totally underwhelmed

[gregblag]

if it wasn't for hart we'd have lost 4-0, maybe more, so let's get real, Mancini got it all wrong and its easy see why he's favorite for the sack first with the bookies.

We probably would have lost without a goalkeeper, correct.

Tactical wizardry from Mancini to select one.

LOL - brilliant!

 

[hirop]

Some pretty mad comments on this 34 page thread. First game, disjointed pre-season, world cup players back late, away at spurs, who are a better than decent free-scoring side at home - it's a great point. Thought city bossed the midfield for the second half and were never really in any danger. Lady luck shined in the first half, and that had nothing to do with mancini's formation or ambitions for the match, it was spurs speed of attack that was causing problems for a completely overwhelmed city midfield. What was a problem was the ball kept coming back as city had no one to make it stick up top - so some thought will need to go into working out who the best striker is for that role in the future. That gap made the formation and performance look more negative than it really should appear.

on a different note this very minute, i just saw academica score the goal of the season at benfica on bet365 at 90+3 :) glad i never punted on that. 30 yard chips rule.

anyway, back on point. stop greetin' about attacking verve, the season is 2 minutes old and you just took away 2 point from one of your main rivals for a top 4 finish. Take 4 points of all your top 4 rivals and do the business against the rest of the table, and you will win the league...

 

[Dhenry]

Yeah if Mancini only wasn't so negative, we could've given Chelsea a kicking at their home ground last season...

..and score 11 goals in two games against Burnley and Brum in the tail end of the season.

Now that'd be football I'd pay to see.

Oh wait.

 

[Wolfy]

Ono makes my belly fizz.

 

[johnny crossan]

Great post.

one of the best posts iv ever read on here ono,you summed it up unbelieveably well.il put my house on it that tottenham will never have a 35 mins like they did in the first half for the rest of the season!!

as some wise soul on here said - that's as good as it gets for Spurs but we will get better and better!

 

[gregblag]

Whats also a pity is City posters slagging others off for daring to question much more long term tactics than simply yesterday.

Or being huge hypocrites by backing Mancini to the hilt and giving other managers no time of day what so ever.

Thats the real shame, that people like that are about.

When Hughes was the manager I backed him and argued (not on bluemoon, hadn't joined then) that he should be given more time. After he was replaced I got to see what some fans had been saying - Hughes was inflexible and didn't have top class ability.

I like Mancini. I like his style, I like the players he has bought. Some games under him have been boring and frustrating but no manager in the world is going to be perfect.

Mancini has a great managerial record. There is no reason to believe he will fail, there is every reason to believe he will succeed. It will help him to succeed if he has the support, confidence and belief of the City fans.

The past has gone and it doesn't matter who supported or didn't support who. Backing Mancini will help Man City football club forward. Why are you trying to stir the shit by suggesting that backing Mancini to the hilt is hypocritical?

I backed Allison when he was manager. It turned out that Allison was a terrible manager who ruined a great City side. I don't regret it. Nobody knew it would turn out that way and that's what supporters do, they support the team - and that has to include supporting the manager.

Am I a hypocrite then?

I believe Mancini is doing everything he knows to turn City into a great side. I think City fans should cheer him and his teams. I don't care who other fans have supported or not in the past as long as they support Mancini and the City team now.

It's not always going to be easy. Sometimes the team is going to look poor. Sometimes the manager is going to look clueless. It happens to all managers. By giving the manager our unreserved support we are giving him the best chance to succeed. That's what I want. If you don't want it then I would not call you a City fan.

I also trust the intelligence of the owners of Man City. As long as Mancini is in charge then he is being trusted to get the job done. I think he will be shown a great deal more patience than the putrid media will give credit for and many City fans will show him. It's all to the good because we are on the way up.

 

[BobbyLazarus]

I think it is going to take a few folks some time to get used to the 'new City'. We've all just watched a world cup where it was pretty much universally agreed that keeping the ball beats 'high intensity effort.' Given the short time our players have had together, to end up with 69% possession against Spuds away is astonishing. It doesn't take much imagination to believe that had Silva et al had more playing time together, we would have taken all three points in the second half. As ono has pointed out, Spuds' onslaught may have looked exciting - but it produced no goals. To be honest, the first 35 mins was probably a classic example of why the Premier League is so popular worldwide. I don't ever expect City to produce a performance like Spuds did at any time in the near future. We'll be too busy passing our way to points, titles and trophies. Personally, I'm going to enjoy it as I quite like watching a team keep the ball. I take the point about having nothing forward of Silva on many occasions on Saturday - but I think that's probably down to Tevez not quite getting to grips with the formation on this occasion.
We are going to have a very very good time over the next few years. It will be different in more ways than we perhaps expect.

