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Ok chaps, a lot of whining on here about the club having lost its soul, everybody hates us, blagh blagh, too much negativity around here for my liking, especially given the massive strides forward in quality the club has taken this season, so i thought i'd dig up some squad examples of old to put things into perspective.

Keegan's Premier league debut squad! 02/03

1 PETER SCHMEICHEL
2
3 NICLAS JENSEN
4 GERARD WIEKENS
5 SYLVAIN DISTIN
6 KEVIN HORLOCK
7 DARREN HUCKERBY
8 ALI BENARBIA
9 PAULO WANCHOPE
10 SHAUN GOATER
11 JON MACKEN
12 NICK WEAVER
13 CHRISTIAN NEGOUAI
14 EYAL BERKOVIC
15 ALFIE HAALAND
16 PAUL RITCHIE
17 JIHAI SUN
18 JEFF WHITLEY
19 DANNY TIATTO
20 CARLO NASH
21 MATIAS VUOSO
22 RICHARD DUNNE
23 MARC-VIVIEN FOE
24 STEVE HOWEY
25 LUCIEN METTOMO
26
27 MIKKEL BISCHOFF
28 TYRONE LORAN
29 SHAUN WRIGHT-PHILLIPS
30 PATRICK MCCARTHY
31 LAURENT CHARVET
32 KEVIN ELLEGAARD
33 CHRIS KILLEN
34 STEPHEN JORDAN
35 BRIAN MURPHY
36 GLENN WHELAN
37 TERRY DUNFIELD
38 RHYS DAY
39 NICOLAS ANELKA
40 CHRIS SHUKER

Pearce's free scoring squad! 06/07

1 Andreas Isaksson
2 Micah Richards
3 Michael Ball
4 Stephen Jordan
5 Ousmane Dabo
6
7 Stephen Ireland
8 Joey Barton
9 Emile Mpenza
10 Djamel Abdoun
11 Darius Vassell
12 Nick Weaver
13
14 Paul Dickov
15 Sylvain Distin
16 Nedum Onuoha
17 Sun Jihai
18 Danny Mills
19 Kasper Schmeichel
20 Georgios Samaras
21 Dietmar Hamann
22 Richard Dunne
23
24 DaMarcus Beasley
25 Joe Hart
26 Matthew Mills
27 Hatem Trabelsi
28 Trevor Sinclair
29
30 Bernardo Corradi
31 Laurence Matthewson
32 Nathan D'Laryea
33 Michael Johnson
34 Sam Williamson
35 Ashley Williams
36 Daniel Sturridge
37 Kelvin Etuhu
38 Shaleum Logan
39 Marc Laird
40
41 Ashley Grimes
43 Ishmael Miller


Some city legends in them squads but realistically we had no chance of winning anything did we, so for all the talk of these teams of city of old being true to the soul of the club, back in a more beautiful time when we were everyone's favourite second club, would anyone really trade what we have now and all the hate that comes with it, to go back to the old days of players who were battlers and over the hill top players but never really were ever gonna challenge for anything, when our best talents were in the shop window prime to be pouched by the big guns and when the most we could hope for from a season was a derby double win against the scum and a mid table finish.

I wouldn't.

It's food for thought anyways and it's always nice to look back and remember legends such as Dabo and Negouai!

give me sun jihai ... actually i'd take 4 of him and play him as our back line.

kinkylola wrote:give me sun jihai ... actually i'd take 4 of him and play him as our back line.

Nostalgia is marvellous - and I loved him like I love Zab now - all effort

But we have won fuck all in the air for years - even with Dunnie in the team - I am really looking forward to corners at both ends with Boateng, Kolarov, Kompany, both Toures etc - we are one big (but mobile) unit now

The other way to look at it is that we have a few hundred active posters and probably less than 1% hold the view that after more than a generation of inept management, financial folly and desperately thin squads we arent the luckiest fuclers in the entire universe

One of them is Crossan and that is what he has done on here for nearly a decade when ever anything good happens to city

The other few - well you know when you get a really easy question on "Who wants to be a millionaire" like which one of the 4 options is a primary colour - and the contestant is from Essex and has to ask the audience and the poll result comes up - Theres always 2 or 3 who answer potato

Bloody hell BB. Just when I was sleeping calmly you bring back the nightmares!

