do one spafia

[Im_Spartacus]

2.5 years
we were told he was bringing high yield, low maintenance players and resigning exsisting players on performance related deals.
as it stands we have a low yield, high maintenance group
whose fault is that??

If the team had continued performing like it did last season we would have a low maintenance, high yield group of players. We don't know whose fault it is that the first team has derailed as it has but if the change in the team's performances from last leason to this is Tricky's responsibility, then sure, he should either resign or be transferred to only deal with matters concerning the academy. We don't know what's happened though, so I think it's pretty hard to say why we're seeing what we're seeing on the pitch at the mo. Honestly, the change in the team is similar to that which took place during Sven's second half of the season he was here. We know with hindsight that this was an owner related issue. It might as well be this time around as well. We don't know but it could be. It could be Tricky. It could be a click of players acting out (Nasri has a very bad rep from his French national team days for example). Let's see how it plays out and what comes out of it.

I know where you're coming from but seriously doubt that Nasri could be the cause of any angst - he's been one of our more enthusiastic performers for quite some time and he always speaks highly of the club, the fans and his fellow professionals.
I only mention because it felt a shame to see him put up as a trouble causer on the strength on no tangible evidence whatsoever.

Mancini had massive issues with Nasri for reasons we've never really understood.....although how much of that was about Nasri's attitude and how much was Mancini's craziness we will never know (at least til Mancini writes a book about his time at City)

[Im_Spartacus]

You mean the one Marwood set up before getting the exact same fucking SHITE these are getting ?

For once in history City have hit a sustained period of success & what do some of the fucking fans want to do do ? Destroy it just because they think it MIGHT be down to some mistakes by the brass. Mistakes being two titles in 4 years.

Absutely the stupidest most clueless kneejerk fucking childish shite I've ever heard.

I recon some of you lot deserve Swales back & even then 20 fucking years later you still wouldn't learn anything.

Ridiculous.

since they've joined we've not signed a single long term first team regular

we've had two player revolts

we are still fucking shit in europe (a laughing stock....)

they've not built a winning culture at the club and if they've not managed it yet, it ain't gonna happen under their watch because it's clear that the players have zero respect for authority at the club

I'm less worried about the signings issue, than I am with how they deal with your final point. If they let the players get away with it again by sacking Pellegrini, they have failed. If they sell some of the culprits and back the manager, I will have the utmost faith that they are approaching the problem the right way this time.

I think the Mancini issue was clouded by his odd relationship with the players, and so the fact that he was sacked for non footballing issues (in Pellegrinis words) made it look like the players had got a free pass. The reality was that he couldn't have been allowed to continue, and the new manager no doubt wanted to give the players the chance to atone for the season before. He got the reaction in season 1 with a great year, but now we seem to have dropped off a cliff again.

If they sack Pellegrini now, they risk setting a tone at the club that mirrors Real Madrid where certain players hold more power than the manager, completely unacceptable. The reaction has to be one or the other, back the manager or players

If they sack him, and allow these players to do this a 3rd time, I really don't know where we go from there. I admit I'm worried that the Barca and real way seems to be to back the players

[freshie]

You mean the one Marwood set up before getting the exact same fucking SHITE these are getting ?

For once in history City have hit a sustained period of success & what do some of the fucking fans want to do do ? Destroy it just because they think it MIGHT be down to some mistakes by the brass. Mistakes being two titles in 4 years.

Absutely the stupidest most clueless kneejerk fucking childish shite I've ever heard.

I recon some of you lot deserve Swales back & even then 20 fucking years later you still wouldn't learn anything.

Ridiculous.

since they've joined we've not signed a single long term first team regular

we've had two player revolts

we are still fucking shit in europe (a laughing stock....)

they've not built a winning culture at the club and if they've not managed it yet, it ain't gonna happen under their watch because it's clear that the players have zero respect for authority at the club

I'm less worried about the signings issue, than I am with how they deal with your final point. If they let the players get away with it again by sacking Pellegrini, they have failed. If they sell some of the culprits and back the manager, I will have the utmost faith that they are approaching the problem the right way this time.

I think the Mancini issue was clouded by his odd relationship with the players, and so the fact that he was sacked for non footballing issues (in Pellegrinis words) made it look like the players had got a free pass. The reality was that he couldn't have been allowed to continue, and the new manager no doubt wanted to give the players the chance to atone for the season before. He got the reaction in season 1 with a great year, but now we seem to have dropped off a cliff again.