 

[AustinBlue]

Whats also a pity is City posters slagging others off for daring to question much more long term tactics than simply yesterday.

Or being huge hypocrites by backing Mancini to the hilt and giving other managers no time of day what so ever.

Thats the real shame, that people like that are about.

When Hughes was the manager I backed him and argued (not on bluemoon, hadn't joined then) that he should be given more time. After he was replaced I got to see what some fans had been saying - Hughes was inflexible and didn't have top class ability.

I like Mancini. I like his style, I like the players he has bought. Some games under him have been boring and frustrating but no manager in the world is going to be perfect.

Mancini has a great managerial record. There is no reason to believe he will fail, there is every reason to believe he will succeed. It will help him to succeed if he has the support, confidence and belief of the City fans.

The past has gone and it doesn't matter who supported or didn't support who. Backing Mancini will help Man City football club forward. Why are you trying to stir the shit by suggesting that backing Mancini to the hilt is hypocritical?

I backed Allison when he was manager. It turned out that Allison was a terrible manager who ruined a great City side. I don't regret it. Nobody knew it would turn out that way and that's what supporters do, they support the team - and that has to include supporting the manager.

Am I a hypocrite then?

I believe Mancini is doing everything he knows to turn City into a great side. I think City fans should cheer him and his teams. I don't care who other fans have supported or not in the past as long as they support Mancini and the City team now.

It's not always going to be easy. Sometimes the team is going to look poor. Sometimes the manager is going to look clueless. It happens to all managers. By giving the manager our unreserved support we are giving him the best chance to succeed. That's what I want. If you don't want it then I would not call you a City fan.

I also trust the intelligence of the owners of Man City. As long as Mancini is in charge then he is being trusted to get the job done. I think he will be shown a great deal more patience than the putrid media will give credit for and many City fans will show him. It's all to the good because we are on the way up.

Amen to this. Well said.

 

[Footyblue]

Personally I had no issues with the team he ran out onto the field or the result. I get the criticism. Fair enough. But the journos' field days are just too much. Yaya was poor? Kolarov was dominated? Laughable. Yaya's class was evident. Kolarov was solid back there - far more so than Richards. Silva came into the game pretty well as it went along, although I suspect he'd be the first to say it was a different game than he's used to playing. Spuds were favored. Spuds had taken 11 out of 12 from the Blues. Spuds dominated the first half. But the second half we were much improved. And the players on offer were all very sound technically. It won't happen in a week or even two weeks. Silva, Yaya and the rest will need some time to adjust to the English game, etc. But you could see the class on offer in that second half. We possessed the ball well and controled the tempo of that game in the second half. Yes, we played for a point. How'd a point have changed the league results last season?

 

[Jimma]

When Hughes was the manager I backed him and argued (not on bluemoon, hadn't joined then) that he should be given more time. After he was replaced I got to see what some fans had been saying - Hughes was inflexible and didn't have top class ability.

I like Mancini. I like his style, I like the players he has bought. Some games under him have been boring and frustrating but no manager in the world is going to be perfect.

Mancini has a great managerial record. There is no reason to believe he will fail, there is every reason to believe he will succeed. It will help him to succeed if he has the support, confidence and belief of the City fans.

The past has gone and it doesn't matter who supported or didn't support who. Backing Mancini will help Man City football club forward. Why are you trying to stir the shit by suggesting that backing Mancini to the hilt is hypocritical?

I backed Allison when he was manager. It turned out that Allison was a terrible manager who ruined a great City side. I don't regret it. Nobody knew it would turn out that way and that's what supporters do, they support the team - and that has to include supporting the manager.

Am I a hypocrite then?

I believe Mancini is doing everything he knows to turn City into a great side. I think City fans should cheer him and his teams. I don't care who other fans have supported or not in the past as long as they support Mancini and the City team now.

It's not always going to be easy. Sometimes the team is going to look poor. Sometimes the manager is going to look clueless. It happens to all managers. By giving the manager our unreserved support we are giving him the best chance to succeed. That's what I want. If you don't want it then I would not call you a City fan.

