Pep: 'The players deserve a full stadium, we need our fans!'

greasedupdeafguy said:
It is weird our fanbase at the moment. I do think a certain level of apathy has developed as fans are now so used to success. Strange example but last year we couldn't fill the academy stadium for the youth cup final yet 10 years about 20k turned up for when we beat chelsea. You then look at games like Hamburg and Newcastle in 2004 when where the Etihad was filled to the brim and extremely hostile. You don't see that anymore.

Cost is certainly a major reason and probably why I wont be going to the Barce game.

Also while the club has tried to improve the 'match day experience' it has certainly sanitised the experience which i'm sure has put of a lot of the old hard core. Probably the biggest reason why the crowds are so poor in cups imo
Click to expand...

The home gates in the FA cup are actually really impressive and have been in the last 4 or 5 years sell outs or very close.
 
jrb said:
Weird!

Bournemouth at home on Saturday, and it will sell out. 54,000+. Especially after tonight's performance.

Expect the odd remaining seats in each block to go over the coming days.

bmt.jpg
Click to expand...

Does that include ticket exchange?
 
I don't think he was talking about tonight, nor was he criticising he was appealing, he wants a full crowd and he wants everyone to enjoy the Champions League... it comes from a good place.
 
Set the price right and the fans will come. Keep playing like that and the fans will come.
As to Booing - nah the changes being proposed by UEFA need to be condemned so it will continue a bit longer.
 
philiph20 said:
Very good point about our weird fan base and the example of the youth cup final. I do actually think City fans generally are very individualistic and very cynical, we don't lap everything up like other fan bases, we question a lot, we are quite bleak and fatalistic and a million miles from lemmings at other clubs, we are not mawkish or flamboyant, we don't strut around or give it the big one, we are different whether that is a good thing or a bad thing I don't know.
Click to expand...
I like this post and it's a good thing City fans are like this.
 
Puppet Master Silva said:
He's right. Our Champions League support isn't good enough, however those who did make the effort tonight were superb 2nd half.

For those saying that it was priced fairly, it's worth considering that although it was, a lot of fans will prefer to overpay for Barcelona tickets and therefore not be able to afford tonight.

It stings a bit as fans when you're told your not good enough, and there's a case to be made that Pep shouldn't be calling fans out. But he's right, the support isn't good enough in the Champions League.
Click to expand...

A lot of blues just don't like this competition, I bet at least a third if not more of season ticket holders don't attend CL games.
 
The only thing left that needs improving is us. Face it.

It's only a guess but I think what made us great is costing us now. Hard core of loyal support in the dark days now in their fifties and sixties won't give up their season tickets but moan when they go and can't be bothered half the time.

Club realise they must attract the youngsters and it is working slowly, much to the annoyance of some fogies who see the efforts as blatant commercialism or cheesey.

I still believe that some fans are annoyed there is so little to moan about as that's what attracted them to us in the first place.

The away support is fine. Home support is crap. We need new blood and in the meantime Pep is right to put a rocket up the rest of us. It's time to stop congratulating ourselves on our past loyalty when we were crap and start to back the team now the future has never been brighter.
 
greasedupdeafguy said:
It is weird our fanbase at the moment. I do think a certain level of apathy has developed as fans are now so used to success. Strange example but last year we couldn't fill the academy stadium for the youth cup final yet 10 years about 20k turned up for when we beat chelsea. You then look at games like Hamburg and Newcastle in 2004 when where the Etihad was filled to the brim and extremely hostile. You don't see that anymore.

Cost is certainly a major reason and probably why I wont be going to the Barce game.

Also while the club has tried to improve the 'match day experience' it has certainly sanitised the experience which i'm sure has put of a lot of the old hard core. Probably the biggest reason why the crowds are so poor in cups imo
Click to expand...

to a certain level i agree, especially with the youth cup final. then again the youth team now is full of international players, perhaps fans dont feel the same connection with the team ? the hamburg game was cheap, thats why it was amazing, large groups of fans going together and singing. i literally think its just cost, I went tonight and I'm going against celtic, but the barca game is to expensive for me. make it really cheap and wed sell out no problem imo. the sanitized experience is an excuse imo, its up to the fans to make it good and get behind the team, we managed it tonight.
 
Ed2607 said:
To be honest I think evyone wants a solution, the fans, Pep, the players, the club. Nothing's impossible to solve and it needs a solution but that's only possible if the problem is evident and then discussed at all levels. There's so many varying points on here that there's no one singular cause that jumps out. If it's solely down to cost then that's the negotiation required with the club. Negotiate to lower the prices or offer other incentives as no doubt the club would prefer every seat filled and spending at the stadium but somehow I can't see it being that simple.
Click to expand...
I don't think one below par attendance is going to cause major ripples because our Prem matches are usually sold out. The club, or any business for that matter, will charge the maximum they feel people are willing to pay. If people pay it every match of every season then they can't complain if the clubs don't drop their ticket prices. I can't and I won't. I'll go as often as I feel I can but other priorities must come first. Perhaps it will get to that stage where a lot more people will be thinking like that. Only then will it change. I'm not talking about just City by the way. All league football clubs are as bad when it comes to fleecing their fans.
 
