CITY WILL NOT SIGN ANYONE IN JAN - STUART BRENNAN
Phone interview with Talkshite ....
http://www.talksport.co.uk/radio/call-c ... ary-185610
Roberto Mancini's son taunts Jose Mourinho about his lack of football knowledge
Roberto Mancini's son has hit out at Jose Mourinho, claiming his father knows more about the game than the decorated Portuguese coach.
Andrea Mancini, who is currently playing for the reserve team of La Liga side Real Vallodolid, told Spanish paper Marca he can't believe the stick his dad takes from some critics.
“I don't understand the criticism," he said. "He ended up winning the Premier League with City, something they haven't won for 44 years, I don't know what else he has to do.”
Asked whether he thinks there are similarities exist between his father and the Real Madrid boss, Andrea insisted there are not.
“They aren't alike," he added. "My dad was a player for many years, and it shows. He has a lot of experience and knows more about football than Mourinho. Mourinho is more of a psychologist, more of a motivator, he knows how to manage the minds of the players. The ideal coach would be a mixture of both.”
Finally, Roberto Mancini's son revealed that he sees his father going to coach in Spain in the future, admitting that "when his contract with City runs out in 2017, he wants to come to Spain so he can win everything here, too." talkSHIT
Roberto Mancini hopes defensive deadball disasters have ended as Manchester City switch focus to Champions League D-day
Stuart Brennan
Yaya Toure returned to something like his best form for the Blues against Aston Villa on Saturday
Roberto Man-cini is hoping he has eradicated City’s set-piece disease as Real Madrid come to town in the Champions League.
The Blues kept a clean sheet against Aston Villa on Saturday, but Cristiano Ronaldo and Co will present a much sterner test of their defensive credentials in a game City have to win to retain any hope of remaining in the competition.
Frailty at corners has cost the Blues three goals in their two games against Ajax, to leave their qualification hopes hanging by a thread.
In all competitions, 60 per cent of the goals City have conceded have come from set-pieces, the latest being Steven Caulker’s header for Tottenham last week.
Mancini’s zonal marking system has been blamed, but the manager is adamant it is the application of the system which has been at fault, with some players being too ‘lazy’ in performing their duties.
“Against Tottenham it was a difficult match and we had ball possession for 20 minutes and didn’t do anything,” said Mancini.
“Then, they had a set-piece and – as happened against Ajax – they scored. After Ajax scored, we started to play, made chances and scored two goals.
“Then against Tottenham we had a very strong spirit, and we were the same on Saturday against Villa.
“We have been working hard on set-pieces, but sometimes we concede when we don’t do something extra to cover – sometimes we are so lazy.
“We need to pay more attention and if we do that, we can keep a clean sheet.”
If he has not been happy with their focus at set-plays, Mancini has been encouraged by his team’s spirit, which has lifted them to top spot in the Premier League.
And with all of his top stars back in harness, and Yaya Toure and David Silva functioning well, the City boss is hopeful of giving Madrid a hard time on Wednesday and then pushing on in their defence of the title.
It was no coincidence that, when he had all of his attacking players available for the first time this season, Mancini’s team cut loose and piled up their biggest win since the 6-1 victory at Norwich in April.
With United losing, that put City top for the first time this season, and Mancini feels that is an important psychological boost ahead of Madrid and next Sunday’s trip to face third-placed Chelsea.
“I think that we have lost points in some games, but with all the problems we have had in the last two months, with players injured, to be on top is good for us,” he said.
“Now we are recovering those players, and that is important. The players get a lift from seeing they are top of the table.
“It is very important because despite our problems we have worked well and our spirit has been good. If you don’t have a good spirit, you can’t win.
“It is a fantastic week for the club and our supporters and I am looking forward to it.
“It is clear that it is always better to prepare for the next game when you have won, but Wednesday is a different competition, and it will be hard against Real Madrid.
“We have made mistakes in the first four games and we don’t have much of a chance of going through but we want to do a good job on Wednesday.”
Mancini rarely singles out players for praise, but he feels Yaya Toure is beginning to exert his influence, now he has the perfect foil in a fully-fit and on-form David Silva.
