Thursday's B*l**x (updated)
Posted: Thu Oct 03, 2013 8:13 amHART OF THE BOLLOX
Joe Hart's poor form continued as Manchester City's England goalkeeper suffered a nightmare performance in this comprehensive Champions League defeat by champions Bayern Munich at Etihad Stadium.
First he fumbled Franck Ribery's long-range effort into the net as the holders took an early lead, then he was too easily beaten at his near post after the break as Arjen Robben wrapped up a thoroughly deserved win for Pep Guardiola's side.
Thomas Muller scored Bayern's second in between Hart's errors and a fine late strike from City substitute Alvaro Negredo could not put any gloss on a wretched night for Manuel Pellegrini and his team.
Former City defender Jerome Boateng was sent off for hauling down Yaya Toure as the hosts mounted a late rally of sorts, but there was little by way of consolation to be salvaged from this experience.
And after a display that only underlined the decline in his performances, much of the spotlight will be on Hart, who is simply making too many mistakes for the comfort of club and country.
Pellegrini's predecessor Roberto Mancini was running short of patience with Hart, 26, before his sacking and the Italian's departure has not inspired any visible upturn in form.
The goalkeeper was slow to react for Andreas Weimann's winner for Aston Villa last weekend, was beaten at a corner by Cardiff striker Fraizer Campbell in August and allowed a shot from James Morrison to go straight through him during England's victory against Scotland at Wembley.
City's manager must now decide whether to keep faith with Hart or replace him with Costel Pantilimon when Everton visit on Saturday.
England boss Hodgson faces a similar dilemma over whether to drop Hart - who has won 35 caps for his country - for the decisive World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland at Wembley later this month.
Hart was not alone in being off-form, however, as Bayern threatened to run riot. They ruled in all parts of the field, demonstrating the class that won them the Champions League last season and makes them hotly tipped to retain the trophy.
Hart's night of misery began after seven minutes when Rafinha's long pass found Ribery in space on the left. He cut inside and delivered a shot that carried pace and power - but was assisted into the net by a feeble attempt at a stop from the keeper, who got a hand to the effort as it went past him.
It was an error of such magnitude that it prompted loud groans when it was replayed on the big screens and instantly deflated an atmosphere that had been vibrant before kick-off.
David Alaba almost fashioned a second when he again found space on the left. Hart parried his initial cross back to him and the keeper was grateful when the return bounced back into his arms off Matija Nastasic.
If there was any hope for City after a desperate first-half performance it came in the form of the scoreline. Bayern's superiority should have put them out of sight and given them more than their one-goal advantage.
Play mediaPellegrini refuses to blame Man City individuals
City never looked remotely like recovering after the interval, however, and it was no surprise when Bayern doubled their lead.
Gael Clichy allowed Dante's raking pass to find Muller and the defender then failed to react, allowing the Bayern star to round Hart easily and score.
If Hart was having a shocker, Clichy was not far behind and both were involved - and not in a good way - as Robben made it 3-0 on the hour.
Fernandinho was the first at fault when he conceded possession too easily to Muller in midfield. The Germany international set Robben free to beat Clichy with ease before scoring past Hart, who made another unconvincing attempt at a stop at his near post.
Hart at least made a couple of decent blocks, one which saw Muller strike the post from a rebound, before Negredo at last gave City's increasingly frustrated fans something to cheer with 11 minutes left, scoring from the edge of the area with a fine left-foot shot on the turn.
As the clock ran down, Boateng was shown a red card for a professional foul on Toure.
Substitute David Silva hit the bar from the resulting free-kick - but another City goal would have given the scoreline a farcically close appearance given the huge gulf between the sides.
In the night's other match in Group D, CSKA Moscow - who Pellegrini's side face in their next two games - beat Viktoria Plzen 3-2 to join City on three points.
Manchester City
01 Hart
04 Kompany
33 Nastasic
02 Richards
22 Clichy
25 Fernandinho
15 Jesús Navas
42 Touré
08 Nasri Booked (Milner - 70' Booked )
16 Agüero Booked (Silva - 70' )
10 Dzeko (Negredo - 57' )
Substitutes
09 Negredo
06 Lescott
05 Zabaleta
21 Silva
30 Pantilimon
14 Javi García
07 Milner
Bayern Munich
01 Neuer
17 Boateng Dismissed
04 Dante
27 Alaba
13 Rafinha
39 Kroos Booked
31 Schweinsteiger (Kirchhoff - 76' )
21 Lahm
07 Ribéry (Götze - 85' )
10 Robben (Shaqiri - 78' )
25 Müller
Substitutes
26 Contento
15 Kirchhoff
05 van Buyten
19 Götze
09 Mandzukic
22 Starke
11 Shaqiri
Ref: Bjorn Kuipers
JOHN68 GOLDEN BOLLOX - 3rd October 1896
A crowd estimated at more than 20,000 gather at Hyde Road to see City draw 0-0 with Division Two leaders Newton Heath, preserving their unbeaten start to the season. Sam Ormerod’s side will eventually finish sixth.
Gary Neville criticises Joe Hart after Champions League calamity
• England coach Neville says Hart needs to do better • Manuel Pellegrini refuses to criticise goalkeeper
Joe Hart was criticised by Gary Neville, a member of England's coaching staff, for the errors that allowed Bayern Munich to score their first and third goals in their 3-1 defeat of Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
Neville's assessment could have implications for Hart's status as the international No1 before the World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland.