Also while the club has tried to improve the 'match day experience' it has certainly sanitised the experience which i'm sure has put of a lot of the old hard core. Probably the biggest reason why the crowds are so poor in cups imo

100% this^^^^^
 
Cheadle_hulmeBlue said:
make it ten quid for a game wed sell out in hours and have an amazing atmosphere. tonight was well priced and it showed in the type of fan who went, obviously postponement made it difficult to get a full ground tonight though
Click to expand...

It doesn't make sense for the club financially to make every game a tenner. Barca will sell out as likely Celtic will to so who makes the call as to what teams will attract and which wont? Then as you point out the crowd for the tenner games will vary from the more expensive games and the atmosphere will drop once again. As I said the solution isn't that simple but it certainly needs addressed.
 
Cobwebcat said:
The only thing left that needs improving is us. Face it.

It's only a guess but I think what made us great is costing us now. Hard core of loyal support in the dark days now in their fifties and sixties won't give up their season tickets but moan when they go and can't be bothered half the time.

Club realise they must attract the youngsters and it is working slowly, much to the annoyance of some fogies who see the efforts as blatant commercialism or cheesey.

I still believe that some fans are annoyed there is so little to moan about as that's what attracted them to us in the first place.

The away support is fine. Home support is crap. We need new blood and in the meantime Pep is right to put a rocket up the rest of us. It's time to stop congratulating ourselves on our past loyalty when we were crap and start to back the team now the future has never been brighter.
Click to expand...

We do have plenty of youngsters it's the lot in the 16-25 age group we just don't have in big numbers.
 
Cobwebcat said:
The only thing left that needs improving is us. Face it.

It's only a guess but I think what made us great is costing us now. Hard core of loyal support in the dark days now in their fifties and sixties won't give up their season tickets but moan when they go and can't be bothered half the time.

Club realise they must attract the youngsters and it is working slowly, much to the annoyance of some fogies who see the efforts as blatant commercialism or cheesey.

I still believe that some fans are annoyed there is so little to moan about as that's what attracted them to us in the first place.

The away support is fine. Home support is crap. We need new blood and in the meantime Pep is right to put a rocket up the rest of us. It's time to stop congratulating ourselves on our past loyalty when we were crap and start to back the team now the future has never been brighter.
Click to expand...

tbf tonight and the cup games there are loads of kids and young lads at the ground. its the prem game match day tickets that are priced terribly and when people go from 21- 22 the price goes up a lot. thats where the problem is imo. especially beign able to keep young fans/ lads going. in the 21- 26 age range.
 
Cobwebcat said:
The only thing left that needs improving is us. Face it.

It's only a guess but I think what made us great is costing us now. Hard core of loyal support in the dark days now in their fifties and sixties won't give up their season tickets but moan when they go and can't be bothered half the time.

Club realise they must attract the youngsters and it is working slowly, much to the annoyance of some fogies who see the efforts as blatant commercialism or cheesey.

I still believe that some fans are annoyed there is so little to moan about as that's what attracted them to us in the first place.

The away support is fine. Home support is crap. We need new blood and in the meantime Pep is right to put a rocket up the rest of us. It's time to stop congratulating ourselves on our past loyalty when we were crap and start to back the team now the future has never been brighter.
Click to expand...

Completely agree


I'm 38, and was there in the dark days, there were plenty of my age group and younger at those games
 
Psychedelic Casual said:
SeasonCards became too expensive five years ago and as a result people either sacked off the cups or were fired to sack of City altogether.

I know lads who were right up there in Loyalty Points, lads you'd never expect to stop going to City in a million years, who don't miss going one bit and have found other things to spend their spare cash on that's cheaper rather than scrimp and save every penny just to afford a SC.

The club probably think they've done us a big favour this year freezing prices but they've been too expensive for ages. Even fans came out with "well done City" when it was announced that £750 was a fair price for what was £525 not that long ago for a club in exactly the same position they were when it was that price. That's not a "well done" that's a "fuck me I can stretch my attendance, just, for one more year, phew".

It might have been cheap tonight but it's fucking expensive across the season as a whole so the odd games where it's cheap don't make up for the extortion of ticket prices and travel expenses over the 50+ games we play.

We've got halfway there with the £30 away tickets but there needs to be far far far more cheap SeasonCards available for fans.

It's not just about buying a ticket neither, it's about transport to games whether it be Beswick or Bournemouth or Besiktas. So yeah, £17.50 was a decent price tonight but a tank+half of petrol twice in a week next week going down to Swansea twice and £75 coming out for a SC on payday tomorrow is not.

Many many fans have fucked the cup scheme off because the price of the SC is more than enough.
Click to expand...

Many of whom expect to go to finals at the expense of fans who attended those cup games..
 
philiph20 said:
A lot of blues just don't like this competition, I bet at least a third if not more of season ticket holders don't attend CL games.
Click to expand...
I do attend but actually don't like the competition. But I'm a single man with no kids and don't have the financial constraints of some of my mates who are married with kids so I just go to the games. I honestly don't go because I enjoy it, I just go because I'm a City fans and City are playing.

My ranking of the competitions we play in goes:
Premier League
FA Cup


League Cup





Community Shield

Europa League

Champions League


Tonight didn't feel like a CL game, felt more like a more enjoyable EL night. I didn't even enjoy getting to the semis last season, it did nowt for me at all. Still went but it was pretty bobbins, enjoyed the Everton League Cup semis far more!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Unread Posts

Don't have an account? Register now and see fewer ads!

SIGN UP
Back
Top