Anyone else feeling pessimistic?

[Redna]

Right now I'm a bit worried, since Xmas there's been a slide in form. We really struggle when playing agressive teams on bouncy pitches. And biggest concern is that we don't have any pace in our game especially down the flanks and with AJ missing it's not looking better in that department. But we have been worse off haven't we? It's the Sheik that must consider things. He's the suplier.
We're there in thick and thin.
CTID!!

[Original Dub]

I'm not worried about that, I'm more worried that, just when we were starting to play expansive football, we may be about to go back to the mind numbing stuff we played earlier in the season because we possibly can't defend properly without playing like that.

I share this worry to some degree.

We opened our game after christmas and after couple of good results, we haven't been able to keep the formation together. I fear that we indeed might revert back a bit.

We need to look into central midfield in summer and try and find a true box-to-box playmaker in my opinion. Someone who can help both attack and defence. Easier said than done though as there are only couple of players like that and I can't see us getting Iniesta, Xavi or Gerrard.

Exactly how I feel.

The problem is, this was obvious as hell for some time and its not been seen as a problem by the manager, who still thinks that having so many defensive midfielders is the way forward.

[Michael Brookes]

My concern is that to me our downturn in form seems to have directly co-incided with the arrival of dzecko. As if to say that just as there was talk of the team 'gelling' and getting used to the formation and tactics, the arrival of edin and subsequent changes to formation and playing style has disrupted things for the worse.

[Beeks]

My concern is that to me our downturn in form seems to have directly co-incided with the arrival of dzecko. As if to say that just as there was talk of the team 'gelling' and getting used to the formation and tactics, the arrival of edin and subsequent changes to formation and playing style has disrupted things for the worse.

Rodneymarshitis?

[craigmcfc]

I share your concern Craig. I said at the start of all this that if a new level playing field was created because of us then that would be great. However the new rules seem more likely to protect the status quo rather than allowing new clubs to compete at the top.
Plus I'd also have liked a couple more seasons of having things our own way, financially at least.
I do think we'll comply easily enough but the advantage we currently hold looks like it will be short lived.
On the other hand money talks in sport and it wouldn't surprise me to see us find some way round it.

Cheers mate, I hope you're right. Everyone else on here seems to be wandering away from the original topic

[Piccsnumberoneblue]

I'm not sure they read your original post and just decided it must be that you're pessimistic because we've gone a bit 'Ertha Kitt' recently

[Sideshow Bob]

I think the OP is saying that we've missed our window to reach critical mass before FFP kicks in. I,m afraid I tend to agree. We've wasted so much time and money chasing the likes of Milner, Lescott, Jo, and, to a lesser extent, YaYa. None of these players seem to have the quality needed to play a Barca style passing game that Mancini (and all of us) wants to see. If/when the new rules prevent us from replacing these players with the Iniestas or Pastores that we need, I fear we'll gradually fade away from the top 4 b/c the superior revenue of our competitors will allow them to continue to improve while we remain static. Worse, without CL to offer, we may lose Tevez and Silva. Hope I'm wrong.

[Kladze]

We're talking about one of the most successful businessmen in the world having his trousers pulled down by Michele Platini here. I can't see it happening to be honest.

Having said that, without chumps league qualification no amount of business acumen / deals done on the qt will help us get in the right calibre of player - or maybe even keep some of those we already have.

[craigmcfc]

I think the OP is saying that we've missed our window to reach critical mass before FFP kicks in. I,m afraid I tend to agree. We've wasted so much time and money chasing the likes of Milner, Lescott, Jo, and, to a lesser extent, YaYa. None of these players seem to have the quality needed to play a Barca style passing game that Mancini (and all of us) wants to see. If/when the new rules prevent us from replacing these players with the Iniestas or Pastores that we need, I fear we'll gradually fade away from the top 4 b/c the superior revenue of our competitors will allow them to continue to improve while we remain static. Worse, without CL to offer, we may lose Tevez and Silva. Hope I'm wrong.

Indeed I am and I hope I'm wrong too

[john68]

Craig + Piccs = pessimism = Yorkshire.....They must be making your gravy with lumpy water lads...:-)

The new Fair Play rules were specifically designed to protect the financial interests of the old "G" group of clubs and inhibit the development of clubs like ours to challenge their financial advantage. It would be stupid to consider that they would work against us to some extent. The important thing for City is to limit the effect as much as possible. It has already caused us to rethink our buying approach by spending so much, so soon and then investing on youth.

It would be wholly unreasonable to think we could compete against the very top teams (eg Barca) in such a short space of time, but we don't have to...not just yet. It is sufficient at this stage to compete and beat the likes of Spurs to qualify for the CL and then to have a decent run against most European clubs who are also not in the "G" group.

We must remember that we are still quite new at this and there is still a long journey to travel. Did we really think that every player bought this season would be an instant success? Baoteng and Kolarov may develop well, who knows. Dzeko has still to acclimatise to English football and if all of those three become successful, it may be next season before we see it. Similarly, Silva has the potential to improve even further...and there is no need to manufacture our own pessimism with nonsense assumptions about Tevez or anyone else wanting to leave.

