Media Thread 2020/21

[mad4city]

For f**k sake! Who the f**k! is this designed to appeal to?




A long way from a nipper paddling through the piss at the Maine Road urinals....Too long

Me. An ordinary working class bloke who paddled through many a piss-puddled urinal.
I enjoyed it.
You might too if you give it a chance. Or something similar.
Or not. You'll get no judgement if you don't.
All I'm saying is the arts really aren't just for people who were born with a silver spoon in their mouth.

On a side note (and veering off topic) it's good to see the club supporting the arts, particularly during these times when artists are unable to perform and struggling to make ends meet.

We should all try to do the same in our own way. Take a chance on a book or a CD, go to a play when we can. Preferably something that we might not have necessarily done otherwise.

It'd be a very boring world, after all this pandemic shit settles down, if the only people whose mummies and daddies can afford to subsidies them were able to create art.

 

[manimanc]

Conn has a problem. He's a few years younger than me but I suspect our experiences growing up, him in Prestwich and me in Crumpsall, were similar.

He may have gone shopping on Cheetham Hill with his grandma, probably on the bus. If she wanted chicken or a piece brisket, she went to the butcher. If she wanted bread, she went to the baker. Veg, to the greengrocer. Vimto, to the grocer. Milk or cheese, to the dairy shop. Etc. When she'd got everything they would have gone home, she'd have made a cup of tea with tea leaves in a pot, poured through a strainer and, at 5pm, the first programmes would start on the TV they rented. If it was cold, she might have put sme coal on the fire or put the gas heater on. There were 4 or 5 cinemas in walking distance of the house I grew up in, and she might have taken him to one of those. Polio and diptheria were real fears and catching measles, mumps and rubella was expected

If it was a Saturday, they might have watched the football results, of clubs owned by local small businessmen made good, like butcher Bob Lord, our own TV supplier, or a purveyor of bribes and rotten meat to councils. For these people, it elevated them into loal dignitaries, like modern days squires of the manor. One or two, like Liverpool and Arsenal, might have been owned by seriously rich families, who saw it as their civic duty to provide entertainment for the masses who worked for them and provided their riches.

Gradually the world changed. Supermarkets, where you could get everything under one roof, and there was at least one in every town. Central heating, mass car ownership, multiplex cinemas, where you had a choice of ten or more films. Not needing to ait for the results of matches, because you could watch or stream them live.

Football moved out of the realm of the local boy made good and became big business. Conn probably shops in supermarkets or online, owns more than one TV and car and has central heating. His kids will have been vaccinated and don't fear the childhood diseases he and I did.

He accepts this as part of modern life but he's never accepted football changing.

Can't believe he's a Prestwich lad, folk from there are usually sound.

 

[SilverFox2]

Because these articles, quotes and arguments to try and belittle the achievements of our club, owner and Pep are born from one thing....

FEAR

The history clubs and their ex-players, and the rest of the jealous mob are fearful of what has been happening before there eyes since Sheihk Mansour arrived on these shores.

Take one massive example of that playing out on BT sports when Joe Cole said Kane should go to City - Ferdinand couldn't hold that thought in his head, the fear rose and he went straight into school boy bully mode spouting 'united are the biggest club' - Ferdinand had to re-assure himself that Kane to the rags was a no-brainer based on some old history shite that they are a bigger club - and then you had the giddy BT anchor laughing like the sad kid who hides behind the school bully hanging onto his every whim

The old pisscan said 'never in my lifetime', the takeover was seen as a joke at the time and one that wouldn't last.

We have overtaken them all in every part that MATTERS - Infrastructure, Scouting, Academy, Players, Managers, breaking domestic records, and now collecting trophies each season = FEAR

The only thing we lack is this stupid statement of being seen as a "bigger club" - based on what, overseas fans, well that doesn't bother me one iota - they can keep it. Is it based on trophies? - well we are addressing that currently are we not, But then they realise that if we start by lifting a 1st CL trophy this Saturday then they will be worried about us winning more

The truth is (and I will use myself as an example age wise, I am 42yrs old) that the red top history clubs (who believe they have this divine right to be lauded as the pinnacle of the English game) are realising that what has been built has the POTENTIAL to go on and become the most successful English club side ever = FEAR

FEAR is written all over this. It is between the lines in everything they say, every article that is written, every snide little comment that is made live on TV or radio.

The funny thing is they knew this as soon as our owner took over. Their fear caused them to plot to stop his investments initial phase.
They were so frightened of his investment potential that they designed FFP around stopping his progress.

Well their worst fears are now proving to be right, I applaud their insight.

 

[crazyg]

Con being the French word for ****.

Tres bon.

 

[City Man]

Conn still spouting on about "sportswashing", his personal bias and one sided political agenda when football has finally woken up that CFG is about business. The self styled elite have found themselves falling further behind in terms of success and finance with little chance of catching up.