Ousamane Bloody Dabo. As bad as Negoui !!

Patrick wrote:well you know when you get a really easy question on "Who wants to be a millionaire" like which one of the 4 options is a primary colour - and the contestant is from Essex and has to ask the audience and the poll result comes up - Theres always 2 or 3 who answer potato

PMSL!

Its a great point that is made.

If the criteria for not losing our soul is retaining the young English/Academy players in the squad who realistically may get a shout at some point in the season, then we have:

2002 SWP, Killen, Jordan, Dunfield, Shuker, Whelan (6)
2005 Jordan, Ireland, Barton, Onouha, Richards, Schmeichel (6)
2010 Richards, Hart, SWP, AJ, MJ, Boyata (6)

All I can see there is a progressive increase in quality as the years have progressed, and it is only in the last week we have lost Ireland and Onohua, and sent others like Weiss out on loan which brings the numbers level. Yes we have bought in the likes of AJ and Hart in their formative years, but they have the quality to BE the soul of the club for a decade.

The fact is, the club has not lost its soul if its soul is defined by having a core of good up and coming English or academy talent.

johnpb78 wrote:Its a great point that is made.

If the criteria for not losing our soul is retaining the young English/Academy players in the squad who realistically may get a shout at some point in the season, then we have:

2002 SWP, Killen, Jordan, Dunfield, Shuker, Whelan (6)
2005 Jordan, Ireland, Barton, Onouha, Richards, Schmeichel (6)
2010 Richards, Hart, SWP, AJ, MJ, Boyata (6)

All I can see there is a progressive increase in quality as the years have progressed, and it is only in the last week we have lost Ireland and Onohua, and sent others like Weiss out on loan which brings the numbers level. Yes we have bought in the likes of AJ and Hart in their formative years, but they have the quality to BE the soul of the club for a decade.

The fact is, the club has not lost its soul if its soul is defined by having a core of good up and coming English or academy talent.

Top post, masterly put there john, i couldn't have said it better myself.

Blue Blood wrote:

johnpb78 wrote:Its a great point that is made.

If the criteria for not losing our soul is retaining the young English/Academy players in the squad who realistically may get a shout at some point in the season, then we have:

2002 SWP, Killen, Jordan, Dunfield, Shuker, Whelan (6)
2005 Jordan, Ireland, Barton, Onouha, Richards, Schmeichel (6)
2010 Richards, Hart, SWP, AJ, MJ, Boyata (6)

All I can see there is a progressive increase in quality as the years have progressed, and it is only in the last week we have lost Ireland and Onohua, and sent others like Weiss out on loan which brings the numbers level. Yes we have bought in the likes of AJ and Hart in their formative years, but they have the quality to BE the soul of the club for a decade.

The fact is, the club has not lost its soul if its soul is defined by having a core of good up and coming English or academy talent.

Top post, masterly put there john, i couldn't have said it better myself.

I suppose we could take it further by looking at the foreign/non academy players

2002, Schmeichel, Jensen, Wiekens, Distin, Benarbia, Wanchope, Negouai, Berkovic, Haaland, Sun, Tiatto, Foe, Mettomo, Bischoff, Charvet, Anelka (16 who played during the season)

2010, Kolarov, Boateng, Zabba, Toure, Toure, Silva, Vieira, NDJ, Kompany, Adebayor, Balotelli, Tevez, RSC, Robinho, Jo (15 who could play during the season)

Which pretty much closes this stupid fucking myth down. No cunt was moaning when Keegan was spunking relative fortunes on wankers like Negouai, Vuoso etc and filling the squad with utter dross, but the reality is, that squad had MORE foreigners and non academy players than our squad does now, after £300m of transfers.

But just look at the difference in quality.

Anyone want a comeback at rags, bookmark my last two posts, because it proves that the media hype is just that - utter bollocks.

