UEFA FFP investigation - CAS decision to be announced Monday, 13th July 9.30am BST

[M18CTID]

Too much mate. Yes they are bunch of twats but come on.

True. But as you say it’s entirely possible to have mental health issues yet still be a c*nt regardless.

 

[jim tolmies perm]

I'm surprised at the lack of attention given to Emirates and it's sponsorship deals. Basically it has bankrolled Arsenal for 15 years and sponsored a number of other high profile clubs without so much as the batting of eyelids. An Emirati state owned enterprise as is Etihad. So are bleeding heart hacks such as Syed, who openly admit to being removed from the culture of fandom and hide behind a purist pseudo intellectual aesthetic love for the game, really going to argue that if Emirates suddenly encountered short term cash flow problems rendering the company unable to meet its contractual obligations vis a vis the sponsorship of a sports franchise, that the Dubai govt wouldn't bail that deal out? They would be considered the ultimate guarantor, the golden stakeholder would they not? Is this basically all Etihad did being a relative newcomer on the block ? You could argue that Etihad wasn't in a position to sign off the deals with City but isn't high profile sponsorship the one of the most important ways of increasing global brand awareness? A typical chicken and egg business gambit?

 

[M18CTID]

Exactly what I was going to post. They don’t give a fuck as it’s only us that will remember how badly wrong they got it, the “masses” won’t remember, they just read the latest shite and believe it all.

These lyrics sum those “masses” up perfectly:

We are the angry mob
We read the papers every day
We like who like
We hate who we hate
But we're also easily swayed

 

[kaz7]

For me, this is the most ironic thing about the whole situation.

This description - "One thing is for sure, positions are so entrenched that these so-called journalists are past the point of no return. By lowering the tone to such an extent, they simply have to win." - is exactly what they think of City fans - that we're so tribal, so blinkered, that the club winning is the only outcome.

...but the same thing is true for them. Where do they go if City win?

What can you say when you've picked over every word of Soriano's interview and branded it a Trump/Putin style disinformation campaign designed to do nothing but spread lies, and then it turns out to be true, and just a bloke pleading innoncence before it is proven?

How do you celebrate that the Grubby Arabs have finally been punished, only for the punishment to disappear at the behest of a legal body respected world round and have to go back to work around the people you attacked?

Why is anyone going to take you seriously when you've called fans "Emirati propaganda bots", "Vicious rats", "Blinkered crackpots" only to find out they were right, and you, who filled columns with defences of the great European institution of UEFA were the one who drank the coolaid?


I don't know how you can professionally take a position like they have, without stopping to consider that City might win. Maybe it's an outside bet, but they might, and you've just spent 25 minutes of your podcast saying that the club are acting like the pravda for questioning the sanctity of an independent hearing so you definitely can't question the verdict either.

What is David Conn going to say to his editor if, in 3 months time everything gets dismissed, and he says, "For fuck sake David, someone literally gave you the evidence that ADUG didn't pay the Etihad deal and you never questioned the fact the whole case was based on emails which said explicitly that ADUG paid the sponsorship"?

Professionally, it seems obvious that's not a position you should ever put yourself in. Everything you write or say should be conditioned on the basis that even if it's just a 5% chance, you might be back-pedalling pretty rapidly in a few months. That doesn't mean City should get a pass until the appeal, but don't dig such a big hole that if the unlikely happens, you've blown your credibility as a journalist.

Not one journo has our backs on this,not that i was expecting anyone to, but since may last year plenty have shown there true colours,most of them racist

 

[dennishasdoneit]

Because if we do win, who the fuck is going to criticise them? Themselves? Sadly, they're in a win win situation: slag us to fuck before the appeal and CAS's judgement, garnering support from partisan football supporters up and down the leagues/country who lap up their constant bullshit; then, if we are found to have been right all along, simply ignore the fact they backed the wrong horse and instead just reprint all the negstive shit that isn't libellous, with a tone suggesting that we 'got away' with it.

The real tragedy is that there will be no recriminations, introspection or apologies from the press that have so wantonly and brazenly abused our club, not because we will not deserve such vindication and redress, but because the vast majority of the bottom-feeding ****s all piss in the same pot and have no honour or moral compass. I guess it must be hard to feel any sense of shame when surrounded by those that are shameless.