I also trust the intelligence of the owners of Man City. As long as Mancini is in charge then he is being trusted to get the job done. I think he will be shown a great deal more patience than the putrid media will give credit for and many City fans will show him. It's all to the good because we are on the way up.

Amen to this. Well said.

I second this.

Forza Mancini

 

[Blue Haze]

This alone is a reason for optimism: If we had done this last year at White Hart Lane, we would have been 4th. Came up 3 points shy of Tottenham. We'd have gone on to the Champions League by 4 goals.

We looked bad doing it, but strategy can be that way. Sacrificing pawns in a chess match looks bad, but the ultimate reason for that sacrifice may be 40 moves away.

 

[robo the blue]

bobby manc better realise to win games,you have to go and get goals,like the style of mh used to play, attractive attaking football.

 

[Rammy Blue]

To fully understand why we were under the cosh yesterday you have to look at a lot of things...

Spurs were at home on the first day of the season, in the very fist game of the season against the team who they beat for a Champions League place and againsta team who they had beat 12 times out of the last 13. They were also up against a team that hasn't had much time to play together or even train together.

So the idea for Spurs was to start fast. The crowd make a lot of noise. Everyone wants to beat City now. Everyone in the ground is up for it, which understandably gives Spurs a huge momentum lift.

They gave our players no time on the ball, and when they had the ball, more often than not they got it out wide and hit Crouch. This in itself causes problems because of how tall he is. Everything suddenly looks last ditch as we battle to get on the end of his knockdowns before a Spurs player does. It's very difficult to show compusre and retain possession when the game is at such a tempo and the atmosphere is so intense. We actually did really well in this respect.

Then Joe Hart has to make some exceptional saves. 1st from a Defoe shot, after a knockdown from Crouch (which we actually defended ok). Then he makes two great saves from Huddlestone and Ekotto. 9 times out of 10 those shots miss by miles. Huddlestones technique was fantastic, but 9 times out of 10, shots from that distance don't even register. The very fact that those shots both almost produced goals only hightens the atmosphere, and in turn it makes our job of not conceding, even harder.

Now the only real chance in the first half where we were majorly at fault was the Defoe 1 on 1. Kompany and Toure both got caught, and there was no pressure on Huddlestone who played a quality long ball. Maybe Richards could have done better with Bale's shot that hit the post...

In the 2nd half, we performed much better and we should have scored with SWP. From there on, we controlled the game, and after about 20 minutes of the 2nd half possession was something like 63% - 37% in our favour. This impressed me, because it's an area where we'ved struggled in the past. We managed to silence the crowd and we carved out 1 or 2 decent chances. The whole pattern of play changes, because Spurs no longer have the momentum. Bale still had a good chance to win it, and Kompany made a great block late on, but make no mistake, we were the better team in the 2nd half.

Toure looked much more comfortable, Barry looked good. Silva looked decent, and we looked a lot more composed. To me, that's a sign of things to come. We controlled the game for 45 minutes away from home against a top 4 side. Not many teams are going to start like Spurs did, and we'll be able to get a grip on a lot of games much earlier. I saw enough in the 2nd half to see that we're a better side than last season, and we've also got Balotelli and probably Milner to come in, aswell as having a fully fit and co-ordinated midfield, which will probably take a few weeks to fit together.

I honestly don't understand what was underwhelming about yesterday. We took a point from White Hart Lane, against a team who have won their last 8 there. They started very similar against Chelsea last season and could have been 4 or 5 up by half time. It's normal for Spurs to start like that against the top sides. All you can do is hold out and take the sting out the game. We did that and i'm pleased. Underwhelmed didn't even enter my mind.

Great post.

+1

Sums the game up perfectly imo, I just can't translate my thoughts as well as ono.

 

[scorer]

bobby manc better realise to win games,you have to go and get goals,like the style of mh used to play, attractive attaking football.

He knows that and has done that 6-1, 5-1, 4-2......

PS you dont HAVE to play ATTRACTIVE ATTACKING football to win games. In fact if your objective is purely to play ATTRACTIVE ATTACKING football you are more than likely to lose more than you win (unless youre Barca).

 

[Neville Kneville]

Great post.

+1

Sums the game up perfectly imo, I just can't translate my thoughts as well as ono.