If they sack Pellegrini now, they risk setting a tone at the club that mirrors Real Madrid where certain players hold more power than the manager, completely unacceptable. The reaction has to be one or the other, back the manager or players

If they sack him, and allow these players to do this a 3rd time, I really don't know where we go from there. I admit I'm worried that the Barca and real way seems to be to back the players

Spot on mate

[Beefymcfc]

I personally think that the Spafia (I'm working that it means Spanish Mafia?) were more than happy to see Mancini go and allow Pellers in. Nowt wrong with that to be fair as there has to be an understanding in any walk of life. What my contention is, is how much influence did they have over that season, especially Txiki?

We were all slightly happy with the season (at the time) as we'd made a final, with people still having high hopes after that silverware was well available. However, the rumours, and probably common knowledge, that Mancini was on his way out prior to the game put us right on our arses and we seemed to know the outcome of the game before it was even played. I didn't make the final but a mate told me how bad it was, it was like Huhes'esque, but where did it all come from, surely you's keep it quiet unless you had ulterior motives?

As for the signings, I've said all along, before and they signed, that these aren't what we need. High fees and probable wages for players who are either looking at the end of their shelf life or not quite tested was completely wrong. The 2 ends of the scale are Fernandinho and Mangala, 2 extremes that are far from understood. To pay 60 mil for these 2, knowing it was a gamble was really strange and one that had to have been forced through for the short and long term. In that respect it worked but how much are they worth now, compared to FFP? It's as if we're banking om Du Pont winning the case, even though we were banking on having no FFP sanctions. Where did that leave us?

There's no right or wrong in this, just opinions either way. Mine is that certain people gambled and that we'll take the pinch this year. 2nd would be nothing to be sniffed at, I'd be happy with that considering what other teams have done, but I'd still be pissed at the way we've been set up, and I still can't work out if it's Txiki or Pellers. The cunts!

[Im_Spartacus]

Beefy, I think I share you underlying unease about transfer policy.

The Spanish dudes have gone on record early doors talking about sustainability and investing in players with a sell on value but then go and sign players like Fernandinho and Bony who will be way past the wrong side of 30 by the time their contract is up.

Based on let's say a £30m fee and £100k a week with no / minimal sell on value, the total financial outlay on Fernandinho over a 4 year contract is £50m - or to put it into perspective, equivalent to 1 years sky money at the time we signed him, Whilst Fernandinho was arguably instrumental in our success last season, is his decline that much of a surprise for a 30 year midfielder?

The reason I'm highlighting Fernandinho, is that he most definitely wasn't a Pellegrini signing, and had been chased by the club in the year tricky took over as DOF. I believed that transfer decisions were being made by committee, yet nobody thought to ask whether the payoff of buying Fernandinho was so great that he was worth spending £30m on, when we had baulked at the cost of the deal to bring hazard.

So looking at Hazard, let's say again he was a £30m fee, who was demanding maybe £200k/week. So total deal cost over the same 4 years is £70m. Yet he would likely command a sell on value of £30-40m at age 25 making his total 4 year cost £30m!

Taking this a step further we will have to replace Fernadinho at the end of 4 years ( or possibly sooner), and spend another £30m and £100k a week in wages,

Over 8 years, we would have paid £100m for Fernandinho and his replacement. Or we would have paid £110m for a genuine world class player like Hazard, who would still have a sell on value at 29 years old. (£50m with inflation??) thus a cost of only 60% of the outlay of Fernandinho and a much superior player (I'm not talking about like for like, but you get the gist)

On this basis, I can see no logic in not paying whatever it took to get Hazard, and would apply the same logic to Pogba.

If you have Pogba and Hazard in your midfield, you are set for 10 years right there, and for that reason I'm not accepting that FFP stopped us getting Hazard........we could have sold someone to make it happen and fit the rules. It was the right deal for the club at any price. If we end up with neither, then we have to start to question the ability of Tricky to get the deals done (remember the witch hunt for Marwood on this issue).

[Hazy2]

Back in the day!!!!!!!!

Whatever the truth, that instruction from above to stop the rumours has not been forthcoming.

