It's Quiet the £250m return

[bell_mcfc]

Memory serves me right, it was £60mil plus add-ons too, even more criminal.

Feel like even if we went in he would have favoured Paris. Word was he really wanted that move.

 

[oldius]

When I used the phrase globally recognised talent, I was not talking of the superstars of the game, those whom have already reached their peak at the best clubs. I was talking of those players known to have unique skillsets at their age and in their leagues. Students of the game were talking of Bah and Khusanov because they had the leading stats for all U21 defenders in their respective leagues. Cherki had the leading chance creation stats in the whole of football, I think. Others will perhaps have a different definition of talent but no, I am not speaking of Messi, Mbappe scale here. We have really never done that, possibly Haaland apart.

 

[skillman]

No idea mate, he clearly wants the move.

Still sick we left Kvaradona for £70m in January!

Personally, and this may seem OTT, I'd be happy letting Savinho go. Ignoring his shocking finishing, I'd be happy if I never had to see him do fuck all for 70 minutes then fluke a nutmeg on somebody and have the cheek to throw his arms up at the crowd to make noise again.

For some reason he just...bores me. Probably because of the lack of end product or what. I'm not sure. But there's no enjoyment from watching him for me.

If we were offered £70m for him then I'd piss myself and snap their hands off. Which is strange because when the news first broke a few weeks ago, I was all for keeping him. But the fact he's trying to leave rubs me up the wrong way.

It''d leave us with Foden, Marmoush, Bobb, Cherki, Doku and Bernie (I know, I know) as wing options. Which is quite light but they're players who want to be here and fight for their places rather than jump ship. But I'd rather those options than spunking a load on Rodrygo.

 

[Scaring Europe to Death]

We seem to have become a market leader when signing or loaning young South American talent and then moving them on for a a higher fee.

Even better at developing and then selling local Academy players for 100% profit

Not so good when negotiating a six year contract for Kalvin Phillips and absolute shite at finding players who will walk into our starting XI

As fans we've witnessed Kyle Walker's painful slow decline and the club doing sod all about finding a suitable replacement.

 

[Dubciteh]

I

It is not disrespectful at all. Whilst he may have been making a name for himself he was no Sergio or Haaland. In fact, he still isn't.

Aguero is not even playing anymore and he is still doing television adverts in countries other than Argentina. Haaland is selling products on the television in countries where he has never played club football.

They are both world known figures. I dare say if you asked a random person across the world who Josko Gvardiol is they wouldn't have a clue. Even casual football fans may say they have heard the name but do not really know.

It is in no way disrespectful of Gvardiol or diminishing to him as a player. It is just how it is. Some here are so quick to think a City player is being "disrespected" unless everyone swoons at the mention of their name.

Jack Grealish was the one before Haaland.

 

[Quinny851]

We've done absolutely shite without all these global superstars haven't we?

I haven't said anything to the contrary have I?

The original post said "We have bought huge, globally recognised talents, but you read here and it is like we are mid-disaster, mid-table nothings without a pot to piss in"

I've replied by saying that we've arguably only ever bought two in Aguero & Haaland.

 

[JewelZee]

Talent. In the way that KDB became the best with us, as did others.

Cherki was recently described as one of only two magicians of French football, the other being M'bappe.
Reijnders is a Dutch international and Serie A player of the year.
Marmoush had the leading Bundesliga stats ahead of Kane when we bought him.
Khusanov and Bah had the top stats for all U21 defenders at the time of purchase.

I won't labour the point but too many fail to recognise the talent we have while lauding every other Tom, Dick and Harry bought by others as an immediate worldy. In many respects, IMO, many here are sounding like spoiled kids. We have it GREAT!

I don't think spoiled kids is as apt a description as know nowts. Also, there are some with valid, informed opinions and others who slag off everyone we have, had, or want. The latter are extremists and annoying as fuck. They usually don't know a thing about football outside of the Prem and even that is questionable.
Just as annoying are those who believe everything we do is correct. As if every decision Pep or the board makes is mint. These too are extremists.
It leaves a vast majority whose range of opinions is somewhere in the middle left to hopelessly debate both sides...

 

[Quinny851]

We have to be realistic about where Manchester City stands in the grand scheme of world football. As successful as we’ve been in recent years, we’re still not perceived on the same historical level as clubs like Barcelona, Liverpool, or Real Madrid. These are institutions that carry decades of tradition, heritage, and global recognition. That inevitably makes it harder for City to sign the so-called “elite” players because in the eyes of many, we’re still the newer force on the block, a club that the media have gone out of their way to discredit and tarnish whenever possible. Our rise has been questioned and criticised more than it has been celebrated, and that does impact how some players view us, especially recently.