We were under the cosh yesterday because we've ripped apart a top 5 team & are fitting new players into key positions rather than building from last season. Because of that we currently have no understandng, balance & lack fitness in key positions. It's a big risk that it will come together quick enough & not put us under intolerable pressure. If it works & we continue to get away with it then fine, if it doesn't Mancini will be gone by Christmas.

 

[Rammy Blue]

+1

Sums the game up perfectly imo, I just can't translate my thoughts as well as ono.

We were under the cosh yesterday because we've ripped apart a top 5 team & are fitting new players into key positions rather than building from last season. Because of that we currently have no understandng, balance & lack fitness in key positions. It's a big risk that it will come together quick enough & not put us under intolerable pressure. If it works & we continue to get away with it then fine, if it doesn't Mancini will be gone by Christmas.

Cobblers.

The "top 5 team" as you put it got COMFORTABLY beaten twice by Spurs last season who finished above us in the league.

 

[Neville Kneville]

We were under the cosh yesterday because we've ripped apart a top 5 team & are fitting new players into key positions rather than building from last season. Because of that we currently have no understandng, balance & lack fitness in key positions. It's a big risk that it will come together quick enough & not put us under intolerable pressure. If it works & we continue to get away with it then fine, if it doesn't Mancini will be gone by Christmas.

Cobblers.

The "top 5 team" as you put it got COMFORTABLY beaten twice by Spurs last season who finished above us in the league.

We were comfortably hammered by Spurs Saturday but had Joe Hart. If Spurs had scored & we had to come out, we would have been absolutely destroyed.

We competed better 2nd half but still only survived because Bale can't kick with his right foot. The side that played at the Lane last season was ravaged by injuries, wheras we had a fully fit 11 (including Bellamy & Adebayor) which could have played on Saturday.

We chose not to play that team & played several unfit players instead. That's the road we're going down & that's fair enough but those players need to get fit & it needs to work quickly or there'll be big trouble.

By the way, why belittle our achievement of finishing top 5? We were there because we deserved to be.

 

[Rammy Blue]

Cobblers.

The "top 5 team" as you put it got COMFORTABLY beaten twice by Spurs last season who finished above us in the league.

We were comfortably hammered by Spurs Saturday but had Joe Hart. If Spurs had scored & we had to come out, we would have been absolutely destroyed.

We competed better 2nd half but still only survived because Bale can't kick with his right foot. The side that played at the Lane last season was ravaged by injuries, wheras we had a fully fit 11 (including Bellamy & Adebayor) which could have played on Saturday.

We chose not to play that team & played several unfit players instead. That's the road we're going down & that's fair enough but those players need to get fit & it needs to work quickly or there'll be big trouble.

By the way, why belittle our achievement of finishing top 5? We were there because we deserved to be.

1. If my Auntie had bollocks.....

2. Not belittling our achievements in any way whatsoever.

As I have said in an earlier post it wasn't the side I would have picked however had we had Boateng available and playing against Bale I think the game would have been entirely different.

 

[Bill]

We were comfortably hammered by Spurs Saturday but had Joe Hart. If Spurs had scored & we had to come out, we would have been absolutely destroyed.

We competed better 2nd half but still only survived because Bale can't kick with his right foot. The side that played at the Lane last season was ravaged by injuries, wheras we had a fully fit 11 (including Bellamy & Adebayor) which could have played on Saturday.

We chose not to play that team & played several unfit players instead. That's the road we're going down & that's fair enough but those players need to get fit & it needs to work quickly or there'll be big trouble.

By the way, why belittle our achievement of finishing top 5? We were there because we deserved to be.

1. If my Auntie had bollocks.....

2. Not belittling our achievements in any way whatsoever.

As I have said in an earlier post it wasn't the side I would have picked however had we had Boateng available and playing against Bale I think the game would have been entirely different.

agreed, get all our players in place and although still a tough game we may have nicked it.

 

[Dubai Blue]

Or being huge hypocrites by backing Mancini to the hilt and giving other managers no time of day what so ever.

You're comparing apples with turnips here though GStar. It's human nature (and absolute common sense) to have more long-term faith in a man who has a proven track record of success than in a man who hasn't. Like it or not, being able to point to a bunch of winner's medals earned as a manager tends to ease people's worries a bit when things don't quite go as we'd like.