"I would rather lose a tournament than break my word to a player"

[Neville Kneville]

Did we win the Capital One Cup? I was there & was sure we did but I'm beginning to wonder after reading some of the drivel in this thread!!

We won, get over it. Mr Pellegrini is an honourable man, Willy played a great game, Joe might or might not have done the same & one of the first people that Willy praised for helping him was Joe.

If Willy had had a better game against Chelsea the week before I don't think people would have thought anything of Mr Pellegrini playing him in the final.

Just my humble opinion!!

I think we are going to get this in all the cup competitions, after Pellegrini has long gone, but I don't understand people claiming that the Chelsea game is the only reason City fans doubted Willy.

I seem to remember lots of occasions where people have complained about his keeping including us getting knocked out of the cup last year.

Chelsea was just a confirmation of what many thought prior to that imo. If the pen shoot out moves him up a level then that's fantastic, but there's a decent chance this will come up again if he stays imo.

 

[Dribble]

A 12 month extension in recognition of a job well done imo, a golden handshake if you will.

We're not going to agree on this, I find absolutely nothing wrong in what he said, it is them very principles that Pellegrini espouses that were part of the reason he was hired in the first place and one of the main reasons he's so respected in the game.

We may not agree, but you've been class with your responses in this thread very similar to Manuel himself.

We're both City fans wanting the best for our club and ultimately we won on Sunday and Manuel will be moving on in the summer come what may having been handsomely rewarded for his efforts. Here's hoping our club continues on its upward trajectory for the foreseeable future mate.

 

[Rolee]

We may not agree, but you've been class with your responses in this thread very similar to Manuel himself.

We're both City fans wanting the best for our club and ultimately we won on Sunday and Manuel will be moving on in the summer come what may having been handsomely rewarded for his efforts. Here's hoping our club continues on its upward trajectory for the foreseeable future mate.

I'll drink to that, cheers.

 

[Dribble]

I think you've nailed it right there.

To put it in to perspective imagine this conversation...

Pellers: "Willy, you're in goal for the cup competitions"

Willy: "Thanks boss"

Pellers: "That is unless we get to the final, then you can f**k off I'm going with Joe"

Willy: " Perfectly understandable boss, I feel really motivated to do my best now".

Once you realise how ludicrous that is, you begin to understand why Pellers did what he did.

Which is why I fully supported his decision to start Willy albeit seeds of doubt were sewn in my mind after the hyperbole displayed on this forum after the Chelsea match. I was glad he started and proved to be the match winner in the penalty shoot out and was without a doubt my MoTM.

Showing faith toward a player you genuinely have faith in is what I hope Manuel meant in his post match interview, NOT Willy's left leg could have fallen off and I'd still play him.

 

[fatbloke]

Yes, this is how our owner reacted to failure. Eight months after Khaldoon's end of season address that troohyless seasons are not acceptable, Manuel was given notice he was going to be relieved of his position in June. Kind of shows what our owner thought of not winning a pot even though we had the strongest squad in the league by a country mile.

Do you honestly think if Pep had been available in the summer, Manuel would still be here holding a 12 month extension?

How the fuck do you know what the owners wanted or were thinking?

You said fans shouldn't make comments about what the owners want because they've never met the clubs hierarchy, yet you try to justify your posts by doing exactly that.

 

[goalmole]

Yes, this is how our owner reacted to failure. Eight months after Khaldoon's end of season address that troohyless seasons are not acceptable, Manuel was given notice he was going to be relieved of his position in June. Kind of shows what our owner thought of not winning a pot even though we had the strongest squad in the league by a country mile.

Do you honestly think if Pep had been available in the summer, Manuel would still be here holding a 12 month extension?

I think it's a bit of a stretch and , if I might say, a tad disingenuous to conclude that Manuel was given notice 8 months into this season for not having had any success the previous season. If they were that disappointed they could have sacked him at the end of last season. I think it was pretty common knowledge that Pep was coming here after his stint at Bayern and Manuel probably knew this all along. He is simply leaving in accordance with the timetable that has been in place for the last 3 years.

 

[goalmole]

Which is why I fully supported his decision to start Willy albeit seeds of doubt were sewn in my mind after the hyperbole displayed on this forum after the Chelsea match. I was glad he started and proved to be the match winner in the penalty shoot out and was without a doubt my MoTM.

Showing faith toward a player you genuinely have faith in is what I hope Manuel meant in his post match interview, NOT Willy's left leg could have fallen off and I'd still play him.

As i understand it, Manuel in his post match interview didn't actually say that he would rather lose than break his word to Willy. What he actually said was that he would rather lose than break his word to a player. The fact that he said it after the event made it a very cheap way of reinforcing his commitment to his players. It doesn't mean that he would play somebody even if their left leg fell off, what he is actually saying to his players is "you can count on me" and the unspoken quid pro quo is that he expects the players to keep their side of the bargain, which Willy did handsomely on Sunday. I don't think it's that hard to understand, if you don't want to use it as a stick to beat him with.

 

[Dribble]

How the fuck do you know what the owners wanted or were thinking?

You said fans shouldn't make comments about what the owners want because they've never met the clubs hierarchy, yet you try to justify your posts by doing exactly that.

It elementary dear fatbloke, all you need to do is look at their actions which speak louder than any words. It doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to work out what they're thinking is as they've made it plainly clear fella.

 

[xenon_]

As i understand it, Manuel in his post match interview didn't actually say that he would rather lose than break his word to Willy. What he actually said was that he would rather lose than break his word to a player. The fact that he said it after the event made it a very cheap way of reinforcing his commitment to his players. It doesn't mean that he would play somebody even if their left leg fell off, what he is actually saying to his players is "you can count on me" and the unspoken quid pro quo is that he expects the players to keep their side of the bargain, which Willy did handsomely on Sunday. I don't think it's that hard to understand, if you don't want to use it as a stick to beat him with.

Bang on. Not sure how folk have managed to go around in circles for this long around Pellers' chivalrous statement... but surely this wraps it up.

 

[Dax777]

I would suspect that the coaches also think Hart is a better keeper, & the majority of goalkeepers would agree. Why ? Because he looks better & has nicer hair perhaps? Or just maybe for other reasons you are unable to pick up on.

I agree Hart is a better keeper. I don't think I have suggested otherwise. But deeming Willy poor because you believe Hart would have saved a particular shot Willy failed to save, and concluding that Willy sucks coz you 'believe' Hart would have done better there, doesn't strike me as a legitimate metric for whether a keeper is performing.