What must really stick in their collective craws is the loyalty to Manchester City of the the fans, the owners, the staff, the players, Pep, other coaches and backroom staff?

The old model of running a football club on debt and spending as little as possible whilst extracting as much cash as possible, has been blown apart. CFG has gone for growth by reinvesting on and off the field as well as in local communities.

At the time of the take over, ADUG did say they had a 20 year plan in place and we still years to go.

By then, there is every chance that Conn and his ilk and the likes of the Guardian will no longer be around. They are already on borrowed time, becoming as irrelevant as City Bingo with their tropes, prejudices and falshoods.

God, these relentless recycled articles in the Grauniad are boring beyond words. On and on and on they drone. The eyes of even those who are committed adherents to the stuff they spout must be glazing over by this time. Even the law of diminishing returns must be losing the will to live.

 

[big gaz]

The arrogance and dismissal of City is where the rags have got themselves into the situation they are now. Keep repeating the Greatest club in the world to themselves whilst City walk off with all the trophies. The fact that the likes of Harry Kane would probably pick City over United 9 times out of 10 does not compute. Why would Harry Kane want to play at the swamp, they shit the bed in January when they had to kick on in the league. They can’t even get past some Turkish no hopers to get through the group stages in the champions league.

Once they let go of the past and banging on about the United way they might get themselves to a point where they can compete. Unfortunately they have a manager who can’t shut up about the past, long may he remain in charge.

Be careful with the Turkish no hopers line matey ;-)

 

[CC1]

Pseuds Corner

Haha. Not as daft as you seem

 

[The perfect fumble]

Me. An ordinary working class bloke who paddled through many a piss-puddled urinal.
I enjoyed it.
You might too if you give it a chance. Or something similar.
Or not. You'll get no judgement if you don't.
All I'm saying is the arts really aren't just for people who were born with a silver spoon in their mouth.

On a side note (and veering off topic) it's good to see the club supporting the arts, particularly during these times when artists are unable to perform and struggling to make ends meet.

We should all try to do the same in our own way. Take a chance on a book or a CD, go to a play when we can. Preferably something that we might not have necessarily done otherwise.

It'd be a very boring world, after all this pandemic shit settles down, if the only people whose mummies and daddies can afford to subsidies them were able to create art.

Working class football culture is hanging on by its finger nails, attacked in all directions by corporate greed and gentrification, it is misunderstood, patronised, stereotyped, ignored, seen as a problem, an unfortunate legacy of the past.

This isn't about an appreciation of classical music, this is about grafting whatever you like on football culture, because football culture is utterly debased, it's not worthy of celebration in its own right.

You know! It makes me want to stomp my feet.

 

[spiny]

The UAE and especially Abu Dhabi are very pro British, reflected in trade and politics. Sheikh Mansour chose to invest not only in Manchester City FC but also in the regeneration of a run down, blighted part of the city. The decision was not born out of altruism but there is no evidence of equivalent investments by others let alone by owners of other football clubs including the ones who purport to be the biggest and richest in the world.

Yet we have a cabal conducting a sustained campaign against City and owners, effectively against the interests of the UK, when there are many more obvious targets throughout the world. The western world has its own issues and Amnesty has its failings and is no moral paragon. This cabal is self-reinforcing with their selective criticism and attacks a reflection of their paymasters.

Unsurprisingly, they like to give it but cant take it.

 

[mad4city]

Working class football culture is hanging on by its finger nails, attacked in all directions by corporate greed and gentrification, it is misunderstood, patronised, stereotyped, ignored, seen as a problem, an unfortunate legacy of the past.

This isn't about an appreciation of classical music, this is about grafting whatever you like on football culture, because football culture is utterly debased, it's not worthy of celebration in its own right.

You know! It makes me want to stomp my feet.

I take your point about working class football being worthy of celebration in it's own right.
No argument from me there.

Evolution is inevitable too though. The alternative to evolution are stagnation or revolution. So, we have to expect some changes to what we grew up with. As change goes this is fairly harmless and, as I say, carries some incidental good with it.

Worth saying too that just like the working class fans no longer sport flat caps, rosettes and rattles, neither should we be expected to be up to our ankles in piss in the jacks and equally we are entitled to enjoy whatever we damn well please, be that high brow or low brow or anywhere in between. So, this video certainly is only a class thing if you think we're not entitled to enjoy what we want.

If you think that piece was too posh for your taste or not in keeping with the traditions of the game, that's fine. Those are valid opinions too.

As you have probably gathered, I don't agree but lookit, the world is full of people who don't agree with me. (I married one of them and reared a few more). So, you'll understand if I suggest that we agree to disagree.

 

[Trevor Morley's Tache]

Tres bon.

I used to work with a guy called Jim Aird.

I once asked him to say his name in a French accent and he duly obliged...

Kept me amused for hours.

