Pep Guardiola

[bluebanjo]

My only concern is Mancinis attitude ans stubburness. A few games ago he said " They owe me three big wins" who are "they" I thought we were a club, a unit , in it together. It only goes to alienate people when language like this is used and it sounds a little arrogant. Surely its a mangers job to inspire our players not talk down to them as if its them and us.

 

[Yaya_Tony]

I will be gutted if bobby manc leaves, generally think he's done a fantastic job since joining

I'll be even more gutted if he is driven out. He's been brilliant and the work is only half done.

 

[The Future's Blue]

Bit left field but a bloody good shout.

There's the small matter of money though. L'Arse won't pay him enough I suspect. And I agree with Billy about him not wanting to work for Roman.

Which leaves United - possibly, if SAF chooses to hang up his boots. And us. I think he will end up at our place whether we like it or not.

In our owner's eyes we have given Mancini 2 stints at the CL and he's not impressed at either of them. He won't be getting a 3rd stint. I think only our beating Real and Dortmund and miraculously qualifying can save him. And I think he will get the chop mid season, because I don't think our owners fancy the bad publicity of getting rid of him if he wins the league for us again.

But heck, it's only my opinion.

So what you're saying is, in your opinion, you feel the owners are going to wait until later on in the season, and if Mancini is looking good for a second consecutive title then they're going to give him the chop so we don't win the league and they won't look bad?

Strange logic but one I can obviously understand. Keep a manager to win the league when it looked like all hope was lost and then when we're looking like winning it again, get rid just in case he does, and then, pay him the rest of his huge contract up.

That'll learn him.

 

[Chippy_boy]

Who knows eh?

 

[Chippy_boy]

So what you're saying is, in your opinion, you feel the owners are going to wait until later on in the season, and if Mancini is looking good for a second consecutive title then they're going to give him the chop so we don't win the league and they won't look bad?

You are twisting what i said. I didn't say if we are looking good for the title we will chop him. I said we will chop him anyway, and we won't be waiting until the end of the season.

I also didn't say we would do it so that we don't win the league, which would be ridiculous obviously. We cannot do it with a only handful of games left before the end of season.

But again, only my opinion.

 

[Mancio]

So what you're saying is, in your opinion, you feel the owners are going to wait until later on in the season, and if Mancini is looking good for a second consecutive title then they're going to give him the chop so we don't win the league and they won't look bad?

No, I am not saying that. I didn't say if we are looking good for the title we will chop him. I said we will chop him anyway, and we won't be waiting until the end of the season.

But again, only my opinion.

some would say you have some very strange opinions

 

[Chippy_boy]

So what you're saying is, in your opinion, you feel the owners are going to wait until later on in the season, and if Mancini is looking good for a second consecutive title then they're going to give him the chop so we don't win the league and they won't look bad?

No, I am not saying that. I didn't say if we are looking good for the title we will chop him. I said we will chop him anyway, and we won't be waiting until the end of the season.

But again, only my opinion.

some would say you have some very strange opinions

They'd be right!

As I keep saying, I would keep Mancini until end of season at least. It's just I have a hunch that our owners have decided to replace him (for lots of reasons I can't go into), and if I am right then when would they do it? They can hardly announce the appointment of Guardiola now and ask Mancini to pleae carry on until Guardiola arrives, when we will sack you later.

And if they wait until Summer and then sack Mancini after he's won the league again, they will look worse than Abramovic. So no time is ideal, but if they have made their minds up that Pep is the man, when would they do it?

 

[LongsightM13]

Mancini is our manager. A champion and a born winner. Demanding a change at this stage is the nonsensical foot-stamping of a spoiled brat
For all the Pep fanboys, however, the Spanish journalist and broadcaster Guilem Balague is giving a talk at Waterstones in Deansgate on Thursday night about his new Guardiola biography, and a Q&A with Sky's Rob Palmer. £3. Go fill yer boots. I'm sure the MEN will be there, waiting to pounce with another 'Mancini under pressure' story

 

[Mancio]

No, I am not saying that. I didn't say if we are looking good for the title we will chop him. I said we will chop him anyway, and we won't be waiting until the end of the season.

But again, only my opinion.

some would say you have some very strange opinions

They'd be right!