Former Barcelona man Yaya was outstanding as City lost 3-2 in Madrid, not least when his surging run from his own half set up Edin Dzeko for the opening goal which silenced the Bernabeu.
Mancini wants more of the same, and insists that playing Yaya in a holding role alongside Gareth Barry does not inhibit his attacking potential.
“If Yaya plays the way he did on Saturday, we can win a lot of games,” said Mancini.
“He brought balance to the team, he didn’t lose the ball, and was strong.
“The whole team played well but Yaya was important in the middle.
“He can make those runs from the holding position, but we can’t forget that we have four offensive players in front and you need balance – without that balance it makes it difficult for the defenders.”
Mancini surprised a few people by picking such a strong team against Villa, with games against Madrid and Chelsea in the space of the ensuing seven days. It appears that team rotation has been put on hold for such an important week, although Pablo Zabaleta, Javi Garcia and Joleon Lescott may return on Wednesday.
“The team selection was difficult for the Villa game, but we wanted to win this game – it was an important game,” the Italian added.
“We will do our best now against Real Madrid and then we have another four days to think about Chelsea.”
City will discover today whether Mario Balotelli is fit to face Madrid, after pulling out of training on Friday with a back problem.
For once, the City boss was just happy on Saturday to be able to relax on the bench and let his players do the talking for him.
“We wanted a game where we could be so quiet on the bench and the last 20 minutes was like that,” he said.
“We performed well, scored five goals and kept a clean sheet.
“We will have other games like this, with all our opponents behind the ball. We need to be patient to find the space, and find a solution.
“Every win is important but we lost 4-2 to this team in the Capital One Cup and had a big problem. But we played well this time – scoring five goals is not easy.”
PSG eye Balotelli
PARIS ST GERMAIN are ready to slug it out with both Milan clubs if Manchester City show Mario Balotelli the door in January.
The free-spending French outfit are hunting a striker in the upcoming window and have been checking out Atletico Madrid striker Radamel Falcao.
But the Columbian hitman is likely to opt for Chelsea or City, which has seen them switch their sights to Balotelli.
PSG, backed by the billions of the Qatar Investment Authority, made a casual summer enquiry about Balotelli after Euro 2012.
Yet they hastily backed off when a £40million figure was mentioned for the controversial 22-year-old.
Boss Roberto Mancini has also made it repeatedly clear he does not want to lose a player he has backed to the hilt since paying Inter£22m two years ago.
But his patience is wearing thin with the colourful striker and he has questioned his attitude in training over recent days.
PSG boss Carlo Ancelotti remains a big admirer of Balotelli and is monitoring reports that both Inter and AC are preparing to test City’s resolve.
Mancini is keen to bolster his squad, even though he has been told he must sell before he brings in any big names.
Balotelli is said to favour a return to his native Italy, where his partner is pregnant with his first child.
However, the current lack of financial muscle in Serie A is an issue Paris do not have. SUN
Is this really Carlos Tevez's payslip bollox? By Declan Whooley
We’re not sure if this is a hoax or not, but a payslip belonging to Carlos Tevez has surfaced on the Internet.
As you can imagine it is a little heftier than your average pay packet, though there is something slightly surreal about a payslip with such large figures.
The net earnings for the month are just over ₤400,000 and is dated for March of 2010. Some tweets claimed it had to be a fake as the top of the slip says Manchester City 08/09, but those are identification numbers and coincidentally appear to indicate a season.
What would suggest authenticity is the ₤24 FA fine that has been deducted. It would appear to relate to a yellow card, which is the standard rate for a caution right down through the Football League we are told. Newcastle United's Cheick Tiote has a costly habit!
As we said, until it’s confirmed we will reserve judgement but either way it is safe to assume Carlos Tevez will not be a man struggling for money towards the end of the month like most of us JOE soaps.
Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini says the club will have to produce the "perfect performance" if they are to beat Real Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday. Times
Alan Hansen’s MOTD trolling continues as he mocks Man City captain Vincent Kompany
Last week he took down Michael Owen and Jason Roberts asking “Any of you boys scored at all this season?”, and this week Alan Hansen continued his trolling ways by laying into Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany on Match of the Day.