 

[johnevans]

In addition to the issue you raise, I have a couple that I would have liked Conn to raise and analyse in this ‘article’:

1 Clubs which have gone into administration

The role played by such as Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal in making sweeping financial changes to the English game (including the attendance levy and the share of attendance receipts) all of which had direct, negative impacts on the fortunes of lower league clubs over the last three decades (and well before 2008 when Mansour’s takeover occurred)

2 The CAS findings in favour of City vs UEFA

The actions of the ‘properly constituted internal bodies’ in recharging City of misleading UEFA over its FFP performance, which were based upon stolen e-mails obtained from ‘Der Spiegel’/Rui Pinto; actions which, it appears, include reconstructing two of the offending e-mails (which CAS found in total to be not ‘offending’, in any way, shape or form..) to appear to be one e-mail that seemed to offer evidence against City. I don’t think the word ‘proper’ can be applied to any organisation that gets up to such behaviour.

I’m not going to hold my breath for Conn or his ilk to raise/analyse such issues though. Media planks like him are self-absorbed egotists, ten-a-penny scribblers..

Conn at it in The Guardian and he's got a full house and then some in the City Bingo card.

My biggest issue is that he says our owners have pumped £2.5B into the club which is not true. They have spent that amount on The City Football Group by acquiring other teams and building the infrastructure of said teams.

City have obviously been the main benefactor of the money but no one truly know

 

[knuckles]

Working class football culture is hanging on by its finger nails, attacked in all directions by corporate greed and gentrification, it is misunderstood, patronised, stereotyped, ignored, seen as a problem, an unfortunate legacy of the past.

This isn't about an appreciation of classical music, this is about grafting whatever you like on football culture, because football culture is utterly debased, it's not worthy of celebration in its own right.

You know! It makes me want to stomp my feet.

I'm stomping (the song and video made me cringe though) !!!!

 

[adeinchessy]

Me. An ordinary working class bloke who paddled through many a piss-puddled urinal.
I enjoyed it.
You might too if you give it a chance. Or something similar.
Or not. You'll get no judgement if you don't.
All I'm saying is the arts really aren't just for people who were born with a silver spoon in their mouth.

On a side note (and veering off topic) it's good to see the club supporting the arts, particularly during these times when artists are unable to perform and struggling to make ends meet.

We should all try to do the same in our own way. Take a chance on a book or a CD, go to a play when we can. Preferably something that we might not have necessarily done otherwise.

It'd be a very boring world, after all this pandemic shit settles down, if the only people whose mummies and daddies can afford to subsidies them were able to create art.

Well said, mate. I couldn't agree more.

 

[BeerIsTheBest]

I used to work with a guy called Jim Aird.

I once asked him to say his name in a French accent and he duly obliged...

Kept me amused for hours.

I worked part time in a gym. The managers name was Shay Toal. The staff had hours of fun on the tannoy.

 

[Trevor Morley's Tache]

I worked part time in a gym. The managers name was Shay Toal. The staff had hours of fun on the tannoy.

I also worked with a guy called Chris Peacock...

 

[The Future’s Blue!]

Conn at it in The Guardian and he's got a full house and then some in the City Bingo card.

My biggest issue is that he says our owners have pumped £2.5B into the club which is not true. They have spent that amount on The City Football Group by acquiring other teams and building the infrastructure of said teams.

City have obviously been the main benefactor of the money but no one truly knows how much they have spent solely on us.

But tell a lie long enough and people will accept it as truth

The biggest myth is what has been ‘pumped’ in. They count every contract since the takeover as if we don‘t actually have an income stream that pays for these players, as if Sheikh Mansour pays for every player out of his own pocket, omitting that said income streams are ’pumped’ back into the club to cover costs.

This is the biggest lie and perpetuates the myth.

 

[lefty goldblatt]

At this point, can I say that I DON'T know anyone called Mike Hunt

 

[tweety]

Writing crap about City makes the media money, eventually that will change and they'll write nice things about us that will make them money, its as simple as that.

 

[Pingu the Penguin]

Marvin, off course it is a soft power project irrespective of the legal structure. It is even documented as such by the likes of Gary Cook who referred to it as a proxy for Abu Dhabi. Then there is the involvement of Simon Pearce. At the time of takeover he was the head of Strategic Communications for Abu Dabhi and his job was to protect and enhance the reputation of Abu Dhabi. Khaldoon, just a mate helping out? Come off it man.

BUT there is nothing wrong with soft power. The UK do exactly the same thing. Or attempt to anyway...
I agree with your comment about the failed PR campaign.

The problem comes with the derogatory term "sportswashing" and the inference that everything we do is to hide human rights abuses. That frankly is bollocks.

City were purchased to make the buyers a lot of money. Much is made of the investment made but a massive slug of that has already been recouped in the CFG shareholding’s sold to China and Silverlake, never mind the actual valuation of city now v pre takeover.

we have been very lucky that we were taken over by people who knew what they were doing - how to make money from football (which is a very difficult thing to do)