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IMO all great teams have a leader, the focal point of the team. I hate to use the rags as an example but behind all their great teams there has always been that one player that leads from the front. I know we all hate your Roy Keane's and your Gary Neville's but you can't knock the pair for how they lead their teams.

I feel that this team lacks a true leader, someone that pick players up by the boots laces when the going gets tough, someone that can calm everyone down when other teams are getting on top, someone to drive us forward when we need a goal.It went to 2-2 tonight and no one grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck and drove us. Instead they carried on at there lethergic pace not seeming bothered. Not really sure that we have that type of player a the club at this moment in time and not sure if we were in the market for one who is out there.

What do other people think??

totally agree. We have the odd glimpse here and there and we have NDJ. None of this is enough we need OUR Gerrard.

Kompany, De Jong, Tevez - these are all players who lead by example.

Our problem is our tactics and the lack of conviction to set out to win a football match. It looks like we have trained our players to be fearfull of being in the lead. We base much of our game on trying to stop the other team scoring even when we need to score ourselves when we are behind or drawing.

Collectively the team and coaching staff need to grow some...

Nick wrote:totally agree. We have the odd glimpse here and there and we have NDJ. None of this is enough we need OUR Gerrard.

Shame that the lad is getting on though!!

There are a lot of things i dislike about City today, Wednesday February fucking 2nd 2011...a lot of them. Lack of leaders is on that list for sure.

Is there any more indication we need to answer your question Andie than the fact that our CAPTAIN -- symbolic as i think the role actually is, it merits consideration here -- put in a fucking transfer request about 6 weeks ago?

Mancini i fear is being found out, and i'll be very sad if he has a shite run of form from this team to end the season and gets sacked, because we'll take two steps back for sure next season...players in/out, new system, etc. Mancini better get his head around this and quickly. This is the most competitive season i can imagine and 4th place is absolutely going to be a challenge.

cheers

It's called a manager Fu.

Where's the Hughes button?

Perhaps.

Another issue is that there are not many players who have been around yet and maybe that's why we do lack the leader? We seem to be a group of mercenaries at the moment. It takes years (and usually success) until true bonds between players and clubs are built.

MaineRoadMemories wrote:Kompany, De Jong, Tevez - these are all players who lead by example.

Our problem is our tactics and the lack of conviction to set out to win a football match. It looks like we have trained our players to be fearfull of being in the lead. We base much of our game on trying to stop the other team scoring even when we need to score ourselves when we are behind or drawing.

Collectively the team and coaching staff need to grow some...

fucking hell man, you were critical over my conviction to slag off Hughes any given chance but you are going for the broke with Mancini yourself.

It's bit tiresome to be honest. As long as we are still in top four and in Europe, I can't understand people doing this. Even the ones who don't like him.

Niall Quinns Discopants wrote:

MaineRoadMemories wrote:Kompany, De Jong, Tevez - these are all players who lead by example.

Our problem is our tactics and the lack of conviction to set out to win a football match. It looks like we have trained our players to be fearfull of being in the lead. We base much of our game on trying to stop the other team scoring even when we need to score ourselves when we are behind or drawing.

Collectively the team and coaching staff need to grow some...

fucking hell man, you were critical over my conviction to slag off Hughes any given chance but you are going for the broke with Mancini yourself.

It's bit tiresome to be honest. As long as we are still in top four and in Europe, I can't understand people doing this. Even the ones who don't like him.

i don't dislike him Antti. But you can't say you feel comfy about Top 4 given what we've done this season and the clearcut chances we've blown due to either selection or tactics, can you?

This team is so lopsided, and uneven it's not even funny. i have zero faith that we can come back from a deficit, and lately we can't hold a lead. The last 30 days is undoing Mancini in my eyes, and he needs to sort it quickly. He even said so in his post=match interview.

It's not a secret, and it's not a group of bitter fans with an axe to grind.

cheers

DoomMerchant wrote:

Niall Quinns Discopants wrote:

MaineRoadMemories wrote:Kompany, De Jong, Tevez - these are all players who lead by example.

Our problem is our tactics and the lack of conviction to set out to win a football match. It looks like we have trained our players to be fearfull of being in the lead. We base much of our game on trying to stop the other team scoring even when we need to score ourselves when we are behind or drawing.

Collectively the team and coaching staff need to grow some...

fucking hell man, you were critical over my conviction to slag off Hughes any given chance but you are going for the broke with Mancini yourself.