Correct.Anyone who thinks that the likes of David Conn will be criticised for not researching their facts properly if City win on appeal is being incredibly naive.
Conn,along with others in his profession,are not acting as lone wolves..their media bosses are part of a whole movement,an agenda,one that will carry on regardless. Conn will carry on spouting his shite,ignoring any over turning of our ban,in much the same way that he ignored the financial irregularities that occured at the silly utd spin off club he attached himself to shortly after ditching City at the time of the take-over...when your a jounalist its easy; ignore fa ts,carry on delivering the mantra of your paymaster....or find yourself unemployed.

 

[The Stockport Iniesta]

Do any of these Internet troll journalists ever turn up at city for games?

 

[Stoned Rose]

Now boys and girls. Let's play a game. I'm going to show you an email I've received and you have to guess who it's from.

I think someone has run out of colouring in books PB.

 

[asahartford1]

I don't think they're lead by the editorial, that veers too much into conspiracy, but I do think they place far, far too much faith in their friends' opinions, and 1 or 2 names who have been dug in for a long while have told them their side of things and they've all swallowed it whole.

Max Rushden, for example, has probably had a water-cooler conversation with Conn or Liew and believed everything they've said which is why he'd write a line like this in his article -

There are Manchester City fans who believe with total conviction that Uefa, and the highly experienced adjudicatory committee, are all prepared to risk their reputations with this verdict because they don’t like Manchester City. It is a stretch to suggest the former prime minister of Belgium really is that irked by City fans booing the Champions League anthem.
​

I'm pretty sure Max has no idea who the fuck Yves Leterme is, or how he was at the centre of the controversy around ignoring independent evidence to save PSG from FFP, despite outcry from his colleagues and without justification, delivering a verdict so corrupt that Rodriguez de Cunha sent it back to be reopened because it was not acceptable.

He probably doesn't know he was kicked out of his last job because of accusations of "discrimination, preferential treatment and harassment". If he did, you would doubt he'd use him as the bastion of justice and mock City fans for thinking he might not be on the level.

I would be surpised if he even knew Yves Leterme by name, but his mates Dave and Jonny told him how disingenuous and outright dangerous it was for Manchester City to doubt the credibility of The former Belgian Prime-Minister so he chucks it in his article.

Edit - And by the way, it is painfully funny that so many people refer to Leterme as such as if to say - "This guy is legit! A Prime Minister, City fans, he's not going to be bent!"

Oh of course. Because there's nothing dodgy about Boris, May, Cameron, Brown or Blair, is there? They're former prime ministers, you can't question that integrity. They aren't going to do anything to besmirch their reputations!

One of the biggest jokes is the argument that Leterme is the bastion of justice. I agree that the knowledge of the situation by many reporting on it is basic at the very best.

My point was that some owners of our media want only one outcome, and they have wanted it for a decade , journalists who will give them 500 words agreeing with that view are getting plenty of articles. Of course those journalists have motives which mean that they are putting any credibility they may have had at terminal risk.
Continue with the insightful posts.

 

[SebastianBlue]

Mental health is not something to take lightly, but if anyone is going to have a breakdown I wouldn't mind it being nick Harris again.

Too much mate. Yes they are bunch of twats but come on.

Yes, as much as a I despise these reporters’ tactics, hubris, untruthfulness, vitriol, and the Harris family’s apparent general disdain for the welfare of others — and perhaps because of all of that — I cannot bring myself to wish this sort of suffering on even them.

A mental breakdown can be incredibly painful and destructive to both the person and their family/friends, and I can’t say there are many people I would want to see afflicted with it.

Ultimately, the only thing that sets us apart is not acting as they do. It’s more difficult, very rarely pleasant, often mentally/spiritually taxing, and always frustrating, but being the example of what you wish to see in the world is, in the end, one of our only means of potentially effecting change. It’s one of the truest expressions of agency and compassion.

@Prestwich_Blue’s family deserved that better example, as do many others, and we should be the ones setting it, because we know we cannot depend on the Harrises, Delaneys, and Conns of the world to consistently do so.