Kompany was a special guest on MOTD on Saturday night following the Citizens 5-0 thumping of Aston Villa at the Etihad, however one has to wonder whether the Belgium centre-half will want to return the BBC’s flagship show after the grilling he got from chief pundit Hansen.
With ‘Arry Redknapp alongside, Hansen made a point of mocking Kompany’s performance in his post-match analysis of the Villa match.
He began by provokingly asking Kompany if Manchester City are the best team in the world, before he singled out the defender for a couple of comedy clips.
First there was Kompany’s almost own-goal when he dangerously volleyed a ball to Joe Hart. Hansen, in his deadpan Scottish voice, simply mocked “the composure in this passback was sensational… Wonderful technique there!”
Hansen then focused in on David Silva’s opener for City, in which Kompany somewhat fluffed his effort on target before the Spaniard poked the ball home. This time Hansen trolled the guest remarking “watch the movement, and then the hit!”
For the record, much of the buzz on Twitter was in support of Kompany during his cameo on MOTD, and a collection of the best Tweets thereof can be seen after the fold.
LadyArse@LadyArse
Pretty sure Kompany is wondering why he's on TV with two people who've never watched football before
Andy Dunn@AndyDunn_SM
Not sure the three-man panel is working on MOTD. Two's Kompany, three's a ......
Ian McGarry@garbosj
Hansen just asked Vincent Kompany if 'he knew the (Man Utd) result in the dressing room'. Kompany: 'They played after us.' Astonishing.
Barcelona dismiss claims of City swoop
Barcelona sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta has dismissed stories that Manchester City's new ex-Barca directors will raid their former club for players and technical staff.
With Ferran Soriano and Txiki Begiristain having joined the Premier League champions as chief executive and sporting director in recent weeks, speculation has grown that City will recruit Josep Guardiola and make big-money moves for Cesc Fabregas and Sergio Busquets and youngsters Cristiano Tello and Jean Marie Dongou.
Backroom staff, including current director Raul Sanllehi and first team doctor Ricard Pruna, are also reportedly being targeted.
On Saturday, rumours circulated that Begiristain was at Camp Nou to watch Barca's 3-1 Primera Division win over Real Zaragoza.
However, Catalan daily Mundo Deportivo said on Monday that had been a misunderstanding based on Begiristain's physical likeness to Luis Carlos Cuartero, a former player who is now technical secretary at the club.
Zubizarreta, speaking to reporters as he accompanied Barcelona to Russia, where they will take on Spartak Moscow in the Champions League on Tuesday, said: "If we go by everything that people are saying in the English press, we would not have any players left, or even our training ground."
The former Barcelona and Spain international goalkeeper said Tuesday's game had grown in importance after the 2-1 defeat at Celtic in the last round of Champions League fixtures.
"The objective is to achieve qualification as soon as possible," he said. "We need to win on Tuesday to do that.
"In Glasgow, we could not seal it. We hope to do so in Moscow, although we know it will be difficult as Spartak have their last chance to go through."
ON THIS DAY BOLLOX
Saturday 19th November 1996
Huddersfield Town, superbly marshalled by Andy Morrison, take a valuable 0-0 draw from Maine Road as City continue to struggle with life in the second tier.
The team is jeered off and around a 1,000 demonstrators call for Francis Lee to step down as chairman as things go from bad to worse on and off the pitch.
We're Mad for it! Callejon says Jose's men are confident ahead of City clash
Real Madrid's 5-1 thrashing of Atheltic Bilbao on Saturday was the 'perfect send-off' for Jose Mourinho's side as they set off for Manchester tomorrow, according to forward Jose Maria Callejon.
Mourinho's men were in devastating form ahead of Wednesday's Champions League clash with City at the Etihad Stadium and that was without Cristiano Ronaldo on the scoresheet.
Roberto Mancini's men were equally emphatic winners at the weekend following their 5-0 win over Aston Villa but Spaniard Callejon is confident Real can do the double over City and eliminate them from Europe.
