If you want someone to blame for Bony then Tixki your man (again that is unwarranted as he delivered two of our current key players during that summer). As for Pellegrini he still got us to the semi final of the Champions League, which neither Pep (yet) or Mancini has achieved and beat Klopp in the League Cup final in his last year in charge. Not great achievements but still very good none the less.
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Kalidou Koulibaly
- Thread starter Matt Diablo
- Start date
If you want someone to blame for Bony then Tixki your man (again that is unwarranted as he delivered two of our current key players during that summer). As for Pellegrini he still got us to the semi final of the Champions League, which neither Pep (yet) or Mancini has achieved and beat Klopp in the League Cup final in his last year in charge. Not great achievements but still very good none the less.
Neville Kneville
Well-Known Member
John Stones and Otto have not been regulars at any point this season, and considering our No1 CB has missed 3/4 season , that says everything about what Pep feels about them.
It's clear that Otamendi is no longer capable of being a regular starter but Stones has had some kind of issues & also been either mentally or physically unfit. With Laporte's recent injury record & Fernandinho's age, City could easily find themselves with 2 brand new cbs, who have had about 2 weeks training, trying to do the most dufficult job in the league.
That could easily cause mistakes, which could ruin their City careers before they start.
Any new cb who costs us a game will become enemy no 1 on here for a start.
Stones should stay imo. If the new boys are settled, of course they play, if not, use the ones we know, until they are ready.
Denayer was treated badly and it must have affected the way some of our young players think about the club and their long term futures.The Denayer new contract and being told he would play, only to sign it and be loaned out with Demichelis having his squad place still stings to do this day. Denayer should have been a perfect Guardiola centre back in every way. We fucked his progression up big time
Same has happened with Angelino, never good enough to get into our team and only brought back to sell on at a later date, not something I like about our club.
It looks like a runner at the moment but I prefer to be cautious until it becomes obvious that the deal is very much more advanced.There is NO interest from other clubs, hence we hold the aces and the most important of all, the player wants to come here.
It's very much a buyers market, even if Koulibaly does not arrive(on our terms), there will be other quality deals available.It looks like a runner at the moment but I prefer to be cautious until it becomes obvious that the deal is very much more advanced.
I understand especially with Otto, age has caught up with him and he is no longer good enough, he has been a very good player for us, total respect for him.It's clear that Otamendi is no longer capable of being a regular starter but Stones has had some kind of issues & also been either mentally or physically unfit. With Laporte's recent injury record & Fernandinho's age, City could easily find themselves with 2 brand new cbs, who have had about 2 weeks training, trying to do the most dufficult job in the league.
That could easily cause mistakes, which could ruin their City careers before they start.
Any new cb who costs us a game will become enemy no 1 on here for a start.
Stones should stay imo. If the new boys are settled, of course they play, if not, use the ones we know, until they are ready.
John Stones we all know well, great talent, has everything to be a worldie, but he isn't and never will be. For me he has not got the mentality or desire and has a lot of self doubt.Goes missing far too often, gets bullied on the pitch and apparently off it as well.
Time to cut our losses with Stones, and maybe the best for him, a move may well do him the world of good and get his career and life back on track.
Hart of the Matter
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We have actually conceded less than expected goals would indicate. Similar to Liverpool. In attack we are only in line with expected goals for the season. Liverpool are plus 9 above their expected goals = more clinical.Wow, as a ardent City fan even I’ve been conditioned to think our defense is trash but this statistic has shocked me. Is there some other statistic everyone goes by that shows we are way worse? Legit question there, I’m just truly surprised by that stat!
Don't know if there is a stat for unexpected goals ie Worldies...
Not many people were upset when we signed Bony.If you want someone to blame for Bony then Tixki your man (again that is unwarranted as he delivered two of our current key players during that summer). As for Pellegrini he still got us to the semi final of the Champions League, which neither Pep (yet) or Mancini has achieved and beat Klopp in the League Cup final in his last year in charge. Not great achievements but still very good none the less.
Looked a quality player at Swansea.
Neville Kneville
Well-Known Member
I love Vinny as much as anybody but I don't think it was entirely down to his leadership and reassuring presence, although that undoubtedly was a big factor. The biggest factor for me was the lack of options, even in the crowd we knew we were relying on a piece of individual brilliance to win us the games this season.
The two title winning seasons were different, we knew the passing and intensity, the speed and width (key elements missing without Sane) were always going to lead to opposition teams crumbling physically in the second half, so the games opened up naturally. Teams couldn't last 90 minutes against us, if they managed to get to the hour mark, you could see the fatigue creeping in and gaps opening up.
This season we haven't had the pace in behind or width, teams haven't had to shuffle one side then the other and back again, they've let us have the ball out wide because we haven't been a threat. They've been able to sit narrow and deep and all we've had is inverted wingers cutting in trying to shoot and fullbacks crossing from the halfway line, so opposition teams haven't had to do anywhere near as much running. I'd love to see the stats because it looks more clear and obvious from the stands than Silva's ignored VAR penalty at Bournemouth.
Combine that with the Spurs disallowed goal which everyone knew was a signal of what was to come from the corrupt bent twats in the VAR control room at Anfield and our confidence drained quicker than Rooney's bollocks in a residential care home.
I agree with most of that, but I also think it's doing the Premier League a bit of a disservice.
Imo they have realised that they can't stop us by 'normal' football, so, with the exception of Liverpool, they have given up with usual tactics, ditched their egos as players/clubs & are all willing to play like lower league teams in a cup game & actually have the whole team as spare goalkeepers if required.
They also know that if they manage the bus parking successfully, any 2 or 3 players going forward occasionally, can be enough to score a goal against us, then we need to unpark the bus twice & are still in danger of letting in a 2nd.