As I keep saying, I would keep Mancini until end of season at least. It's just I have a hunch that our owners have decided to replace him (for lots of reasons I can't go into), and if I am right then when would they do it? They can hardly announce the appointment of Guardiola now and ask Mancini to pleae carry on until Guardiola arrives, when we will sack you later.

And if they wait until Summer and then sack Mancini after he's won the league again, they will look worse than Abramovic. So no time is ideal, but if they have made their minds up that Pep is the man, when would they do it?

tomorrow night , after we lose with real madrid.

 

[adrianr]

That risks potentially not qualifying for the Champions League again though. Sacking Mancini mid season regardless of any plans in the summer would just be, well, insane. The owners wouldn't look any better doing that than they would sacking him after he's won the league. On the contrary I'd say they'd look worse by appearing completely and utterly incompetent.

 

[Chippy_boy]

I hope nothing comes of this.

And of course there's the small matter that (a) Guardiola keeps saying he wants a year off and isn't joining anyone until Summer, and (b) he might not want to come to City at all.

And they aren't going to sack him without his replacement lined up already, and I really don't think Guardiola is lined up yet.

 

[Anonymous]

They'd be right!

As I keep saying, I would keep Mancini until end of season at least. It's just I have a hunch that our owners have decided to replace him (for lots of reasons I can't go into), and if I am right then when would they do it? They can hardly announce the appointment of Guardiola now and ask Mancini to pleae carry on until Guardiola arrives, when we will sack you later.

And if they wait until Summer and then sack Mancini after he's won the league again, they will look worse than Abramovic. So no time is ideal, but if they have made their minds up that Pep is the man, when would they do it?

I think with respect to Guardiola, as I alluded to I think yesterday, I suspect he's going to pitch up at Arsenal. There's a myriad reasons why that is the most logical place for him to move to if he, as everyone is reporting, has his heart set on the PL.

The most important for me is the youth system/playing style there. He would be stepping into a very very familiar set up with familiar principles about football from the youth teams upwards. Arsenal are a big club who have so far failed to keep up with the influx of money into teams like ours and Chelsea. He would bring a certain cache to them whereby even with a wage structure considerably lower than ours, he could attract players of a certain calibre, particularly from Spain, which even Wenger would struggle to attract. Also from his perspective, with it being his first job outside of Barca, and the first real test of his management capabilities, there'd be far less pressure on him at Arsenal than there would be at City, Chelsea, or United. That's my vibe anyway.

On Mancini and what you've posted about the owners deciding to make a change - it will all come down to whether the owners see Mancini as the man for phase 3 of the project. If they feel confident under him the team will improve year on year and he's getting the best out of them, then they'll keep him. If they think he's underachieving then they'll look at who's available. Their expectations in all of this are the most important, and none of us really know how they feel about performances in Europe vs. the league.

 

[brian the blue]

So what you're saying is, in your opinion, you feel the owners are going to wait until later on in the season, and if Mancini is looking good for a second consecutive title then they're going to give him the chop so we don't win the league and they won't look bad?

You are twisting what i said. I didn't say if we are looking good for the title we will chop him. I said we will chop him anyway, and we won't be waiting until the end of the season.

I also didn't say we would do it so that we don't win the league, which would be ridiculous obviously. We cannot do it with a only handful of games left before the end of season.

But again, only my opinion.

What I was trying to say is, if you think the owners want him gone because of Europe, why not get rid on Wednesday when we will more than likely get knocked out?

It makes no sense waiting till later on in the season to get rid when we could be well on for another title and a change in manager won't help that.

If the owners are seriously thinking about changing then surely it'd be common sense to wait until the season is over so they can assess his performance on a whole. Last year many thought Mancini was a dead man walking when we went 8 points behind with 6 games to go but we went on to win the league. I doubt we would have done that had he gotten the chop after Arsenal away.

 

[The Future's Blue]

ChipShop Boy, wasn'tit you who resurrected your prediction thread to state Mancini will be out and Guardiola would be in by Xmas?

If it was you, I can see why you are aligning your views to continue that prose. However, I am now noting that it is your opinion and your thoughts that now assert your statement rather than an ITK conversation with some businessman.

Apologies if this was not you but if it was, there does now seem to be some back-tracking.

Wasn't it a cert?

 

[Chippy_boy]

So what you're saying is, in your opinion, you feel the owners are going to wait until later on in the season, and if Mancini is looking good for a second consecutive title then they're going to give him the chop so we don't win the league and they won't look bad?