'Winning a game like this before is the perfect send-off for us,' Callejon told Spanish daily AS.
'Now we are off to Manchester and we have to take all three points so that we can top the group.'
Real needed an 89th minute equaliser two weeks ago to salvage a point at home to Group D leaders Borussia Dortmund, who can book their passage through to the knockout stages with a win over Dutch giants Ajax.
Madrid can also go through if they defeat City and Ajax lose in Amsterdam.
For City, Mancini's men must win their remaining games against Real and Dortmund and hope Madrid lose at home to Ajax in their deciding group game. DSSC
Police seize Carlos Tevez's £100k Porsche in Didsbury after he allegedly drove it without UK licence
Manchester City star Carlos Tevez had his £100,000 Porsche seized by police after being stopped by a traffic officer.
The Blues ace was pulled over during a routine check on Palatine Road in Didsbury on Thursday.
It is believed he only has an Argentinian licence and therefore is unable to drive in the UK.
His white Porsche Panamera was seized and driven away on a low-loader truck.
A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: "Shortly before 7.55pm on Thursday 15 November a traffic officer on patrol stopped a Porsche Panamera during routine inquiries.
"The officer spoke to the driver and seized the car under section 165 of the Road Traffic Act.
"The driver has now been summonsed for driving otherwise in accordance with a driving licence."
MANCHESTER TITLE RACE
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[/spoiler]BINGO BOLLOX
Money's tight, times are hard but please dig deep because he was in our back yard ...
BINGO MEMORIUM FUND: viewtopic.php?f=119&t=44426 [/i]
Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has insisted striker Luis Suarez will not be sold. "Absolutely not," the American said. "He's a beautiful player to watch." Daily Telegraph
Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers is considering a gamble on Villarreal's former Manchester United striker Giuseppe Rossi, 25, as he bids to solve his striker shortage, even though the forward is out with knee ligament damage at the moment. Metro
Rodgers is also poised to make a bid for Reading defender Alex Pearce, a player he coached during his time at the Berkshire club. Daily Mirror
Juventus playmaker Andrea Pirlo has revealed he was very close to joining Chelsea three years ago when Carlo Ancelotti was in charge. DSSC
Arsenal will not allow Theo Walcott to leave the club in January, even if he refuses to sign a new contract before Christmas. DSSC
Rio Ferdinand is seriously considering leaving Manchester United in the summer, with a move to China on the cards. the Guardian
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson says he would welcome Cristiano Ronaldo back to the club, but believes he is "unbuyable". Manchester Evening News
Gianni Paladini is close to finalising his takeover of Birmingham City. The prospective new owners plan to keep Lee Clark as manager and provide him with funds for the January transfer window. Birmingham Post
QPR manager Mark Hughes is battling to heal a dressing-room rift. Several of the club's senior players believe the new signings are not putting in enough effort for the cause. the Sun
Hughes is likely to remain in his post until at least the Manchester United game on Saturday but further talks will take place this week between the club's main shareholders. Daily Telegraph
Referee Mark Clattenburg will be cleared of racially abusing John Mikel Obi by the Football Association. Daily Star
Sunderland winger James McClean has received death threats on Twitter for not wearing a poppy to mark Remembrance Day. Police are investigating after images of bullets were allegedly posted on his timeline. Daily Mirror
Chelsea boss Roberto Di Matteo may make wholesale changes to the side that lost to West Brom on Saturday by dropping striker Fernando Torres, 28, for their midweek Champions League match with Juventus and adopting a more defensive approach. Daily Telegraph
Di Matteo is fighting to save his job after Chelsea won just three of their last seven games, causing owner Roman Abramovich to lose patience. DSSC
Liverpool are set to offer 17-year-old winger Raheem Sterling a lucrative new contract worth £30,000 a week following his meteoric rise to the first team and full England honours. Daily Mirror
Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard says persuading manager David Moyes to sign a new contract will be essential to ensure the club's future success. Liverpool Echo
American rapper Snoop Dogg, 41, has said he would like to invest in Scottish Premier League champions Celtic, after becoming a fan of the club when pictured with a Celtic shirt in 2005. DSSC [/i]