 

[domalino]

Not one journo has our backs on this,not that i was expecting anyone to, but since may last year plenty have shown there true colours,most of them racist

Sam Lee, Martin Blackburn, Simon Mullock, Jack Gaughan, Ziegler have all been good.

Just like none of the Insane Clown Posse should be taking irreversible positions against the club, no one should be going the other way either, going out on a limb to declare the club's innocence. In fact the 2 who did do that when City were under investigation, Lee and Matt Slater in the Athletic, got rewarded with people calling them c*nts and chancers for being wrong.

 

[Bandofblues]

Jesus!

Has this guy got so little basic self-awareness he can't see the quite staggering levels of hypocrisy in his own message?

I mean - this particular paragraph takes the biscuit:

For a long time I felt you were a sensible and civil fan, able to look with a properly critical eye at City and of course as we discussed over a period, you were also able to acknowledge City wrong-doings. Propagating garbage about journalists, privately or otherwise, indicates something has driven you over the edge. I'd be happy to talk to you if you have any questions about how this has happened, about journalistic process, about any of it.

Let's just for a moment take him at his word, and apply the expectations he clearly has of others as a basis for comparison against which to judge his own recent behaviour.

Has he displayed so much as a single characteristic from that list in his vapid blogging about City throughout this? Has he demonstrated any sort of 'critical eye' in how he views the process the UEFA Investigatory chamber have overseen? No - he just accepts it and its outcome as right without question. Is he able to see any wrong doing in UEFA's behaviour and how they have handled the process from the start? No - none of it. His view is entirely one-sided, with all the wrong doing naturally on City's side. Is he happy to 'propagate garbage' about the Club's conduct, and the response of City fans to the issues surrounding this case - one look at his infantile stunt this morning would suggest the answer to that can only be an unequivocal 'yes'.

Its not about expecting him to necessarily come down on the side of City on this - but at no point has he demonstrated any capacity to critically consider any perspective other than that which he holds.

Such a complete lack of empathy and insight into the perspective of other human beings, such arrogance and a refusal to apply the same stringent standards you expect of others to yourself are classic traits of Narcissism.

As is self-delusion - and his vain attempts to align and equate his own position with that of other 'proper' journalists - as if he shares membership with them in some sort of a group - would be quite quaint if he wasn't such a raging egotist.

He gives away far more about his own deeply flawed worldview and personality in those few lines than I'm sure he intended - but then I don't imagine he cares about any of that. Narcissists never do!

Or succinctly put - he's a prick with zero self-awareness

 

[JASR]

I'm surprised at the lack of attention given to Emirates and it's sponsorship deals. Basically it has bankrolled Arsenal for 15 years and sponsored a number of other high profile clubs without so much as the batting of eyelids. An Emirati state owned enterprise as is Etihad. So are bleeding heart hacks such as Syed, who openly admit to being removed from the culture of fandom and hide behind a purist pseudo intellectual aesthetic love for the game, really going to argue that if Emirates suddenly encountered short term cash flow problems rendering the company unable to meet its contractual obligations vis a vis the sponsorship of a sports franchise, that the Dubai govt wouldn't bail that deal out? They would be considered the ultimate guarantor, the golden stakeholder would they not? Is this basically all Etihad did being a relative newcomer on the block ? You could argue that Etihad wasn't in a position to sign off the deals with City but isn't high profile sponsorship the one of the most important ways of increasing global brand awareness? A typical chicken and egg business gambit?

It’s always been a surprise (cough), that when talking about City, (or PSG), that Arsenal fails to get a mention, with their Middle Eastern sponsors and all. can’t also be anything to do with also sponsoring the worlds biggest domestic cup competition ...I’m sure ...

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

Have we won yet? Been a bit drunk the last few days and it’s hard to read the thread when seeing two of everything.

You need to take things far more seriously. This is serious stuff. Get a fucking grip.

 

[manimanc]

I don't think they're lead by the editorial, that veers too much into conspiracy, but I do think they place far, far too much faith in their friends' opinions, and 1 or 2 names who have been dug in for a long while have told them their side of things and they've all swallowed it whole.

