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Manchester City's Aleksandar Kolarov eager to get one over on Manchester United rival Nemanja Vidic
Aleksandar Kolarov was able to enjoy lunch at a restaurant with Nemanja Vidic last week, unconcerned by the thought of being a Manchester City player breaking bread with the captain of Manchester United.
The pair went relatively unnoticed, two Serbian footballers meeting up in their adopted city of Manchester, joking about putting their friendship aside for 90 minutes when City face United at Old Trafford this Saturday.
For all of Sir Alex Ferguson’s jibes about “noisy neighbours” and City being a “small club with a small mentality” in the wake of the “Welcome to Manchester” billboard which celebrated Carlos Tévez’s defection from red to blue, Manchester is an oasis of calm for Kolarov in derby week.
Having grown up in the poisonous atmosphere of Red Star-Partizan rivalry in Belgrade, and fresh from three years experience of the increasingly divisive Lazio-Roma derby, Kolarov admits it is a welcome relief to arrive in a city where humour overrides hostility.
“In Manchester, there is more humour,” Kolarov said. “In Rome or in Belgrade, it is different. Here, the fans just want to win, but they don’t think bad. The fans just want to support their teams to the maximum and this is good. I like this.
“I knew Nemanja before I came to Manchester and we are very good friends. We speak all the time and go to dinner together. Being here is good for us.
“But in Rome, when you have the derby, you speak about it two weeks before and two weeks afterwards. Maybe it is the mentality of the south in Italy, but it is very similar to the mentality in Belgrade.”
Recent encounters in Belgrade’s ‘Eternal derby’ have been marred by serious violence, with 5,000 riot police on duty for last October’s fixture.
Kolarov, a Red Star supporter, admits that the hooliganism has become a stain on his country’s reputation.
“The problems are there in Italy and other countries too, but they only say that we Serbs are the bad people,” Kolarov said.
“I can’t explain why it is so bad in Belgrade between Partizan and Red Star. In the last five years there have been lots of problems with hooligans and that means there are lots of police at all of the games now.
“I played in Italy with Lazio and the derby against Roma is also very bad, but in Manchester, it is a big derby, but much quieter than those. If you see the derby in Milan, between AC and Inter, it is like the derby in Manchester – a big game, but the pressure is only on the pitch and not away from it.”
A £19 million signing from Lazio last July, Kolarov has overcome a three-month ankle injury lay-off during the autumn to become a fixture at left back in Roberto Mancini’s City team.
The 25 year-old insists, however, that his traumatic childhood, when he experienced at first hand the Nato bombings in Belgrade in 1999, has forged his character and determination to succeed in England.
“Everybody from my country has a story from when they are young,” Kolarov said. “When I was young, my story is that I had two wars, but maybe you have to grow up quicker. Maybe that is why Vidic is captain of Manchester United and why Dejan Stankovic plays for 10 years in Italy and wins everything.
“It was a difficult time during the bombings. I was 14 when it was happening, but when you have something like that every day, after three days it becomes normal for you.
"The fear is there for the first one or two days, but you have to continue with your life. At nine o’clock, you would hear the siren when the planes were coming, so there was nothing you could do. You could hear them overhead and could see where the bombs were being dropped.
“There was a military airport near to my house [in Belgrade], less than 2km away, and it was being bombed every day. I saw everything. But you can do nothing about. You have to live your life.
"There is bombing, life continues. Bombs fell near my house, the windows blew in, but fortunately nobody that I knew was hurt.
“People protested on the bridges when they started to bomb everything. They just said, ‘Well if you die, you die.’ People slept normally in their houses. If it’s your destiny to die, you die.
“It was scary, but I was young, so I didn’t understand really what it all meant. For my parents, it was very bad. I also have an older brother, so it was difficult for them with all of the worries about the future.
“But kids are kids and, after a couple of days, you just go out to play and get on with your life. When you are a kid, you just want to play football. You can’t play football because you have bombs in the city, but for three months we didn’t go to school and we still played football in the street.”
Twelve years on, battling for local pride in Manchester appears trivial in comparison, but Kolarov insists that City are closing in on and United.
He said: “We have had some very good results and we are not too far from United. We are third now, so we want to try to win the Premier League, but we also have the FA Cup and the Europa League.
“We will see in the end, but we are a very strong team and we want to win things.”
Win, lose or draw, Kolarov will at least be able to discuss it with Vidic over lunch. Welcome to Manchester.