They have imo, hit the ball back over the net into Pep's court & it's his job now to smash a winner.
I'll be shocked if Klopp isn't presented with the same problem at some point in the next year.
If you want someone to blame for Bony then Tixki your man (again that is unwarranted as he delivered two of our current key players during that summer). As for Pellegrini he still got us to the semi final of the Champions League, which neither Pep (yet) or Mancini has achieved and beat Klopp in the League Cup final in his last year in charge. Not great achievements but still very good none the less.
Why would I blame Txiki for setting up a deal to buy Dybala only for the manager to make a massive deal over not wanting him and insisting on Bony instead?
Ditto with making the club drop a deal agreed for Alderweireld so he could get Demichelis.
southamptonblue
Well-Known Member
We have actually conceded less than expected goals would indicate. Similar to Liverpool. In attack we are only in line with expected goals for the season. Liverpool are plus 9 above their expected goals = more clinical.
Don't know if there is a stat for unexpected goals ie Worldies...
Stats mean little....if they meant that much we shouldn't bother playing the game,just put the info into a computer which gives us the result.....bit like playing fifa20?
Did he not have malaria shortly after arriving?Not many people were upset when we signed Bony.
Looked a quality player at Swansea.
He was very good for swansea
Neville Kneville
Well-Known Member
Denayer was treated badly and it must have affected the way some of our young players think about the club and their long term futures.
Same has happened with Angelino, never good enough to get into our team and only brought back to sell on at a later date, not something I like about our club.
I'm kind of hoping that we were upto the same lousy trick with Garcia.
The idea Pep thinks he could get away with him as a regular next season, scares the living shit out of me.
That was the story, I just think he had the season of his life at Swansea, but was just a journeyman footballer the rest of the time.Did he not have malaria shortly after arriving?
He was very good for swansea
He was never going to be a regular, 4th choice.I'm kind of hoping that we were upto the same lousy trick with Garcia.
The idea Pep thinks he could get away with him as a regular next season, scares the living shit out of me.
Why would I blame Txiki for setting up a deal to buy Dybala only for the manager to make a massive deal over not wanting him and insisting on Bony instead?
Ditto with making the club drop a deal agreed for Alderweireld so he could get Demichelis.
He wanted to work with players he knew most mangers tend do that. (Mancini and Balotelli) Demechelis wasn't a flop, he too did help contribute to our recent success. He didn't insist on Bony. He wanted a striker (a senior one) as Dzeko (who had hot and cold spells under Mancini) and Jovetic were being unreliable, and he decided to play Milner as an emergency striker due to injuries. And seeing Kelechi was on our books two younger strikers would've been too much.
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LongsightM13
Well-Known Member
I think we did similar to Patrick Roberts. Wasn't his cousin on here and he was told when he signed he wouldn't be loaned out?That was a particularly damaging and error plagued moment of chronic player mismanagement from our recent history - one that not only almost ruined Denayer’s career, but also undermined a lot of the good work we had invested into our Academy to that point.
Academy players saw how we essentially lied to Denayer to get him to sign a new deal, and a lot of the trust in the word of our club was lost. We lost promising players because of it, and we’ve had to work hard to rebuild that trust since - which I’d say we’re just getting back now with Foden and the new Academy kids.
The player lost his way for a while too, seeing his career get swallowed up in a series of dispiriting loans when it once held so much promise - leading to behavioural issues which can’t have been helped by his overwhelming sense of frustration at a career apparently tanking before his eyes.
And all that to indulge Pellgrini’s yen for an ageing Demichelis who we could have signed for nothing just a few weeks earlier.
As wrong-headed an episode in our recent history as I care to remember. There is no positive way of spinning that one - a complete fuck up, pure and simple.
Neville Kneville
Well-Known Member
That was the story, I just think he had the season of his life at Swansea, but was just a journeyman footballer the rest of the time.
He was actually one of the players we struggled against most. He gave Vinny quite a tough time. I don't share the outrage at signing him, but it is bizarre to cancel another quality player, the club has already scouted, in order to sign Bony.
Tez Tosterone
Well-Known Member
Via Football Italia...
Manchester City have reportedly offered €65m for Kalidou Koulibaly, but Napoli are not prepared to drop their asking price below €80m, stalling Gabriel from Lille.
Multiple Italian reports including La Repubblica claim a deal has already been done with Lille for centre-back Gabriel Magalhanes for €20m.
However, having just purchased Victor Osimhen from the same club for €50m plus bonuses, Orestis Karnezis and three youth team players, Napoli need to sell first.
This is becoming a problem, because Aurelio De Laurentiis won’t accept under €80m for Koulibaly, and Il Mattino newspaper insists so far Manchester City’s top bid is €65m.
The more the situation drags on, the more likely Everton can step in and snatch Gabriel away.
There is another alternative, which would be selling Nikola Maksimovic, although the 28-year-old Serbia international would not bring in anywhere near as much revenue.
Manchester City have reportedly offered €65m for Kalidou Koulibaly, but Napoli are not prepared to drop their asking price below €80m, stalling Gabriel from Lille.
Multiple Italian reports including La Repubblica claim a deal has already been done with Lille for centre-back Gabriel Magalhanes for €20m.
However, having just purchased Victor Osimhen from the same club for €50m plus bonuses, Orestis Karnezis and three youth team players, Napoli need to sell first.
This is becoming a problem, because Aurelio De Laurentiis won’t accept under €80m for Koulibaly, and Il Mattino newspaper insists so far Manchester City’s top bid is €65m.
The more the situation drags on, the more likely Everton can step in and snatch Gabriel away.
There is another alternative, which would be selling Nikola Maksimovic, although the 28-year-old Serbia international would not bring in anywhere near as much revenue.
Gray
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Koulibaly grossly overpriced.