Even on the eve of the Cup Final, Khaldoon and the rest of the City ­hierarchy sat like grim-faced executioners at Wembley and allowed them to rage on.

Maybe City would have lost to Wigan anyway because Athletic played beautifully.

But it was hard not to draw a line between the uncertainty at the club and the team’s lacklustre performance.

Khaldoon was said to be mortified at the lack of class with which the sacking of the previous manager, Mark Hughes, was handled.

Mancini’s exit is every bit as shambolic. In fact, allowing the news to emerge on the eve of Cup Final was spectacularly crass.

After everything he achieved for City, the history he made, Mancini deserved a better end than that.

[Im_Spartacus]

Back in the day!!!!!!!!

Whatever the truth, that instruction from above to stop the rumours has not been forthcoming.

Even on the eve of the Cup Final, Khaldoon and the rest of the City ­hierarchy sat like grim-faced executioners at Wembley and allowed them to rage on.

Maybe City would have lost to Wigan anyway because Athletic played beautifully.

But it was hard not to draw a line between the uncertainty at the club and the team’s lacklustre performance.

Khaldoon was said to be mortified at the lack of class with which the sacking of the previous manager, Mark Hughes, was handled.

Mancini’s exit is every bit as shambolic. In fact, allowing the news to emerge on the eve of Cup Final was spectacularly crass.

After everything he achieved for City, the history he made, Mancini deserved a better end than that.

My recollection at the time is that a journalist got hold of half a story about Pellegrini a few days before the final and it grew legs. My understanding is that the leak came from Spain, NOT City.

It was a shocking way to deal with things, but I'm not sure how culpable these guys were that someone in Spain leaked the story.

The bad part was how much certain players like Hart (allegedly) were snidely briefing the media at the time

[Tokyo Blue]

Given the breaking of the Kompany-Fernandinho story, the leaks are still going on. Someone in the dressing room needs sorting.

[Hazy2]

Given the breaking of the Kompany-Fernandinho story, the leaks are still going on. Someone in the dressing room needs sorting.

Not blaming Hart here, but he demanded to play in the Cup Final, and Pants was dropped, the week was all Joe, wants cup Final place. Mancini not one to bend, played him. I posted I was on a train to London on the Friday night and we had all heard he was a gonna, even as far as he will not lead us out. I do not know about Spain, but it was right, I see a similar end for Pellers if the club do not send Khaldoon out and quash it rapid, ideal would have been fore tonight...

[Two's Kompany]

I think a lot of the stories in the press are journos just putting pieces of evidence together.
Pellegrini has a 3 year deal.
With 18 months left (it appears) we have not offered him a new one.
Hence journos will write stories saying he's gonna be leaving.
The truth is the players and, more importantly, their agents know this. My guess it's the agent(s) leaking the stories.
The only way we can dismiss these rumours of MP leaving is to offer him a new deal.

[Wooders]

I believe he will see out his contract but won't be offered a new one as there is a plan for a successor to be appointed after the end of next season.
I agree with most others player power appears to be a problem at our club - and that we have overspent to go backwards with the quality of our team - i really feel a solid transfer p

[Wooders]

I believe he will see out his contract but won't be offered a new one as there is a plan for a successor to be appointed after the end of next season.
I agree with most others player power appears to be a problem at our club - and that we have overspent to go backwards with the quality of our team - i really feel a solid transfer policy and a clear out of players is needed - it will mean another dip for a season or two but we need some short term pain for some long term gain

Just one more thing about Hazard, we were on for him he just chose chelsea

[Wonderwall]

Given the breaking of the Kompany-Fernandinho story, the leaks are still going on. Someone in the dressing room needs sorting.

Fernandhino stated it wasn't in the dressing room, the discussion was taken place in the corridor where it was noisy, so they had to speak louder to get heard. It could have been a journo or the tea lady within earshot, it doesn't have to be some one in the dressing room.

[Hazy2]

Given the breaking of the Kompany-Fernandinho story, the leaks are still going on. Someone in the dressing room needs sorting.

Fernandhino stated it wasn't in the dressing room, the discussion was taken place in the corridor where it was noisy, so they had to speak louder to get heard. It could have been a journo or the tea lady within earshot, it doesn't have to be some one in the dressing room.

Vince has a nice piece in the MEN today of all days !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!