The truth is, most of the very top players we’ve managed to bring in have come because of Pep Guardiola. His reputation, his vision, and his ability to elevate players to another level have been the decisive factors in attracting talent that otherwise may have gone elsewhere.

Although some fans call for Pep to leave, when that day actually comes they will be in for a huge shock. It’s easy to forget just how much he has given us, how he has transformed Manchester City into a dominant force and set standards we could only dream of before his arrival. Once he steps away, the same people who now complain will quickly realise how rare a manager like Pep is, and they’ll be the first to beg for him to return to the club. His influence is so deep that life after him will inevitably feel different, and only then will some truly appreciate the era we’ve been privileged to witness. Football is cyclical, and our period of dominance is over.

I've said something similar on many platforms but I'll say it again. There's only Pep who could have had the success that we've had with the squad of players at his disposal. Without Pep, Liverpool would have dominated this last decade, instead of us.

I know where we are in the grand scheme of things. My reply was purely based on the comment of "We have bought huge, globally recognised talents."

 

[Quinny851]

Yall might hate to hear it but it’s Grealish.

He was literally the most well liked player in England, kids were wearing his headbands and getting his haircut. The commentators were calling his charisma Beckham-esque. Everyone wanted him to play for England etc

Obviously that all went away quick when he signed with us but that was the last “big” name we signed.

He was a big name in England, I agree. But was he a "huge, globally recognised talent"? I'm not so sure.

 

[Gumzy97]

I’m shocked we looked at the defence last season and have done nothing to rectify the main weakness in the transfer market. Attack is fine. That defence is awful. It’s either tactics or the players available can’t do what Pep wants.

It’s going to be our main downfall this season. Wolves and Tottenham only had to put the ball over the top and they were in. We beat wolves yes, but they had Opportunities Tottenham took theirs especially the first goal.

We were worse than relegation teams last season in conceding from transitions. Both games now one we’ve won, transitions again have been the weakness.

 

[meeesh]

Personally, and this may seem OTT, I'd be happy letting Savinho go. Ignoring his shocking finishing, I'd be happy if I never had to see him do fuck all for 70 minutes then fluke a nutmeg on somebody and have the cheek to throw his arms up at the crowd to make noise again.

For some reason he just...bores me. Probably because of the lack of end product or what. I'm not sure. But there's no enjoyment from watching him for me.

If we were offered £70m for him then I'd piss myself and snap their hands off. Which is strange because when the news first broke a few weeks ago, I was all for keeping him. But the fact he's trying to leave rubs me up the wrong way.

It''d leave us with Foden, Marmoush, Bobb, Cherki, Doku and Bernie (I know, I know) as wing options. Which is quite light but they're players who want to be here and fight for their places rather than jump ship. But I'd rather those options than spunking a load on Rodrygo.

I agree mate, but you know he will become a world beater the minute he joins them.

 

[JewelZee]

I've said something similar on many platforms but I'll say it again. There's only Pep who could have had the success that we've had with the squad of players at his disposal. Without Pep, Liverpool would have dominated this last decade, instead of us.

I know where we are in the grand scheme of things. My reply was purely based on the comment of "We have bought huge, globally recognised talents."

Nonsense...

 

[Quinny851]

Talent. In the way that KDB became the best with us, as did others.

Cherki was recently described as one of only two magicians of French football, the other being M'bappe.
Reijnders is a Dutch international and Serie A player of the year.
Marmoush had the leading Bundesliga stats ahead of Kane when we bought him.
Khusanov and Bah had the top stats for all U21 defenders at the time of purchase.

I won't labour the point but too many fail to recognise the talent we have while lauding every other Tom, Dick and Harry bought by others as an immediate worldy. In many respects, IMO, many here are sounding like spoiled kids. We have it GREAT!

I take your point but we've signed players who currently have the potential to be very, very good players but they're not huge, globally recognised talents no matter how you try to dress it up.

Cherki might end up being world class but he wasn't first choice.

Reijnders looks a very good player but he's not a huge star. He could go on to be though.

Marmoush was a panic buy. He looks ok but he's got a long way to go before he gets anywhere near world class level.

I'll be amazed if Khusanov lasts more than a couple of seasons with us and I'll be even more amazed if Bah even kicks a ball for us.

We've had it great because of the greatest manager that's ever lived. Without him, we'd have barely won a trophy

 

[skillman]

I agree mate, but you know he will become a world beater the minute he joins them.

Haha wouldn't surprise me. But his finishing technique just isn't right. I know people point to his age but the ability to finish isn't usually something that's taught - it's natural and why players are worth a premium when they have it.