MANCHESTER CITY have taken a £10m hit to dump Emmanuel Adebayor.
Adebayor has joined Real on loan until May with a view to making the deal permanent.
Now it has emerged the Premier League billionaires have agreed a £15m deal with Real that will see him stay in Madrid.
That’s a massive loss for City on someone who cost £25m from Arsenal.
But boss Roberto Mancini was so keen to shed Adebayor that he persuaded the board to accept a cut-price fee for the misfiring hitman.
Adebayor has scored twice in his first two games for Real and boss Jose Mourinho reckons he can have a big future.
City have received a £1.7m fee for the loan and will get the same amount again if Adebayor helps Mourinho’s men win the Champions League.
Real will then stump up £12m in the summer.

NED SEES LIGHT
NEDUM Onuoha is ready to quit Manchester City for Sunderland this summer.
The on-loan defender would welcome a full-time move to the Stadium of Light if the Wearsiders can meet City’s £8m asking price.
Onuoha, 24, has been a permanent fixture in Steve Bruce’s side since his ­season-long switch from Eastlands last August.
He said: “I’m happy here. It’s a great place to play and we’ve got some great fans. I’ve enjoyed every second. If City were to accept a bid for me, it wouldn’t be a difficult decision for me.
“I’m a Manchester boy, but I like it here and it feels like home.
“If they don’t want me, there’s nothing I can do about it.”
Crocked defender Michael Turner is set to return to full training after being out for three months with knee ligament damage.

WAG OF THE DAY


OTHER BOLLOX
Manchester United's hopes to sign Germany international goalkeeper Manuel Neuer could be scuppered after his club, Schalke, opened negotiations to buy out a €15 million (£12.8 million) release clause in his contract. Daily Telegraph

Arsenal and Manchester United will have to smash the British record transfer fee for a goalkeeper if they want to sign Liverpool's Pepe Reina. The Spain international has a release clause of £20m in his Anfield contract. Daily Mail

Blackburn Rovers have opened negotiations with AZ Alkmaar for their £6m-rated Sweden international midfielder Rasmus Elm. Talksport.com

Turkish side Galatasaray are keen on Chelsea striker Salomon Kalou and could offer £9.4m for the Ivory Coast international. Imscouting.com

Roman Pavlyuchenko's agent has denied the Russian striker wants to quit Tottenham, although Spartak Moscow are believed to be leading the chase for him. Daily Mail

Newcastle face a battle to keep hold of winger Jonas Gutierrez at the end of the season as the Argentine midfielder is a big-money target for Italian club Lazio. Talksport.com

Meanwhile, the Magpies have targeted Wolves striker Kevin Doyle as a possible summer replacement for Andy Carroll, who joined Liverpool in January. Caughtoffside.com

Bolton striker Johan Elmander is another forward on Newcastle manager Alan Pardew's wanted list. The Sweden international is available on a free transfer in the summer. Metro

Fulham are among the Premier League clubs lining up summer bids for £12.5m-rated Freiburg striker Papiss Demba Cisse. Daily Mirror

Championship side Leicester City have made a fresh attempt to sign Chelsea defender Jeffrey Bruma on loan after missing out on the Dutchman in January.Daily Mirror

Liverpool first team coach Steve Clarke says England defender Glen Johnson has been "re-energised" following a positional switch to left-back. the Independent

England Under-21 coach Stuart Pearce, new head of elite development Gareth Southgate and goalkeeping assistant Ray Clemence will be consulted by the Football Association's Club England board to pick England manager Fabio Capello's eventual successor. (Daily Telegraph)

