How good was last season's City?

[Skashion]

We were excellent entertainment value and, at our best, the football was mouth-watering. However, 86 points (three less than in 2012 when a number of Bluemooners said we underachieved) and being beaten by Bayern, Barcelona and Chelsea on our own patch says we aren't yet consistent enough, are too beatable and aren't yet at the level we aspire to be at. English football isn't in a boon period right now like it was between 2005 and 2009 when there wasn't a single season without an English team in the Champions League final. I hate the Champions League as a competition, I have a shopping list of criticisms, especially of UEFA, but we still do need to make a mark before we can consider this side to be a properly great side. It's a great City side certainly, our best ever, but I'd love us to be one of the great sides other supporters remember.

 

[Zabbasbeard]

Last season's City was the best City team ever. Every team that wins the title deserves to but that was very mature way to win it. This team has come on from two years ago when we first won it. Eventually, after just over a third of a season, we got the defending mostly right. The attacking style with full backs punished on was always going to give us a slight trade off in defensive quality to allow the likes of Zaba and Kolarov to push right up. As an attacking force we have probably never been better - certainly better still since the heroic 2011/12 title winning season - the number of goals says it all as well as the stylish football that we playeed all season. If we are going to be picky, we perhaps slightly under-achieved in Europe. had we for the extra goal at Bayern we'd have got an easier draw, but even though it was a mistake by Pellegrini, it is harsh to dwell on it because he and the team have worked wonders. His tactics that were superbly executed by the players have won us the league in a season of high standards. This City team can get even better, and, if we don't need need too much bedding in time for the new centre back, and therefore less errors, it woud be no surprise if we won the League by more than 2 points. Possibly 7 to 10 points. We will not have to adjust to a new managers tactics and he will not need to adjust toa new team and league. Hopefully we can at least make the Quarter Finals of the CL (much will depend on the draw) and win another FA Cup/League Cup. Why not go one better than the double? This is a very good City side that is in its prime now. As Skashion pointed out we have been beaten by Bayern who outclassed us, Barca who awe paid too much respect to and Chelsea who out-witted us. Can we be more streetwise on the pitch? That is what may make us a great side, when the questions are really being asked. Can we win a game when we don't have the ball for long periods or better still, can we stdominate possession against the Bayerns, Real Madrids and Bayerns of this world and beat them? With time and the novelty factor wearing off (we still seem a bit overawed as a club in those really big European nights), plus a little more luck with injuries, we may start to beat top sides. Bayern away last season was a good start. Winning another league title next season would be hard but if we did it could be argued this is a great City side - 3 out 4 would be a great achievement.

 

[sam-caddick]

I thought we were at a top level but lacked a bit of conviction and self belief to be a truly elite team.

My biggest criticisms of last season were:

- Taking weaker teams too lightly thinking we were going to win anyway.

- Bottled moments in big games or had to go a goal or two down to really start playing, again self belief from the start of matches.

I think the Champions League is still the biggest mystery, our team on paper has the ability to win it in my opinion but for some reason we don't turn up when we play the big teams, however, I think Barcelona away could be a turning point as I thought that game was the match our players really started to believe we could perform in the Champions League.

Self belief and ruthlessness against big teams is our only realy big issue for me.

 

[Tricky_Trev]

Last season's City was the best City team ever. Every team that wins the title deserves to but that was very mature way to win it. This team has come on from two years ago when we first won it. Eventually, after just over a third of a season, we got the defending mostly right. The attacking style with full backs punished on was always going to give us a slight trade off in defensive quality to allow the likes of Zaba and Kolarov to push right up. As an attacking force we have probably never been better - certainly better still since the heroic 2011/12 title winning season - the number of goals says it all as well as the stylish football that we playeed all season. If we are going to be picky, we perhaps slightly under-achieved in Europe. had we for the extra goal at Bayern we'd have got an easier draw, but even though it was a mistake by Pellegrini, it is harsh to dwell on it because he and the team have worked wonders. His tactics that were superbly executed by the players have won us the league in a season of high standards. This City team can get even better, and, if we don't need need too much bedding in time for the new centre back, and therefore less errors, it woud be no surprise if we won the League by more than 2 points. Possibly 7 to 10 points. We will not have to adjust to a new managers tactics and he will not need to adjust toa new team and league. Hopefully we can at least make the Quarter Finals of the CL (much will depend on the draw) and win another FA Cup/League Cup. Why not go one better than the double? This is a very good City side that is in its prime now. As Skashion pointed out we have been beaten by Bayern who outclassed us, Barca who awe paid too much respect to and Chelsea who out-witted us. Can we be more streetwise on the pitch? That is what may make us a great side, when the questions are really being asked. Can we win a game when we don't have the ball for long periods or better still, can we stdominate possession against the Bayerns, Real Madrids and Bayerns of this world and beat them? With time and the novelty facotr wearing off, plus a little more luck with injuries, we may start to beat top sides. Bayern away last season was a good start. Winning another league title next season would be hard but if we did it coudl be argued this is agreat City side - 3 out 4 is one mighty achievement.

To be fair though, we got 15 points out of 18 in the group stage, the same as Bayern. And we scored 1 more goal than Bayern in the group. Then we drew Barca. I don't think we underachieved. With a luckier draw, we could have progressed further, but I think we did well. I was not ashamed of our Champions League campaign, I was proud of it.

