairness Skash we have only loaned Rekik out and to a very good team as well

RAZAK.

We only loaned him out as well or have I missed something

 

[Anonymous]

What's your beef with letting Suarez & Rekik go? Not a loaded question btw ... i'm genuinely interested.

Well, basically, we were asked to get on-board with this vision of a new era at City with Pellegrini overseeing this move to a holistic City where there was going to be a clear transition of EDS players into the first-team side. I got on-board with that. I'm excited about City's future and our development. Indeed I was excited when we started stealing hot prospects from Madrid and Barcelona. Then it looks, to me anyway, that Pellegrini won't get that chance. Perhaps I'm wrong, but Suarez and Razak looked like the players most likely to break into the squad in the near future. Suarez has been one of (the only?) EDS players to be on the past two summer tours with the first-team. Razak is already in the Ivory Coast international side, and I feel has the right attributes to be the next Yaya, and would have benefited from Yaya's tutelage as the ultimate role model of the player he should be and as senior member of his own international squad and there's also the factor of having a fellow Ivorian to relate to. To me it feels like a setback, I'm still excited by the Etihad campus and the long-term plan of the academy, I'm very much on-board with that, but unless I'm mistaken, I don't see any other players breaking into the first-team at least in the next two years. It could be that I am mistaken and I fully accept that as a possibility.

I've no idea how much Razak (not Rekik that was my brain fart) is/was rated by the coaches at City. I know that for me he seemed to lack the kind of composure you look for in a young player who you want to step up to first team level.

Surarez was a difficult situation. Barcelona came calling and offered him football at B Team level regularly and also the chance to train with their first team. As much as I'd love to think City are in a position where we can fend off interest like that, I'm not sure we can right now. With a year left on Suarez's contract we had two choices, let him go for free to Barca next summer, or strike the best deal possible this summer. I think we have done the latter because as far as I'm aware the fee can raise quite considerably if he develops into a first team player for them, and just as importantly, we have a buyback first option. Not ideal obviously, but I suspect we had little choice.

In terms of integrating the first team and academy players and the overall holistic vision. I have to say that for me we're only just beginning this process so I'm not sure that losing two players at the outset is a significant blow. If you remember last summer's video of Mancini meeting Sheikh Mansour, the Sheikh was the one who at that point spoke about the youth team and developing our own players being important. You would think that Txiki was brought in as much to aid in this process as he was brought in to aid with the first team. He's only been here a short time so I wouldn't really be expecting to see movement from the EDS into the first team until at least the start of the 14/15 season.

The question of who's good enough to make that step. I suspect Marco Lopes and Jose Angel Pozo are the two who the club will have the highest hopes for. Lopes I reckon we may see at some point this season.

 

[Anonymous]

If the two amigos are intending to point at a reduced wage bill at the end of the season, as some sort of achievement for which they deserve credit, then they better be pointing at some trophies at the same time. Any muppet can cut a wage bill and win fuck all. Ask Wenger. While your at it, ask him why he's just smashed his clubs transfer record.

The problem you've got with that reasoning is that Txiki and Ferran aren't arbitrarily deciding "lets go to Man City and reduce their wage bill". They've been tasked by the owners with doing that. This means that they need to make calculated decisions about who earns what kind of money. Just as you felt we should've signed Cavani/Falcao because to keep up with Chelsea/United, it's the same argument for a centre half. There's a target annual wage bill which Txiki and Ferran will have been tasked with achieving. They clearly felt that bringing in AN Other top wage earner wouldn't have allowed them to bring in players of a certain quality in other positions. Hence we didn't look at players who would be commanding 150/200k a week.

The difference between us and Arsenal is that the first team players we want to keep, we keep. It's why the likes of Kompany, Aguero, Silva, Yaya, Zaba have recently signed new contracts. Arsenal have spent the last four years selling their very best players.

 

[LoveCity]

They have taken about £30million per year (close to £50million off, close to £20million back on going by all the reported wages) off the wage bill without really weakening the squad, which deserves credit from these people who subconsciously seem to want them to fail.

 

[Anonymous]

They have taken about £30million per year (close to £50million off, close to £20million back on going by all the reported wages) off the wage bill without really weakening the squad, which deserves credit from these people who subconsciously seem to want them to fail.

Christ that's a phenomenal amount of money. At the start of last season we had the highest wage bill in the league by a considerable amount (202 million per annum compared to Chelsea's 173 million). You can understand completely when put in that context why we didn't put the likes of Van Persie, De Rossi, Cavani, onto the wage bill.

 

[BluessinceHydeRoad]

I have to say that one of the most persuasive arguments in favour of them is what happened to United in the transfer window. Articles in the press this morning claim that it all results from Moyes having too little time to prepare for the window, not taking up the post at OT until July 1. This raises a lot of questions about many of the irrational, and clearly incompetent, things United did long after that date, and the argument put forward today as well that they actually secured all of their targets this window (!!!), but it also ignores City's experience in the window. Pellegrini was appointed long after Moyes knew he'd got the job - United were actually praised for acting decisively to prevent a messy takeover and ensure a seamless transition - and suffered the loss of his mother which obviously disrupted his early days at the club. But as we know, two players were already signed, with his agreement, and the others arrived quickly, with the exception of Dimichealis. I notice Comolli has said United would benefit from a Do F, but this has been treated with contempt by those who remember his days at Anfield! What the window may well show is that City have benefited enormously from having as good a one as Txiki!<br /><br />-- Thu Sep 05, 2013 3:16 pm --<br /><br />I have to say that one of the most persuasive arguments in favour of them is what happened to United in the transfer window. Articles in the press this morning claim that it all results from Moyes having too little time to prepare for the window, not taking up the post at OT until July 1. This raises a lot of questions about many of the irrational, and clearly incompetent, things United did long after that date, and the argument put forward today as well that they actually secured all of their targets this window (!!!), but it also ignores City's experience in the window. Pellegrini was appointed long after Moyes knew he'd got the job - United were actually praised for acting decisively to prevent a messy takeover and ensure a seamless transition - and suffered the loss of his mother which obviously disrupted his early days at the club. But as we know, two players were already signed, with his agreement, and the others arrived quickly, with the exception of Dimichealis. I notice Comolli has said United would benefit from a Do F, but this has been treated with contempt by those who remember his days at Anfield! What the window may well show is that City have benefited enormously from having as good a one as Txiki!