Tottenham winger Gareth Bale is a doubt for next week's Champions League last-16 tie against AC Milan at the San Siro after suffering a setback in his rehabilitation from a back injury. the Guardian

Although Spurs manager Harry Redknapp said Bale is not for sale, the 63-year-old believes the Wales international would be worth at least £50m in the current transfer market. Metro

Manchester United defender Gary Neville, who ended his playing career last week, believes Brazilian right-back Rafael is "going to be United's right-back for many years". Daily Mail

Aston Villa's Gabriel Agbonlahor admits he must overtake new signing Darren Bent to regain his place as first-choice striker. the Sun

Republic of Ireland manager Giovanni Trapattoni believes Darron Gibson should quit Manchester United to further his career. the Guardian

Aston Villa's Marc Albrighton says England Under-21 team-mate and Chelsea midfielder Josh McEachran "is the future of English football". Daily Express

The average Premier League fan travels 1,960 miles a season to follow their club, a study has shown. West Brom fans travel the furthest at 3,290 miles. (The Sun)

that wag of the day... dear lord

Wooders wrote:that wag of the day... dear lord

My goodness, yes. Don't know where you're digging them up from Chinners, but the last few offerings have been first class.

I think it's time to take a cold shower.

Wooders wrote:that wag of the day... dear lord

What, this wag? -

David Platt: Manchester City need to be wary of wounded Reds
Manchester United's title challenge is not about to crumble and fall apart – even if the Blues go to Old Trafford and win on Saturday.
That is the warning from City first-team coach David Platt to Blues fans hoping that their team can widen the crack which appeared as the Reds suffered their first league defeat of the season at Wolves last week.
Platt says that the three points on offer is more important than Manchester bragging rights – and that in itself is a testimony to the strides forward City have made in the past two years.
Defeat for United would turn the blip at Wolves into a mini-crisis, but Platt says City cannot afford to be distracted by whatever happens across town.
“We can’t go to Old Trafford, win the match, and then hope that a team which has never capitulated under pressure in ten or 12 years of the Premier League will do so,” said Chadderton-born Platt, who began his football career as an apprentice at United.
“We should be hoping to do something we can control, which is win every football match we play between now and the end of the season.
“That’s a tall order but you take each game as it comes, and that starts at Old Trafford. If we can take the three points we will take them.
“But we aren’t looking over the road and thinking that dressing room,with the experience it has got, and the winners it has got, will capitulate just because it loses a game.”
Platt also suggested that City go to Old Trafford seeking to compete on equal terms for the first time in many years, rather than being the feisty underdogs seeking to upset the odds.
And he says City are also seeking to enjoy the game.
“We are looking forward to it,” he said. “We have a dozen games left and go to Old Trafford thinking we are capable of winning the game.
“It’s a big one and the tension has been building up all week, but the be-all and end-all is that it is about three points and continuing along our road.
“That’s a compliment to where we are at as a football club, that we are not just talking about it in sole terms of it being a derby.
“It’s just another game from which we have to take three points if we are going to achieve what we want to achieve.”
Aleks Kolarov is set to continue with his new job as a left-sided midfielder after a bright performance in that role in the 3-0 win over West Brom at the weekend.
Problem
With Nigel de Jong 50-50 to be fit for the derby as he is being treated for an ankle problem which forced him out of his return to the Holland squad this week, the City midfield has yet to be decided.
But Roberto Mancini liked the threat which Kolarov posed against the Baggies, and the relationship he quickly established with an over-lapping Pablo Zabaleta – who also gave the defence more security on the left-hand side.
Platt denied that the decision to shift Kolarov forward was anything to do with him looking susceptible to pace.
“We need something from within to give us a bit of width in advanced areas because of the loss of Adam Johnson,” he said.
“Adam’s injury and the closing of the transfer window means we have to look within to try to get, not necessarily the dribbling characteristics because Aleks hasn’t got those, the ball out wide for someone who can put a cross in.
“It gives us that width in forward positions, and that was solely behind the thinking.”
Carlos Tevez was left out of the Argentina squad this week for putting club above country.
The Blues skipper was omitted from the group of players who took on Portugal in a friendly international in Geneva last night.
Team manager Sergio Batista said Tevez has been rested as he wanted to try other players, and City were grateful for the decision, as their top scorer has had some vital recuperation time before Saturday’s derby.
But yesterday Argentine FA president Julio Grondona said Tevez had been left out because of his “attitude”.
He was angry that Tevez had withdrawn from the squad which played Brazil in November, citing a thigh muscle problem, but had then played for the Blues at Fulham just four days later.

