Our mentality in Cup matches...

[DoomMerchant]

I don't think its just our mentality in the cup comps. I think it goes deeper than that. Whenever we have our usual spine missing, we struggle. Today, no de Jong, Kompany (for most of the time), no Tevez and no Silva ( for most of the time).Our replacements are all highly paid, well travelled, well experienced ppros, yet have difficulty overcoming very poor opposition.

It worries me that we may need to use some of these guys at the sharp end of the season and I am not sure they can hack it.
I expect players, when offered an opportunilty to claim a place, to grab that chance with both hands.

we had some decent passing today given the dodgy pitch, but i kept thinking to myself. "Strangers...these cunts play like a bunch of strangers."

i think that's the difference. Not enough matches for some, and defo not enough together for most. i think yr onto something old man.

cheers

Oops replied to wrong quote for a moment there.

We had a team full of central, not especially creative midfielders & a centre forward, plus a Jo. We played like you would expect a team full of not especially creative central midfielders & a centre forward plus a Jo to play, on a bumpy pitch. As soon as Silva came on, he seemed to have no problem passing normally & Kolarov seemed to have no problem crossing, nor Micah.

It was a disrespectful, uninspired selection & played exactly as you would expect it to. Keegan's 1st division side would have scored four on the same pitch because it had better attacking players in it as well as pace.

What is it about creative midfield players that Mancini doesn't seem to rate? If you were him wouldn't you have cover for Silva and AJ? he's got literally no creative cover, and it's been this way all season. Sure, TYY can make some passes, and he's proven he's NOT a DM player by trade, but we have no cover for either magician in our squad and i dunno why Mancini doesn't fix that. I can only assume he doesn't see the need.

Maybe Tevez will be used in a less forward role, though if he gets pushes back much more he might as well play in goal in some matches.

i dunno...i just find it another frustrating nuance of Mancini that i *trust* but don't really understand his thought process around the position or formation. Shocking to some, i'm sure. ;)

cheers

[the_georgian_genius]

The reason for this is because champions league qualification is worth to the owners this season than an fa cup, europa league or league cup win. Once we have that then Mancini can be free to pick and choose what cups he wants to do well in which will be ALL, but for now the 4th place is vital and most important.

Mancini knows all about domestic cups, he has won 4 and been in 7 finals in 10 years of management, he doesn't disrepect them or devalue them, he has just never been given an ultimation of 4th with a squad that has never finished there before.

[Ted Hughes]

The reason for this is because champions league qualification is worth to the owners this season than an fa cup, europa league or league cup win. Once we have that then Mancini can be free to pick and choose what cups he wants to do well in which will be ALL, but for now the 4th place is vital and most important.

Mancini knows all about domestic cups, he has won 4 and been in 7 finals in 10 years of management, he doesn't disrepect them or devalue them, he has just never been given an ultimation of 4th with a squad that has never finished there before.

It's disrespectful to those of us who are more interested in winning a trophy than protecting his job.

[Im_Spartacus]

I backed Notts County to score first yesterday. Nothing was surer, glad city didn't let me down.

We are fucking abject in cup games, particularly against lower league opposition. I dont expect us to blow teams away, but I expect that there should be enough seasoned pros in our squad, no matter how unfrequently they may play (only Vieira, Lescott, Richards of yesterdays shower were not 1st team regulars) to be able to count on experience to see us efficiently through these types of games.

Mancini doesnt send the team out to play that poorly, it just seems that again he doesnt have the nous to find a way for us to break down stubborn opposition.

People may comment on Arsenal & United's difficulties, but at the end of the day they found a way to win, they dont have a stupid and unnecessary replay to fit in now.

[john68]

No matter how disrespectful mancini may appear by picking a weakened side, we have to agree that the players he did pick are an integral part of our Premier League suad and are supposed to be of a standard good enough to replace and/or compete with the established 1st team players for a shirt.
That they were unable to overcome a group of players who aren't considered good enough for the premier League is all we need to know.
Whatever the state of the pitch, our players, being of superior skill should have been better able to adapt.