Max Rushden, for example, has probably had a water-cooler conversation with Conn or Liew and believed everything they've said which is why he'd write a line like this in his article -

There are Manchester City fans who believe with total conviction that Uefa, and the highly experienced adjudicatory committee, are all prepared to risk their reputations with this verdict because they don’t like Manchester City. It is a stretch to suggest the former prime minister of Belgium really is that irked by City fans booing the Champions League anthem.
​

I'm pretty sure Max has no idea who the fuck Yves Leterme is, or how he was at the centre of the controversy around ignoring independent evidence to save PSG from FFP, despite outcry from his colleagues and without justification, delivering a verdict so corrupt that Rodriguez de Cunha sent it back to be reopened because it was not acceptable.

He probably doesn't know he was kicked out of his last job because of accusations of "discrimination, preferential treatment and harassment". If he did, you would doubt he'd use him as the bastion of justice and mock City fans for thinking he might not be on the level.

I would be surpised if he even knew Yves Leterme by name, but his mates Dave and Jonny told him how disingenuous and outright dangerous it was for Manchester City to doubt the credibility of The former Belgian Prime-Minister so he chucks it in his article. "Ha ha ha, silly tribal City fans..."


Edit - And by the way, it is painfully funny that so many people refer to Leterme as such as if to say - "This guy is legit! A Prime Minister, City fans, he's not going to be bent!"

Oh of course. Because there's nothing dodgy about Boris, May, Cameron, Brown or Blair, is there? They're former prime ministers, you can't question that integrity. They aren't going to do anything to besmirch their reputations!

I don't know if you know but Max Rushden and that glendenning berk do a show together on talksport on a sunday morning, I've caught it a couple of times and the pair of them like a bit of city bashing between them, especially that glendenning.
Whether it was the script or their own views it was slagging us off with glee, just seems uncanny you mentioning rushden, who supports Cambridge utd and follows spuds, is talking in the same tones as the idiots Rabin and PB have wrapped around their little fingers.

 

[KS55]

Because if we do win, who the fuck is going to criticise them? Themselves? Sadly, they're in a win win situation: slag us to fuck before the appeal and CAS's judgement, garnering support from partisan football supporters up and down the leagues/country who lap up their constant bullshit; then, if we are found to have been right all along, simply ignore the fact they backed the wrong horse and instead just reprint all the negstive shit that isn't libellous, with a tone suggesting that we 'got away' with it.

The real tragedy is that there will be no recriminations, introspection or apologies from the press that have so wantonly and brazenly abused our club, not because we will not deserve such vindication and redress, but because the vast majority of the bottom-feeding ****s all piss in the same pot and have no honour or moral compass. I guess it must be hard to feel any sense of shame when surrounded by those that are shameless.

If we win we should hound M.Sayed. He promised to apologise if he was wrong, but we all know he will try to weasel out of it. Don't let him. Write to the editor. Give him hell.

 

[city saint]

Not one journo has our backs on this,not that i was expecting anyone to, but since may last year plenty have shown there true colours,most of them racist

tbf samuals has been fair and balanced

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

Brexit QC ffs.

 

[domalino]

I don't know if you know but Max Rushden and that glendenning berk do a show together on talksport on a sunday morning, I've caught it a couple of times and the pair of them like a bit of city bashing between them, especially that glendenning.
Whether it was the script or their own views it was slagging us off with glee, just seems uncanny you mentioning rushden, who supports Cambridge utd and follows spuds, is talking in the same tones as the idiots Rabin and PB have wrapped around their little fingers.

Glendenning is certainly veering into seriously questionable territory. Seems to be following PB around on twitter to insult him. If I didn't know better, I'd say he's almost encouraging some tanked up City fan to take a swing at him with jibes like this directed at a very well respected member of the fanbase. Hopefully no takes the bait.

 

[Bandofblues]

A published football author James Corbett

Well if Rabin is a 'bot' then the future has well and truly arrived.
I can't even get Alexa to turn off my fucking lights without 4 or 5 attempts so if Rab is just an autonao, nonanum, automonamatic, .....fucking robot, then where do I buy one ?
In fact fuck that I want two.

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

He tried that threat on me without knowing I could buy and sell him a dozen times over. When that threat fell upon my hysterical ears, he blocked me, the fat little fuck.

I love it when you threaten to buy and sell me x