The damage done by 20 year's inferiority to Man United

[BertTrautmann'sParachute]

Through spending far too much time on here I honestly think that a large section of our younger fanbase have become permanently damaged by the club spending the last 20 years playing second fiddle to Man United. Us older fans remember City being more or less equals to United in terms of success and fanbase. We remember when City had legions of fans in Manchester, and were acknowledged nationally as one of the country's biggest clubs.

But for fans under about 30 there are a large section who are totally and utterly insecure. Totally paranoid. They see bias in everything. Everyone is accused of being "a rag". Now City have become successful they have become obsessively concerned with comparing the club to United. They are frightened to death that even though we have a better team, United might continue to dominate the headlines.

So you get these "Reds Under The Bed" paranoid blues sitting with the remote control in their hand, counting the number of City goals on the Match of The Day credits and going mad if there aren't more than United. You get people watching Sunday Supplement purely so they can get outraged at a bunch of professional journalists being paid to give a contraversial opinion. You get accusations of pro-United agendas everywhere from the MEN to the BBC to Sky to FIFA to the referees. You get every signing, or non signing, looked at in regards to how it will be perceived by Man United fans.

I can't blame you I suppose. For twenty years in Manchester the majority of kids are United. Most of them are fucking wankers brought up on gloating about a team they only have a passing interest in. It can't have been easy being a blue in a school full of these shallow tossbags.

But can't you hold your heads up and be proper champions? All they are now are an equal footing rival, like Chelsea. Nothing more, nothing less. Stop comparing everything we do with them because the days of City fans needing to do that are gone. They have no Sheikh, they have a Yank parasite. They have no Silva, they have an ageing liar. They have a silent stadium full of tools and are supported around the world by idiots.

We are fucking City. We are fucking champions. It's time some of you young blues got your heads up and acted like it. Stop looking over your shoulders all the time. Stop fretting and feeling insecure about stuff that really doesn't matter.

Whilst I broadly share your sentiments on this, I am slightly more towards the centre, so to speak.

Whilst I agree that some of the paranoia is beyond parody there is no doubt that the media favour united, albeit unconsciously a lot of the time.

This is mainly a function of them being at the top table for so long, rather than anything more especially sinister. A particular case in point is their manager. He is allowed to get away with far more than any other manager in the game. He is allowed to misrepresent ("united teams always try and win"); be petulant and downright rude (refusing to speak to the BBC); hypocritical ("I wouldn't sell them a virus"); make outlandish and wholly incorrect predictions ("not in my lifetime"); insult other clubs in a disrespectful way ("a small club with a small mentality") ; and bring destruction down upon his own club (the Coolmore fiasco).

He can do all these things without fear of the widespread ridicule and derision from the media that would be visited upon any other manager for the same things - Benitez's 'list' being a case in point.

He manages this through a combination of his longevity and success in the job - which granted should give him a degree of leeway; his ability to bully and impose his will upon the press - often resulting in many journalists being banned from the club; and a desire for the media to retain a degree of favour and influence within the one of the most powerful sporting brands on the planet.

Against that backdrop it is understandable that City fans feel there is an agenda of sorts. To what degree depends on each individual's view of how the world works I guess, but it is unreasonable of you to expect fans not to resent the way their local rivals (and by implication their own club) are perceived (and treated) , being dictated by a bully.

I reckon you've nailed it there, GDM.

 

[Anonymous]

If some City fans do appear to be a bit 'obsessed' by what Unted are doing , then it's hardly 'one way traffic' is it????

At least half , if not more , of their third rate songs are about us ..... if you hear them talking it's City this , and City that ..... Fergie worries more about us than he does about his own team ..... their fans chased all over Manchester attempting to disfigure City posters ...... their players are forever having a go at City , attempting poor wind-ups , or trying to 'warn' us in the media .... their fans post absolute crap about City on Twitter , facebook etc

... no , it's hardly 'one-way' traffic at all !

You do have to admire the effect that Fergie has had there since his arrival back in 1986 , and personally i don't think another manager will ever equal his record .... but City are their 'own club' , and Mancini has done an excellent job here so far , he could easily become the greatest manager this club has ever had in time.

The bottom line is United are out there desperately spending money just to keep pace with City , they have had no other choice .... and they'll rely on things on FFP , and other restrictions to keep City in 'check' ...... because right now they , and Platini , know that nothing else will !

But where was Platini , and where were the english football authorities , when the rags were spending millions that others just couldn't compete with , in a deliberate attempt to dominate the domestic game , and beyond???

Where was all this talk about creating 'level playing fields' then ?????

 

[Dirty Harry]

Much of that I can agree with DD, more the perception that has grown over the last 20 odd years that we aren't up there with many of the biggest clubs, we were, but we were just in the wrong place at the wrong time when the real money was being handed out.

But I have to say I agree with GDM's point, there IS a certain amount of kudos and sway being at the top for so long brings you and with it certain benefits, but I do concede, with many, it does go a bit too far at times.

Oh and you'll have to spell this one out to me "They have no Silva, they have an ageing liar.", there's so many to choose from I really have no idea which one you're talking about .

 

[Inter Me Nan]

Oh and you'll have to spell this one out to me "They have no Silva, they have an ageing liar.", there's so many to choose from I really have no idea which one you're talking about .

Fergie?

 

[Dirty Harry]

Oh and you'll have to spell this one out to me "They have no Silva, they have an ageing liar.", there's so many to choose from I really have no idea which one you're talking about .

Fergie?

I assumed he was comparing players mate
Scholes ? Giggs ? Rooney ? Ferdinand ? The list is endless lol

 

[Didsbury Dave]

Oh and you'll have to spell this one out to me "They have no Silva, they have an ageing liar.", there's so many to choose from I really have no idea which one you're talking about .

Fergie?

I assumed he was comparing players mate
Scholes ? Giggs ? Rooney ? Ferdinand ? The list is endless lol

It certainly could have been a long list, that one. But comparing 'like for like' I should have said 'ageing philanderer'.

 

[jimharri]

Hate to say it (after all; he"s not called Dismal Dave for nothing!), but that is an excellent opening post.

 

[Main Stand Hotdog]

I completely understand what you're saying OP but I think your point is only valid with regards to those that post on this forum. I think because literally everything is discussed over and over again on here, you get people obsessing with other obsessives. The internet seems to generate alot of momentum for conspiracy theories e.g. 9/11 inside job etc.

However, If I talk to the blues amongst my family and friends who are the same age as myself (25), who have a healthy hatred for anything rag and who have never posted or read anything on this forum, even they'd probably roll their eyes and tell me to shut up if I repeated half the shit that gets obsessed over regarding 'media bias' on here.

 

[charliebigspuds]

great post from DD, a little bit of sense in the bottomless pit of lunacy that is Bluemoon.

It's the "tool" fans I don't like, the ones that go are ok as they are following their club just like we do but the armchair/Daily Star/Talksport/Utd TV brigade are wankers. When discussing Utd's signing of RVP I was called a bitter blue by a red that only ever goes when he gets a free ticket and has actually turned those down when they've been league cup games etc. I'm not bitter in the slightest but he couldn't get his head around that, all I said was that I'd be more worried if they bought a decent central midfielder.

 

[Inter Me Nan]

Oh and you'll have to spell this one out to me "They have no Silva, they have an ageing liar.", there's so many to choose from I really have no idea which one you're talking about .

Fergie?

I assumed he was comparing players mate
Scholes ? Giggs ? Rooney ? Ferdinand ? The list is endless lol

Yeah you're probarbly right there blue.