 

[Zabbasbeard]

Last season's City was the best City team ever. Every team that wins the title deserves to but that was very mature way to win it. This team has come on from two years ago when we first won it. Eventually, after just over a third of a season, we got the defending mostly right. The attacking style with full backs punished on was always going to give us a slight trade off in defensive quality to allow the likes of Zaba and Kolarov to push right up. As an attacking force we have probably never been better - certainly better still since the heroic 2011/12 title winning season - the number of goals says it all as well as the stylish football that we playeed all season. If we are going to be picky, we perhaps slightly under-achieved in Europe. had we for the extra goal at Bayern we'd have got an easier draw, but even though it was a mistake by Pellegrini, it is harsh to dwell on it because he and the team have worked wonders. His tactics that were superbly executed by the players have won us the league in a season of high standards. This City team can get even better, and, if we don't need need too much bedding in time for the new centre back, and therefore less errors, it woud be no surprise if we won the League by more than 2 points. Possibly 7 to 10 points. We will not have to adjust to a new managers tactics and he will not need to adjust toa new team and league. Hopefully we can at least make the Quarter Finals of the CL (much will depend on the draw) and win another FA Cup/League Cup. Why not go one better than the double? This is a very good City side that is in its prime now. As Skashion pointed out we have been beaten by Bayern who outclassed us, Barca who awe paid too much respect to and Chelsea who out-witted us. Can we be more streetwise on the pitch? That is what may make us a great side, when the questions are really being asked. Can we win a game when we don't have the ball for long periods or better still, can we stdominate possession against the Bayerns, Real Madrids and Bayerns of this world and beat them? With time and the novelty facotr wearing off, plus a little more luck with injuries, we may start to beat top sides. Bayern away last season was a good start. Winning another league title next season would be hard but if we did it coudl be argued this is agreat City side - 3 out 4 is one mighty achievement.

To be fair though, we got 15 points out of 18 in the group stage, the same as Bayern. And we scored 1 more goal than Bayern in the group. Then we drew Barca. I don't think we underachieved. With a luckier draw, we could have progressed further, but I think we did well. I was not ashamed of our Champions League campaign, I was proud of it.

Yes I'm proud of it too Trev. Particularly the win in Munich. That said, it was amistake by Pellegrini but like I said, that is being really picky. Not getting that 4th goal when we were on top could be argued to be a slight under achievement, but there again we were playing Bayern away and who is to say they, with their quality, wouldn't have made it 3-3 if Pellers had not tightened us up a bit? Debatable...

 

[Lovebitesandeveryfing]

Who has ever walked into the CL and won it straight off the bat? Honestly, who? Maybe Real in the very first years of the competition, when they won it five times on the bounce, and there was nobody much else around. Not sure about my football history here, if it was the first time for them, but it must have been early days. Otherwise, how many years have Arsenal qualified for it, now? Twelve? Fourteen? And how many times have they won it? How many times did Chelsea have to qualify before winning?
Sorry, but we're still new boys on the block. You need to build it brick by brick. It's partly about footballing ability, but it's also about experience in the competition, and sheer canniness. I don't think Mourinho's Inter were the best footballing side when they won it a couple of years back, but they were just very, very canny. Very good at "managing" teams that were, essentially better. Like, funnily enough, Barcelona. Our experience is growing, and we will be progressively less impressed when we step into the Allianz Arena, the Bernabeu, the Nou Camp, the San Siro. We qualified beyond the group this year — the furthest we've ever gone in this club's history. I remember seeing us play Fenerbahce, and we were really green, and we went out at the first asking. Fenerbahce, ffs! This was the team of Bell, Lee, Summerbee. And we didn't basically have a clue on that particular stage. The next year, I think it was, I saw us play Juventus in what has become the Europa League, at that time the UEFA Cup. They had the counter-attack down to a fine art. Something which every team that hopes to go far in Europe has to have in its array of talents (and which we're not all that good at, yet, in my opinion). Every single time they broke I thought they were going to score. Experience…
We're progressing. I expect us to do at least as well next season. But it's brick by brick. Some day, soon, we'll win it. And make no mistake, it's what the Chairman and the Sheik want, sooner rather than later.

 

[3rdgenerationblue]

best ever city team. maybe.

 

[ojeme]

I watched the goals back this morning, and the sheer number and quality was amazing.

Not only did we play some amazing football, but we won two trophies, and went a long way in the FA Cup and qualified from our Champions League Group. We broke scoring records, and we did this from a mid-table position at the start of December.

I don't think City have had the credit they deserve from the national media, or even from City fans. Some of the individual player performances this season eg Yaya Toure were also not given the credit they deserved. In part this is because we came from behind. For much of the season attention was on Aaron Ramsey and Arsenal, then the SaS and Liverpool.

City are not at the level of the Arsenal Invincibles, and we don't have the dominance of Utd's treble-winning team, but apart from that I think we were the best the Premiership has seen. If this team played the Arsenal Invincibles we'd probably win because each season football gets better in all respects. The only way you can compare teams from different seasons is to look at them relative to their rivals.

I look forward to what an injury-free City squad can do when we don't have to spend the first two months settling in under a new manager. Imagine if Aguero is fit (can't see it with the World Cup).

When we tweak this squad in the right areas it will be as good and as successful as arsenal or united in their prime. I think next season will see us go up another level again. Everything is in place now.

I'm not sure I share your sentiments. For one, you have to look at what is coming up against you to really judge how strong you really are. Bear in mind that Chelsea will be smoking hot next season. Second point is that we do not at present have such a fantastic attack as we think. We scored goals for free in the fist half of the season but did not quite measure up in the second if not that dzeko rose to the occaision when it did matter. Right now we have to admit that aguero and jovetic are injury prone negredos form is not the best while dzeko may not yet be the consistent perfomer. I think we need another striker in place of negredo!