Love the full quotes from Stevie in this one (quoted in brief elsewhere)....gotta love the little mad leprechaun! Interesting to hear him saying that the manager has brought in better players with the right attitude. Hmmm wonder who it could be who had the wrong attitude then??
Also, second article that I've read that refers to the Sparky give us a waving, good on those of you who cracked that one off. It's about time he got some love from the crowd IMO.
As the Manchester City coach weaved through the traffic, inching past thousands and thousands of fans in their sky blue shirts, some clutching inflatable bananas, all with a song on their lips, Robinho, Stephen Ireland and company realised how big this season could be.
After all the noises off, the debate about City’s inflationary impact on the transfer market, the “disgusting’’ jibes from rival managers, here were sights and sounds to gladden Mark Hughes and his players.
“When we got off the bus we couldn’t believe how many fans were here,’’ said Ireland. “They were on the street, by the pubs and outside the ground.
“They were everywhere. I have never seen anything like it for an away game.’’ Little wonder. Last season, City were hapless on their travels, winning only twice, but optimism, curiosity and pride sweeps through them now.
Around 7,000 filled the lower tier of the Darwen End, and it sounded so much more. Small club? No chance. After all the nonsense City fans have endured over the decades, supporting the team through thin, thinner and skeletal, they deserve their time in the sun. So when an upbeat Blackburn side began to trouble the visitors, when Jason Roberts and Morten Gamst Pedersen highlighted
weaknesses in Hughes’ defence, City’s supporters simply turned up the volume.
“They kept driving us on,’’ added Ireland. “They sang every single song and that makes a difference. When we were really up against it and we were being peppered with long balls you do start to get tired. Hearing all that noise really lifts you.’’
The songs of praise ran from “Ireland is Superman’’ to “Tevez is a Blue’’; significantly, there was a show of approval for Hughes with “Sparky, Sparky give us a wave’’. Saturday’s victory, and the manner in which new players like Emmanuel Adebayor and Gareth Barry settled in, immeasurably strengthened Hughes’ position, with the fans, with ambitious employers.
On the rare occasions that Hughes feels under pressure, he tends to sit back in his chair during press conferences, as if on the back-foot. At Ewood, after this satisfying opening to City’s season, after seeing Adebayor answer a few questions with his fine goal and all-round application, Hughes leant forward, clearly relishing being in control. Some dark strands are beginning to appear in his grey hair.
Along with respected coaching staff like Mark Bowen and Eddie Niedzwiecki, Hughes has worked hard with his team pre-season, developing a 4-2-3-1 formation that saw Adebayor pulling the strings behind Craig Bellamy, who will surely make way for Roque Santa Cruz when the Paraguayan recovers from injury.
“There will be opposition where we will have to have a real physical presence,’’ said Hughes. “Roque can play the lone striker all day long. What Ade can do is play off people and drop into deeper areas and then go beyond people as well because he has got the pace. Maybe people thought I was looking for two combinations of a big guy and a small guy, but actually they can all play together because they are all quality players.’’
If Robinho was slightly off the pace, Bellamy did well at the point of the 4-2-3-1 system, and even better when dropping back to the left when Robinho was replaced by Carlos Tevez. Shaun Wright-Phillips excelled down the right, setting up City’s opener by tricking Stephen Warnock into making his one mistake of the game, and squaring the ball to Adebayor, whose finish had an almost cathartic effect. Relief flooded through City.
After all the scrutiny and moralising, a false start was the last thing Hughes needed. After all the hype, they were up and running.
If Adebayor’s strike was well-received, City’s second sent their fans into raptures, Ireland calmly beating Paul Robinson, Blackburn’s keeper whose confidence levels seem to have risen under manager Sam Allardyce.
Hughes has had a similar impact on City, filling them with belief.
“The difference between this season and the last is the team spirit,’’ continued Ireland. “From the moment we arrived back for pre-season the manager has been drumming it in to us about how we had to be better and mentally stronger this season.
“He said we had to have a better attitude and he was right. There were some bad habits in this squad last season.
“What he has done this time is get players who have the right attitude. They are quality players of high calibre, but they are also winners and that’s the difference. These guys are inspirational. There is a hunger there and a desire and they have the right approach to everything.
“I want to play with these players. I want to play under pressure. Look at teams like Barcelona and how well they play when they are under pressure. They have it all the time and they thrive.’’
At the final whistle, Hughes signalled for his players to go and salute the supporters. They needed little prompting. Ireland,
Adebayor, Micah Richards and Kolo Toure were already throwing their shirts into the jubilant throng. “Perhaps the kit man won’t be happy,’’ smiled Ireland, “but our fans deserve it.’’
Whether City make the top four or not, and they need better defenders, it promises to be an enthralling journey.
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