Darren Huckerby. The speedboat without any steering. I used to love Wiekens. One of my favourite players. Brings back memories of the 3-1 Derby home win when him and Mettomo were top class throughout.

johnpb78 wrote:

Blue Blood wrote:

johnpb78 wrote:Its a great point that is made.

If the criteria for not losing our soul is retaining the young English/Academy players in the squad who realistically may get a shout at some point in the season, then we have:

2002 SWP, Killen, Jordan, Dunfield, Shuker, Whelan (6)
2005 Jordan, Ireland, Barton, Onouha, Richards, Schmeichel (6)
2010 Richards, Hart, SWP, AJ, MJ, Boyata (6)

All I can see there is a progressive increase in quality as the years have progressed, and it is only in the last week we have lost Ireland and Onohua, and sent others like Weiss out on loan which brings the numbers level. Yes we have bought in the likes of AJ and Hart in their formative years, but they have the quality to BE the soul of the club for a decade.

The fact is, the club has not lost its soul if its soul is defined by having a core of good up and coming English or academy talent.

Top post, masterly put there john, i couldn't have said it better myself.

I suppose we could take it further by looking at the foreign/non academy players

2002, Schmeichel, Jensen, Wiekens, Distin, Benarbia, Wanchope, Negouai, Berkovic, Haaland, Sun, Tiatto, Foe, Mettomo, Bischoff, Charvet, Anelka (16 who played during the season)

2010, Kolarov, Boateng, Zabba, Toure, Toure, Silva, Vieira, NDJ, Kompany, Adebayor, Balotelli, Tevez, RSC, Robinho, Jo (15 who could play during the season)

Which pretty much closes this stupid fucking myth down. No cunt was moaning when Keegan was spunking relative fortunes on wankers like Negouai, Vuoso etc and filling the squad with utter dross, but the reality is, that squad had MORE foreigners and non academy players than our squad does now, after £300m of transfers.

But just look at the difference in quality.

Tbh I'd swap Schmeicel, Distin, Berkovic, Wanchope, Mettomo, Anelka over Taylor, Lescott, Zabba, Jo, RSC, Vieira.

Ted Hughes wrote:

johnpb78 wrote:

Blue Blood wrote:

johnpb78 wrote:Its a great point that is made.

If the criteria for not losing our soul is retaining the young English/Academy players in the squad who realistically may get a shout at some point in the season, then we have:

2002 SWP, Killen, Jordan, Dunfield, Shuker, Whelan (6)
2005 Jordan, Ireland, Barton, Onouha, Richards, Schmeichel (6)
2010 Richards, Hart, SWP, AJ, MJ, Boyata (6)

All I can see there is a progressive increase in quality as the years have progressed, and it is only in the last week we have lost Ireland and Onohua, and sent others like Weiss out on loan which brings the numbers level. Yes we have bought in the likes of AJ and Hart in their formative years, but they have the quality to BE the soul of the club for a decade.

The fact is, the club has not lost its soul if its soul is defined by having a core of good up and coming English or academy talent.

Top post, masterly put there john, i couldn't have said it better myself.

I suppose we could take it further by looking at the foreign/non academy players

2002, Schmeichel, Jensen, Wiekens, Distin, Benarbia, Wanchope, Negouai, Berkovic, Haaland, Sun, Tiatto, Foe, Mettomo, Bischoff, Charvet, Anelka (16 who played during the season)

2010, Kolarov, Boateng, Zabba, Toure, Toure, Silva, Vieira, NDJ, Kompany, Adebayor, Balotelli, Tevez, RSC, Robinho, Jo (15 who could play during the season)

Which pretty much closes this stupid fucking myth down. No cunt was moaning when Keegan was spunking relative fortunes on wankers like Negouai, Vuoso etc and filling the squad with utter dross, but the reality is, that squad had MORE foreigners and non academy players than our squad does now, after £300m of transfers.

But just look at the difference in quality.

Tbh I'd swap Schmeicel, Distin, Berkovic, Wanchope, Mettomo, Anelka over Taylor, Lescott, Zabba, Jo, RSC, Vieira.

All the players you mentioned from both eras, with the exception of Anelka, would struggle to get in our first team. The quality difference is, even the best of the 2002 squad would be rarely used reserves in todays squad.