He missed a few last season where it looked harder to miss by either skying them, hitting them right at the keeper or blazing them wide. You'd expect at least one of them to go in but they didn't. He's just a bad finisher for me and having somebody like that in your attack isn't viable IMO.

Doku isn't the best finisher but if cuts in and the corner is there, he'll hit the corner and it'll either go in or the keeper will save it. Like Juventus at the CWC when it went in. Forest last season etc. But Savinho just hits it right at the keeper.

 

[richards30]

I’m shocked we looked at the defence last season and have done nothing to rectify the main weakness in the transfer market. Attack is fine. That defence is awful. It’s either tactics or the players available can’t do what Pep wants.

It’s going to be our main downfall this season. Wolves and Tottenham only had to put the ball over the top and they were in. We beat wolves yes, but they had Opportunities Tottenham took theirs especially the first goal.

We were worse than relegation teams last season in conceding from transitions. Both games now one we’ve won, transitions again have been the weakness.

No Right Back is staggering and the high line just doesn’t work anymore and is poor from Pep to keep using it as it just comes across as a bit stubborn and arrogant? Watching us suffer with it for a year now and continuing to suffer should be a warning sign that it needs to change so we can be more stable

 

[skillman]

I take your point but we've signed players who currently have the potential to be very, very good players but they're not huge, globally recognised talents no matter how you try to dress it up.

Cherki might end up being world class but he wasn't first choice.

Reijnders looks a very good player but he's not a huge star. He could go on to be though.

Marmoush was a panic buy. He looks ok but he's got a long way to go before he gets anywhere near world class level.

I'll be amazed if Khusanov lasts more than a couple of seasons with us and I'll be even more amazed if Bah even kicks a ball for us.

We've had it great because of the greatest manager that's ever lived. Without him, we'd have barely won a trophy

We'd have won trophies. More than 'barely' anyway. Of course we would've. We're not some amateur outfit whereby Pep is likely having Jimmy Grimble's boots on the touchline and when he goes we're fucked and back to mid-table - we're an ambitious club who had a good track record in recent history of winning things pre-Pep.

But we wouldn't have dominated if it wasn't for Pep.

 

[Gabriel]

The fuck are you on about? Who on here was screaming for us to sign any of

Delap
Joao Pedro
Gittins
Garnacho
Estevao
Hato
Frimpong
Kirkez
Ekitike
Leoni
Gyokeres
Eze
Norgaard
Hancapie

12 months ago?

Wirtz and Zubimendi are both good high profile signings, but the idea that we’re feeding off scraps compared to our rivals is ridiculous.

Me for Hato and for much longer.

 

[chesterbells]

Me for Hato and for much longer.

I know who Alice is, but who the fuck is Hato?

 

[Le Havre Oswald]

What’s even more frustrating is that it isn’t just rival supporters who play into this narrative, it’s some of our own fans on our forums. If City had signed Wirtz and Liverpool had gone for Cherki and Reijnders, you can guarantee many of our lot would still be out there moaning, saying Liverpool had smashed the window and we’d somehow fallen short. It’s as if some supporters are determined to believe the grass is greener elsewhere, no matter what we do.

The truth is, we’ve been spoiled. Years of Pep, titles, and record-breaking football have raised expectations to such an impossible level that even smart, well-thought out signings don’t feel good enough anymore. Instead of trusting the process that’s brought us unprecedented success, some fans are quick to praise Liverpool or anyone else while tearing into our own club - it's weird behaviour. It’s as if people have forgotten that this era of dominance wasn’t built on chasing headlines, it was built on finding the right players, the right profiles, and turning them into world beaters.

And yet, here we are, with a section of our fanbase acting like success is guaranteed forever, criticising every move we make while applauding our rivals. That, more than anything, is what being a spoilt fan looks like. Pep Guardiola has given us the best days of our lives, but has completely destroyed the fanbase whilst doing that. I rest my case.

Good post

 

[Quinny851]

We'd have won trophies. More than 'barely' anyway. Of course we would've. We're not some amateur outfit whereby Pep is likely having Jimmy Grimble's boots on the touchline and when he goes we're fucked and back to mid-table - we're an ambitious club who had a good track record in recent history of winning things pre-Pep.

But we wouldn't have dominated if it wasn't for Pep.

It's all hypotheticals but those seasons where it was us against Liverpool, we only came out on top because of Pep.

I didn't say we were an amateur outfit but we've had more success in 9 years under Pep than we've ever had.

And it's not just the success, look at the records we've broken and long they stood for. When he leaves, things won't ever be the same again and I think people forget that.