It's bit tiresome to be honest. As long as we are still in top four and in Europe, I can't understand people doing this. Even the ones who don't like him.

i don't dislike him Antti. But you can't say you feel comfy about Top 4 given what we've done this season and the clearcut chances we've blown due to either selection or tactics, can you?

This team is so lopsided, and uneven it's not even funny. i have zero faith that we can come back from a deficit, and lately we can't hold a lead. The last 30 days is undoing Mancini in my eyes, and he needs to sort it quickly. He even said so in his post=match interview.

It's not a secret, and it's not a group of bitter fans with an axe to grind.

cheers

I'm very comfortable with both where we are and where we are heading, yes. I thought in the beginning of the season that serious title challenge would be step too far at this stage but making it into Champions League would be reasonable expectations. As always, my own personal feelings towards these targets have not changed during the season.

There are lot of people who mount ridculous expectations when we are on a good streak and overreact to couple of bad results. While my reactions in immediate aftermath of individual result can be bit OTT occasionally, generally I try to look at grand scheme of things. What we had when we were starting the season and base expectations on that. EVERY season we will have highs and lows.

Pigs' scrotums are proper weird looking.

Does seem odd to have a captain that doesn't speak the language. Should be Kompany or De Jong really but I do think people overstate the imporatance of who's captain a bit. Probably matters less in football than any other sport I can think of.

I'm totally with you Fu. We need a Dunnie/Morrison type player (only better obviously)

Bosnian NT coach Safet Susic said that:
Tevez and Silva are arrogant and selfish (after match vs Birmingham )

If you want leader, buy grumpy Emir Spahic (the great defender), fighter and real leader

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iuPxvkA9rc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYqHQmyP1do

That is player for mcfc!

In my opinion leaders have to really deeply love the the club, and i dont think they do even tevez, he leads because he is world class but leader of his team mates im not so sure. You need to either bring a player in that desperately wants to play for manchester city and at this moment only players on shit wages wants to do that and they come for the wrong reasons.

This is why we shouldnt be so hard on the players and the team until we are succesful we cant demand players to give everything even blood until we are successful. Micah for me would be a great leader but does not have the personallity for it... he will put his body on the line though.

Niall Quinns Discopants wrote:I'm very comfortable with both where we are and where we are heading, yes. I thought in the beginning of the season that serious title challenge would be step too far at this stage but making it into Champions League would be reasonable expectations. As always, my own personal feelings towards these targets have not changed during the season.

There are lot of people who mount ridculous expectations when we are on a good streak and overreact to couple of bad results. While my reactions in immediate aftermath of individual result can be bit OTT occasionally, generally I try to look at grand scheme of things. What we had when we were starting the season and base expectations on that. EVERY season we will have highs and lows.

We usually fall on the same side of the fence when it comes to managers, but how in the hell you are not angry about that display is perplexing. We lose 1-0 at Villa, fair enough they played well and we were unlucky. Even if we weren't, the side was right, the tactics were right(albeit lacking a planB) and I think even Villa think they were lucky to come away with a point, let alone all 3. Draw at County, again fair enough the track was a freaking puddle, County would have been right up for it and playing out of their skins and a draw and home replay I would think gets us through. But this game was just wrong, Birmingham played crap and we just let them back into the game time and again, the lineup was wrong, when given a chance to fix his obvious mistake TWICE(to everyone on the planet except for him it seems) he cocked it up both times. Gave us no options to change the attack in any way on the subs bench and when it came to the crunch, he didn't even try...I hope this is because he realised "oh shit, I didn't give us a single option to freshen things up here" and will make the necessary adjustments in the future, but I am not holding my breath.

I am way more angry at Mancini about this result and the Wolves game than the Villa and County games, weird I know, but I was mad at him for his amazing lack of foresight and planning, his execution of HIS duties. If he does all that right and we get beat, fine. When he doesn't even seem to give the 11 guys the tools to do the job is when I take issue.

Saying all that, gotta stick with him till the Summer no matter what...now I've calmed down and am no longer thinking about shooting him, platt, vieira and jo.

Slim wrote:Saying all that, gotta stick with him till the Summer no matter what...now I've calmed down and am no longer thinking about shooting him, platt, vieira and jo.

Just platt, Vieira and Jo for the high-jump then.

Slim wrote:

Niall Quinns Discopants wrote:I'm very comfortable with both where we are and where we are heading, yes. I thought in the beginning of the season that serious title challenge would be step too far at this stage but making it into Champions League would be reasonable expectations. As always, my own personal feelings towards these targets have not changed during the season.

