West Brom v City Official match thread| Wed 22nd Sept| 20:00

[hilts]

we will not attract any player by finishing fourth

I'm pretty sure I read / heard from a number of media sources over the summer that the reason we didnt get Torres was exactly because he wouldnt be getting CL football. Cant remember exact sources though. I'm sure that was a stumbling block with kaka too wasnt it?

well he stayed at liverpool and they aint in the champs leagues, the top top players want to play for the top teams, it just so happens that they tend to be in the champions league, a foreign player would want to play for madrid, barcelona, rags, ac milan etc... over city, thats a fact. do you think if barcelona had a bad season and failed to qualify for cl but we did messi would come running.

for us to gatecrash this elite set of clubs will take years of winning cups and qualyfying for the cl just like chelsea have done, in the meantime we should try and at least win a cup however small just for the moral of fans and players as much as anything else.

 

[BlueMo']

All this about attracting "top" players,
Isn't that what we 've been doing for the past £250m+ wages??.
Please don't mention Kolarov. Balotelli or Boateng yet
We can't keep the players who are fit happy
If you don't put them on the pitch it means fuckall

 

[chesterbells]

I'm pretty sure I read / heard from a number of media sources over the summer that the reason we didnt get Torres was exactly because he wouldnt be getting CL football. Cant remember exact sources though. I'm sure that was a stumbling block with kaka too wasnt it?

well he stayed at liverpool and they aint in the champs leagues, the top top players want to play for the top teams, it just so happens that they tend to be in the champions league, a foreign player would want to play for madrid, barcelona, rags, ac milan etc... over city, thats a fact. do you think if barcelona had a bad season and failed to qualify for cl but we did messi would come running.

for us to gatecrash this elite set of clubs will take years of winning cups and qualyfying for the cl just like chelsea have done, in the meantime we should try and at least win a cup however small just for the moral of fans and players as much as anything else.

There is no "meantime", there's this season, now, and the games in both competitions are only days apart.
My morale will be best improved by CL qualification. My most gutted moment of last season? It wasnt losing in the CC semi against our local rivals and missing a 'day out' to wembley, it was losing last home game vs spurs - that was seriously painful.

I'd agree with you in the sentence about Chelsea if you swapped it round and put years of qualifying for CL before years of winning cups ;)

 

[hilts]

well he stayed at liverpool and they aint in the champs leagues, the top top players want to play for the top teams, it just so happens that they tend to be in the champions league, a foreign player would want to play for madrid, barcelona, rags, ac milan etc... over city, thats a fact. do you think if barcelona had a bad season and failed to qualify for cl but we did messi would come running.

for us to gatecrash this elite set of clubs will take years of winning cups and qualyfying for the cl just like chelsea have done, in the meantime we should try and at least win a cup however small just for the moral of fans and players as much as anything else.

There is no "meantime", there's this season, now, and the games in both competitions are only days apart.
My morale will be best improved by CL qualification. My most gutted moment of last season? It wasnt losing in the CC semi against our local rivals and missing a 'day out' to wembley, it was losing last home game vs spurs - that was seriously painful.

I'd agree with you in the sentence about Chelsea if you swapped it round and put years of qualifying for CL before years of winning cups ;)

players want medals, you dont get medals for finsihing fourth, also if had played 2 or 3 players tonight are you saying that in september they would be too knackered for the weekend, if so we disagree and no point argueing anymorem where this carling cup or 4th but not both has come from i dont know

 

[persvenality cult]

There is no "meantime", there's this season, now, and the games in both competitions are only days apart.
My morale will be best improved by CL qualification. My most gutted moment of last season? It wasnt losing in the CC semi against our local rivals and missing a 'day out' to wembley, it was losing last home game vs spurs - that was seriously painful.

I'd agree with you in the sentence about Chelsea if you swapped it round and put years of qualifying for CL before years of winning cups ;)

players want medals, you dont get medals for finsihing fourth, also if had played 2 or 3 players tonight are you saying that in september they would be too knackered for the weekend, if so we disagree and no point argueing anymorem where this carling cup or 4th but not both has come from i dont know

I don't agree with this.

It's different for fans, that's fine, I understand that. But players want Champions League. It's more money, and as far as they are concerned, it's the peak. It's above the Premier League, it's the biggest stage available for any club player. The pundits will tell you this, in fact I'm pretty sure a few players like Kaka mentioned this with regards to city this summer. The Torres thing is probably true as well.

The other reason CL qualification is vital, is the income for the club. If we hold any hopes of coming anywhere close to meeting the Financial Fair Play regulations, that 30m is beyond vital.

Like it or not, CL is going to be the primary goal this year. It doesn't have to mean anything to you, but that's what the board are worried about, miles ahead of anything else.

 

[SWP's back]

I agree with him and have been going home and away since 86, maybe I am japanese?

no you just have a lack of understanding about what football is about

Right back at you

 

[citytill1die84]

Hilts ur a tool mate yaya tevez boateng adebayor silva kolo all signed for us and u say we can't attract a good player get ur head out ya cereal mate :)

 

[malg]

People need to behave themselves. Wenger, for as long as I can remember, has put out a second string team in this competition - even in the final one year. They have normally done very well. All it shows is that our second string just aren't up to it. I think Mancini put out a side that he thought could win the game. He's probably learned a lot about some of our up and coming youngsters - so job done.

As an aside, I don't think this competition is worthless/a plastic cup etc etc. It's a trophy. However, Mancini and all other top managers have decided that it is somewhere to blood youngsters. That's all.

 

[LoveCity]

All it shows is that our second string just aren't up to it. I think Mancini put out a side that he thought could win the game.

Wasn't even our second string.

Our second string under normal circumstances would have the likes of Ade or Balo (whoever wasn't playing the following weekend), Johnson or Silva (same again), Lescott, Bridge, Micah, and perhaps one of Milner/Barry/De Jong starting.

 

[EddieR]

All it shows is that our second string just aren't up to it. I think Mancini put out a side that he thought could win the game.

Wasn't even our second string.

Our second string under normal circumstances would have the likes of Ade or Balo (whoever wasn't playing the following weekend), Johnson or Silva (same again), Lescott, Bridge, Micah, and perhaps one of Milner/Barry/De Jong starting.

Certainly agree. Could have had many more faces with plenty of Premier league experience and still called it a second string XI. RM didn't get the balance right between youth and experience. With a squad having the size and depth of quality of ours we should be competing, at least in the early stages, in this competition.
We were way off the mark last night until the last 10 or 15, when changes had been made, most notably Milner on.