For me, football as a sport is as far removed from the game that I knew and played in my youth as is possible. It's like a different sport.
Watching my beloved City is always -and always will be- something I treasure. My memories of the club, the players, the various managers, the games etc, have in many ways defined who I am. And Manchester City FC will always be a part of my being.
But the game has moved on considerably. Some might argue for the better, and I'd say the technicality of the game has definitely improved, but on the downside I feel as if we've lost something: something intangible and deep-rooted within us all, maybe football has lost its soul?
It could be the money side of the game, I don't know. But I see some players who look as if they really could not give a fuck what is happening around them during the game, as if everything is too much hassle for them. Certain players are not giving it a 100%, and for me that is the minimum requirement, give it your all or fuck off home and count your millions.
When I see someone like Kane(pen), standing just outside the opposition penalty area, hands on hips and stifling a yawn, I want to run onto the pitch and thump the man. Same with Bellingham.
When I was a kid our manager would say "If any of you walk off the pitch, not covered in mud and drenched with sweat, struggling to catch your breath, and generally looking dead on your feet, I'm gonna ask why."
And we've all been there. All of us that played over the park and at school, or in the street, everyone of us will have memories of their youth, and they'll read this post and say "Yeah, I remember stuff like that happening."
But it seems that fighting spirit has evaporated from the game, and will sadly never return.
