de niro said:
IWasHere said:
Scaring Europe to Death said:
Too true
Under Mancini I didn't necessarily agree with his tactics, but I understood them. From virtually the first minute of his first game in charge, it was obvious that he had worked on our defensive strategy. That meant clean sheets and how many games did we score first and never even look like losing?
Recently we have stopped scoring and started conceding stupid goals.. Hopefully Bony will give us some impetus, but for the moment Pellegrini's style is beginning to resemble the latter days of the Sven era.
In the 12/13 season under Mancini we conceded 15 goals at home, 33 altogether. This season we've conceded 11 goals at home already and 22 altogether. Defense has been shit this season and work needs to be done. He wasn't helped by txiki with the signings this season by bringing in Fernando, who's worse than garcia imo. We should be buying world class players IMO. Real Madrid bougt kroos, Bayern bought Alonso, rags bought di maria (even though hes been shit this season) arsenal bought Sanchez, Chelsea bought Costa and fabregas, we buy Fernando.
Should be interesting what happens on Saturday, if we lose I can't see him with us next season because it would be likely we won't win the league and there's definitely no chance of us winning the CL, plus we're out of both domestic cups.
I don't want him gone but if he gets sacked I won't be arsed!
I've always preferred Mancini and always will
I could have written this post.
Well said.
There is little doubt that Mancini was more tactically aware than MP during his tenure at City but his man management style and divisive nature culminating in a downing tools in an F A Cup on the field meant he had to go.
In the past in effect the owners have given our managers longer than they should have in hindsight and I don't think they will make the same mistake a third time.
Again this season the players are not nearly as motivated as they should be and once again are basking in past glories.
Yes we qualified for the last 16 in the Chumps League and its as far as we will go again a second year but lets face it both Roma and CSKA were average sides and we should have qualified much much easier than we did.
Our exits from both Cups so meekly at home clearly shows a lack of motivation an willingness from the players to show Pelegrini they want to play for him/
It also shows how reliant we are and have been all season on a few on any given day to do just enough to beat sides we should be dominating on the pitch and on the scoreboard.
5 losses at home and more losses to come for sure.
Little doubt we will end up with fewer points than last season but hopefully accumulate enough points to stutter into the Chumps League next season.
Too often this year we come to life once we are up against and finding ourselves not good enough to dig ourselves out of the hole we create.
Our anxiety from one to the next would have you imagined that sleeping tablets are fed to our group at half time as times.
CSKA , Stoke , Boro Burnley and the list goes on.
This season certainly has a familiar ring to RM 's last season in charge to it so their is only one likely outcome come May for MP.
After the away leg at Barca the wheels will be set in motion to find his replacement and the replacement of a number of players that quite frankly cannot contribute to our success anymore both home and abroad.
Some may think this view harsh but its reality.
The owners have to move this club forward.
Exiting the Chumps League at the same stage , exiting both Cups in a whimper and most of all playing a brand of football that is unattractive lacks flair , ruthlessness and a cutting edge a shambles at set pieces ( embarrassing really for a side with our supposed quality ) a shambles defensively leaking goals at home against low quality sides and there decision is made a simple one.
Fortunately for us Manure are in transition , Liverpool are Suarez less and Sturridge has been a sick note , Arsenal and Spurs have under performed and West Ham and Southampton have over performed and taken a fair swag of points against the above mentioned teams.
In truth the brand of football we have played this season is worse than that in Mancini's last.
I never miss a City game live on the box but some of it has been that pedestrian and shambolic at the back if you were a neutral you would go elsewhere.
Thanks MP for the great work you did in your first year all of us will be greatful for the work you did but no one from the under21's looks like being within a bulls roar of first team selection which your predecessor was slammed for ignoring and players like VK , Kolorov, Dzeko, Nasty,Hart have either stagnated or gone backwards in terms of performance level since his arrival and others bought in like Navas and Fernando have failed to make a mark.
Time to refresh on and off the field.
Sometimes you just know when the right time is , now is the right time and if we could have done more in January we would have done so.
Had we not qualified for the last 16 we would have looked seriously at a change but the owners are patient and give their appointments time.
Yes there are 16 games still left and while there is life there is hope but the set up , the style is set in concrete and we don't have the players to make a success of it and and as time goes on these players are getting older and slower.