Manchester City set sights on AC Milan veteran midfielder Pirlo
Manchester City could make Andrea Pirlo one of their top transfer targets this summer after AC Milan put contracts talks with the midfielder on hold.
City boss Roberto Mancini is a huge admirer of the 31-year-old Italy international, who snubbed a move to join forces with former San Siro boss Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea two seasons ago.
But with only 18 months left on his existing deal left to run Pirlo could be forced to consider his options.
The Serie A club are refusing to enter negotiations over a new contract until at least April putting Mancini and a host of rival European suitors on alert.
According to Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello sport, Pirlo is currently on a £4.3million-a-year deal which mega-rich City would have no problems improving.
Milan vice-president and principal transfer broker Adriano Galliani is understood to have held a meeting and Pirlo's agent, Tullio Tinti, earlier this week with the club keen to keep hold of the star.
In demand: Pirlo is also rated highly by both Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid
But with Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola and Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho also keen on Pirlo, the player could opt to chase one more lucrative deal abroad as he enters his twilight years.
Roma and Brescia, where Pirlo started his career, are monitoring the midfielder's current situation but a move to the Premier League after ten years at Milan could be more appealing to the 2006 World Cup winner.

Dickov: 'Man City need to be careful of United backlash'
Former Citizens striker Paul Dickov has warned Manchester City not to underestimate their neighbours in the upcoming Manchester derby.
Speaking to the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast, Dickov said: “United biting back [after losing to Wolves] but as you know in derby games, form goes out the window. I actually fancy city to cause some problems. Mancini is putting a strong squad together and there’s a lot of people knocking on the door.
“Tevez has been fantastic, everything that’s good about Manchester City has come through Tevez, I’m sure Mancini is delighted that he got a rest last night [Tevez didn’t appear for Argentina v Portugal]"

Man City boss Mancini keen on Udinese midfielder Asamoah
Manchester City are tracking Udinese midfielder Kwadwo Asamoah.
City chiefs have been spotted in Udine on a scouting mission in recent weeks fueling talk of a move for Udinese midfielder Gokhan Inler.
However, local sources say the real target for their attention was 22 year-old Ghana international Asamoah.
City boss Roberto Mancini has followed Asamoah's progress since he was an 18 year-old and is convinced he would thrive in the hurly-burly of the Premier League.
Udinese president Giampaolo Pozzo is adamant they're no longer a selling club, though City's spending power could change his mind. TB

MORE BOLLOX SOON ...

Who's the wag??? Kind of like Olivia Wilde except bigger bosoms. By the way Olivia Wilde is single again!!!

YEAH!!!!

craigmcfc wrote:

Wooders wrote:that wag of the day... dear lord

What, this wag? -

cruelly been denied

Fuck off Platt you munich twat!!!! (I didn't read what he had to say by the way.)

Wooders wrote:

craigmcfc wrote:

Wooders wrote:that wag of the day... dear lord

What, this wag? -

cruelly been denied

That's just not on

Let's try this one then -

Mase wrote:Fuck off Platt you munich twat!!!! (I didn't read what he had to say by the way.)

he actually said reasonable, pertinent shit. Like he's been doing for a while now. Go figure.

cheers