There are lot of people who mount ridculous expectations when we are on a good streak and overreact to couple of bad results. While my reactions in immediate aftermath of individual result can be bit OTT occasionally, generally I try to look at grand scheme of things. What we had when we were starting the season and base expectations on that. EVERY season we will have highs and lows.

We usually fall on the same side of the fence when it comes to managers, but how in the hell you are not angry about that display is perplexing. We lose 1-0 at Villa, fair enough they played well and we were unlucky. Even if we weren't, the side was right, the tactics were right(albeit lacking a planB) and I think even Villa think they were lucky to come away with a point, let alone all 3. Draw at County, again fair enough the track was a freaking puddle, County would have been right up for it and playing out of their skins and a draw and home replay I would think gets us through. But this game was just wrong, Birmingham played crap and we just let them back into the game time and again, the lineup was wrong, when given a chance to fix his obvious mistake TWICE(to everyone on the planet except for him it seems) he cocked it up both times. Gave us no options to change the attack in any way on the subs bench and when it came to the crunch, he didn't even try...I hope this is because he realised "oh shit, I didn't give us a single option to freshen things up here" and will make the necessary adjustments in the future, but I am not holding my breath.

I am way more angry at Mancini about this result and the Wolves game than the Villa and County games, weird I know, but I was mad at him for his amazing lack of foresight and planning, his execution of HIS duties. If he does all that right and we get beat, fine. When he doesn't even seem to give the 11 guys the tools to do the job is when I take issue.

Saying all that, gotta stick with him till the Summer no matter what...now I've calmed down and am no longer thinking about shooting him, platt, vieira and jo.

I was pissed off as hell with the result. Absolutely fuming. Couldn't sleep properly after and been tired rest of the week. However, for me his post-match interview was the redemption this time. Some people have been going on with "dead man walking" crap but the way I saw it was that he was genuinely pissed off with himself and the lads. He got it wrong. Fair enough, we all get things wrong every now and then.

Sister of fu wrote:IMO all great teams have a leader, the focal point of the team. I hate to use the rags as an example but behind all their great teams there has always been that one player that leads from the front. I know we all hate your Roy Keane's and your Gary Neville's but you can't knock the pair for how they lead their teams.

I feel that this team lacks a true leader, someone that pick players up by the boots laces when the going gets tough, someone that can calm everyone down when other teams are getting on top, someone to drive us forward when we need a goal.It went to 2-2 tonight and no one grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck and drove us. Instead they carried on at there lethergic pace not seeming bothered. Not really sure that we have that type of player a the club at this moment in time and not sure if we were in the market for one who is out there.

What do other people think??

Got a mention on Blue Tuesday, Fu!

Do we lack a clear leader on the pitch? Probably at the moment we do. We do have very strong personalities some of whom are very new and they are all jostling for position and no one has yet to lay claim as being outright top dog. I would expect this to settle itself given time. Making Tevez captain was a political move and whilst Tevez is here he will remain as captain. Equally there are enough strong personalities to get us through tricky patches and the team is not exactly a pushover or easy to beat so having a 'leader' is not in my opinion a major issue at the moment.

As for 'the manager has to grow some balls and go for it blah, blah' well Mancini will 'go for it' his way which is essentially a pragmatic one and so far he hasn't deviated from the approach of looking to beat weaker teams and not lose against the stronger teams. That some people don't like it or the media obsesses about it is not going to make the slightest difference. The only man's opinion he needs to worry about is The Man in Abu Dhabi.

It is also worth pointing out that to make the team successful in the medium to long term Mancini has to start somewhere and not looking to get your pants pulled down and spanked on a regular, but exciting, basis is a good place as any. This is especially so if you have an influx of new players unfamiliar to the PL and need a bedding in period. Getting bitch slapped whilst settling everyone makes us look like dicks and will get you the sack. Ask Hughes and wonder why Khaldoon used the word 'organisation' so often when confirming Mancini as manager for this season.

I think we have plenty of players with leadership qualities.Tevez leads by example but we also have players within the squad like De Jong, Vieira(one of the best the premier league has seen), Barry, Kompany and Toure who all have traits that set them aside as captain material.

Having such players at the club has to have a positive effect in the dressing room all those players want to win at all costs.

The likes of Gerrard and Terry are a rare breed they really stand out from the rest.Ideally i would love city to have someone like that.

Who knows maybe one day Kompany or De Jong can fulfill this role for us.