You are twisting what i said. I didn't say if we are looking good for the title we will chop him. I said we will chop him anyway, and we won't be waiting until the end of the season.

I also didn't say we would do it so that we don't win the league, which would be ridiculous obviously. We cannot do it with a only handful of games left before the end of season.

But again, only my opinion.

What I was trying to say is, if you think the owners want him gone because of Europe, why not get rid on Wednesday when we will more than likely get knocked out?

Simple. Because we haven't got a replacement lined up yet.

-- Tue Nov 20, 2012 1:39 pm --

ChipShop Boy, wasn'tit you who resurrected your prediction thread to state Mancini will be out and Guardiola would be in by Xmas?

If it was you, I can see why you are aligning your views to continue that prose. However, I am now noting that it is your opinion and your thoughts that now assert your statement rather than an ITK conversation with some businessman.

Apologies if this was not you but if it was, there does now seem to be some back-tracking.

Wasn't it a cert?

Yes, it was me. And I already backtracked in that thread from it being a cert. Plus, people slag me off if I say it's anything other than my opinion ;-)

And I didn't say anything about any conversation with any businessman either!

 

[BlueAnorak]

Those who want city to shoot themselves in the foot by getting Pep in and sacking the most successful manager we have ever had over his time here still have not answered the following questions:

[1] Why was Mancini given a 5 year contract in the summer?

[2] Why would Mancini sign a contract that was not rock solid (allowing us to sack him without paying the full value of his contract up - i.e. £37m) when he had the chance to go elsewhere in the summer (Russia & Monaco at least)? The goodness of Mancini's heart? I think not.

[3] How do you think the club can meet FFP over the next few years by sacking Mancini and giving him £37m (the cost of his contract).

Not one of you who want Pep can come up with a satisfactory answers to the the above questions. You have all been playing FIFA too much.

 

[Anonymous]

Those who want city to shoot themselves in the foot by getting Pep in and sacking the most successful manager we have ever had over his time here still have not answered the following questions:

[1] Why was Mancini given a 5 year contract in the summer?

Because he had City over a barrel. He'd won the league, and could see they were hedging their bets and wanted a big pay off. Hence the supposed interest from the Russian national team (remember the story of the signed contract?), Monaco, etc. Lest we forget that Mancini has admitted to talking to plenty of other clubs and actually negotiating with Monaco.

[2] Why would Mancini sign a contract that was not rock solid (allowing us to sack him without paying the full value of his contract up - i.e. £37m) when he had the chance to go elsewhere in the summer (Russia & Monaco at least)?

Because even though he had City over a barrel they aren't stupid, and neither is he. Better to take a 5 year contract with performance related break clauses, than to not sign the contract and be replaced in 12 months time.

[3] How do you think the club can meet FFP over the next few years by sacking Mancini, giving him £37m (the cost of his contract).

It's incredibly naive of you to think that it would cost 37 million to sack Mancini. In fact it's pure fiction to be honest. Look at what AVB got paid out by Chelsea and how his contract was structured - it gives you an idea of how these things work.

Not one of you who want Pep can come up with a satisfactory answers to the the above questions. You have all been playing FIFA too much.

Says the guy who thinks Mancini will get 37 million if he gets sacked.

 

[BlueAnorak]

Billy - All opinions of course but your living in a dreamland if you think Mancini did not sign a rock solid contract. He would have gone elsewhere if it wasn't - he is a very intelligent, articulate and most importantly hard headed man.

 

[Chippy_boy]

Do you really think ADUG would keep the wrong man (if they thought he was the wrong man) for 5 years, just to avoid having to pay him off?

Whatever the payoff, it's small change. Also, someone asked me if I thought the 5-year contract was a golden handshake - a thank you payoff - for winning the league. It may well have been.

 

[Anonymous]

Billy - All opinions of course but your living in a dreamland if you think Mancini did not sign a rock solid contract. He would have gone elsewhere if it wasn't - he is a very intelligent, articulate and most importantly hard headed man.

It's not just "All opinions" when you say shit like

Not one of you who want Pep can come up with a satisfactory answers to the the above questions. You have all been playing FIFA too much.

In my opinion my answers were wholly satisfactory. I don't play FIFA. And I don't live in dreamland. I am however realistic enough to know that Mancini isn't unsackable, Pep probably does interest our owners, and it'll take something akin to a miracle for Mancini to still be our manager in two seasons time.