Neither do I subscribe to the negative assumption that Mancini is going to go into full negative retreat and revert to parking a blue bus everywhere. Even a cursory look at Mancini's tactics show that he has fitted his strategies to the tools he felt he had at his disposal. He started strengthening the defence and then relied on it. Upfield, he then stremgthened the forwards and we played more expansively. The balance isn't yet right but we will get there and we we will then enter the next phase of our progress.

We have a good squad that is slowly developing. Too slowly for some but I am confident that it is good enough to qualify for the CL and still push on for a pot or maybe two this season. The end of the City World is NOT yet nigh.

[craigmcfc]

Good post John, I was hoping to hear from a senior member of the board with all their faculties at home

1 out of 2 isn't bad ;-)

[zuricity]

I share your concern Craig. I said at the start of all this that if a new level playing field was created because of us then that would be great. However the new rules seem more likely to protect the status quo rather than allowing new clubs to compete at the top.
Plus I'd also have liked a couple more seasons of having things our own way, financially at least.
I do think we'll comply easily enough but the advantage we currently hold looks like it will be short lived.
On the other hand money talks in sport and it wouldn't surprise me to see us find some way round it.

Cheers mate, I hope you're right. Everyone else on here seems to be wandering away from the original topic

Yeah , sorry I just can't be bothered about this financial fair play stuff. It's not going to be enforceable. I don't care what Socrates thinks either about this ! The argument has been discused endlessly. It's a non starter for me. Platini is wasting everybodies time with it.

More interesting is the decision made in the court about the PL and satellite broadcasting . People buying receivers from
abroad etc and getting licences to watch the PL through their foreign purchased sat receiver ( EU mind) in England.

I heard some of this on Radio 4 this afternoon, Didn't catch it all, but sounded very interesting and looks like the PL might have a problem there. They appear to have lost on all counts in a court decision against someone buying a sat receiver in
greece i think .

Anyone got a link to it ?

[john68]

Sideshow Bob,
Great rant mate but most of it is quite unfounded. I would expect to read that sort of stuff in the Sun or Mirror or hear it on Talkshite Radio.
To even consider we would be challenging the likes of Barca and playing their style with their quality of players is dreamland mate... well not yet anyhow. Those clubs have been at it for years and it takes longer than a few months and the spending of millions to reach their standard. No team has ever found that level of success in such a short space of time.
It is also unreasonable to think that every player bought would succeed. Again, no other club has had 100% success in the transfer market.
It is further unreasonable to believe that improvement is always consistant. All clubs, even the like of Barca go through their highs and troughs, learn from it and progress higher.
What we are seeing now is only another phase of our development. We will continue to progress into and through the next phases and eventuall, after a series of highs, followed by some lows, reach the top.

Our club owners are not "idiot Arabs", despite what the Cawley Town manager thinks of them. Be under no doubt that they will be aware that they have to massively improve and increase our income streams. Some of their planned projects will have an immediate effect and others may take years.
None of this will happen onernight and we have not missed any buses nor had any doors slammed in our faces.

[Sideshow Bob]

John, what I wrote was not intended to be a rant - sorry if it appeared that way. As I said. I really hope I'm wrong. I have a lot of respect for RM as a man and manager, in spite of a few questionable signings he's made.

I also agree with the idea that the FFP restrictions may eventually be watered down or abandoned altogether... just hope it happens before the Sheik loses interest...

[john68]

The rant bit was a bit tongue in cheek and not really part of the more serious post that followed. Sorry pal.

I suggest you turn off Talkshite, bin Sky and never buy another paper or football magazine again. Like it or not, it is they who are the root of this problem. It is their need to sensationalise that demands instant success. They do it because it increases their power and their profit. They have succeeded in convincing the football World that money = instant success and anything less than instant success is failure. They do it in the full knowledge that they are purveying absolute garbage. NO CLUB HAS EVER BECOME SUCCESSFUL OVERNIGHT...no matter how much money was spent on it.

Our esteemed owners are not idiots, they fully understood from the start how long it would likely take and from their investment have shown they are in it for the long haul. The development of Manchester City is not an end in itself but a part of a much bigger plan for them. They understand what they are doing. We are being used for their ends, which I am personally very happy to go along with because it means my club will benefit greatly. OUR ESTEEMED OWNERS WILL NOT GET BORED NOR WALK AWAY UNTIL THEY ARE ABLE TO REAP THE BENEFITS OF THEIR INVESTMENT.
Unlike the glazers who are using the rags for their own ends but who they are using to fund their financial deficits.

[Redna]

Pessimistic me. No f*cking way. Bham forgotten, it's friday night, wife out with friends and me having a fridge full of beer.
Let's roll over the Albion. Cheers m8s.
CTID!!

[craigmcfc]

I should have made the title - "Please read the first post"

[john68]

I should have made the title - "Please read the first post"

LUMPY GRAVY...:-)

[bluej]

I should have made the title - "Please read the first post"

Haha. I've enjoyed everyone missing the point though mate!

[failsworthblue]

Like I have said all along

We will be battling with the spuds for 4th place and that is the best it is going to get.

The richest club in the world and we sometimes rely on Jo and Vieira.

Enough said