After Hart allowed Franck Ribéry's seventh-minute long-range shot to go in off a forearm, Neville said: "It's the power of the shot. He's got to do better there, Joe Hart, beaten at his near post. It just goes through his hand. It's not the start Manchester City wanted or the goalkeeper."
Of Arjen Robben's goal on 60 minutes, which was again from range and beat Hart on his near side, Neville said: "You have to say Joe Hart's got to do better again at that near post. That's twice he's been beaten there tonight. He'll be disappointed again."
Roy Hodgson is bound to be asked at length about his confidence in Hart at Thursday's media briefing but Manuel Pellegrini refused to criticise the goalkeeper.
"Of course, I'm worried about the mistakes," City's manager said. "But I think that was not an easy game. We played against a very strong team. But our performance was not the way we are playing. It is important to think about the future and what the solutions are. I will talk about the team, not individual players. We played really badly. Not the team we see every week in the Premier League."
The defeat leaves City with three points in Group D, having defeated Viktoria Plzen in the opening game, going into home-and-away meetings with CSKA Moscow. Of the reverse to Bayern, which featured a late Álvaro Negredo consolation, Pellegrini added: "I think we started playing well but after the first goal our team felt the goal and started losing the ball. That is very dangerous against this team. The second half we improved with the changes.
"Of course, I was surprised by the game we played today. The goal from Negredo was a little thing in the end of the match."
Robben described his side's victory as surprisingly easy. "The first 70 minutes we played some terrific football," said the winger. "We were so dominant against a big team in Europe. We didn't expect an easy game like that. It is a compliment to our team but we expected more from City.
"We didn't give them any space, we pressed them right up to the goalkeeper and they just kicked it away. Sometimes they gave us too much space and we used the space well."
meanwhile in the other group match ...
[youtube]JS-91dtqGHY[/youtube]
... so Hart ain't that bad just yet!
Arjen Robben: Beating Manchester City was easy
Arjen Robben has rubbed salt in the wounds of Manchester City, dubbing Bayern Munich’s Champions League victory as ‘easy’.
The Dutch winger scored a fine solo effort for Bayern in last night’s 3-1 win, adding to earlier strikes from Franck Ribery and Thomas Muller.
Alvaro Negredo pulled one back for the hosts, but the manner of the defeat left Robben questioning City’s potential to challenge at the very top level.
‘We were so dominant against such a big team in Europe – I think we also didn’t expect an easy game like that,’ he said.
‘I think it’s a big compliment to our team, but I also expected a little bit more from City.
‘We didn’t give them any space, we pressed them forwards. Sometimes they gave us a little bit too much space, and I think we are a team that can use the space very well.
‘City weren’t as organised defensively as we had expected and we used the space they offered us clinically. There were some attacks of ours that simply were fantastically executed.’
150 FA TUBE MAP BOLLOX
Lots of current and ex City players feature on this. I think we have the most keepers represented by a mile!
http://img.metro.co.uk/i/pix/2013/10/Tube%20Map.jpg
[spoiler]
[/spoiler]
Italian champions Juventus are targeting Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku, 20, who is on a season-long loan at Everton. Daily Mirror
Arsenal and Manchester City face a battle to convince 24-year-old forward Marco Reus to leave Borussia Dortmund, according to the German side's chief executive. Daily Star
Manchester United midfielder Adnan Januzaj's agent has confirmed that "several European clubs" are interested in signing the 18-year-old after talks on extending his contract at Old Trafford stalled. Juventus and Manchester City are among those monitoring the Belgian. DSSC
Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, 26, is still determined to leave Anfield and believes a £41m deal to replace the out-of-form Karim Benzema at Real Madrid could be sealed in January. Intereconomia
Chelsea could move for France international Benzema, 25, in January according to reports in Portugal. Daily Express
Out-of-favour Blues midfielder Kevin De Bruyne, 22, is a target of his former club Werder Bremen. Sun
Borussia Dortmund are lining up a January move to re-sign Manchester United's 24-year-old midfielder Shinji Kagawa. Metro
Steve McClaren is set to make Manchester United defender Michael Keane, 20, his first signing as Derby manager in a loan deal. Sun
Arsenal are preparing formal discussions with manager Arsene Wenger, 63, over a new three-year contract worth £8m per season. DSSC
West Ham midfielder Ravel Morrison, 20, will earn a first call-up into the England Under-21 squad for the European Under-21 Championship qualifying matches away to San Marino and at home to Lithuania. Times
Contrary to rumours on the internet, Newcastle boss Alan Pardew did not offer his resignation to club owner Mike Ashley in the wake of Monday's 3-2 defeat by Everton. The Chronicle
Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale, 24, is set to be out for three weeks as he hopes to overcome a thigh injury in time for the season's first El Clasico against Barcelona at the end of October. DSSC
Birmingham City owner Carson Yeung is "personally' involved in preliminary talks to sell the cash-strapped Championship club, acting chairman Peter Pannu has revealed. Birmingham Mail
Jake Livermore has backed Hull team-mate Tom Huddlestone, 26, to make a return to the England fold and add to the fourth cap he won against Sweden in November. Hull DSSC
England's vital World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland at Wembley have yet to sell out, but the Football Association is confident the remaining tickets will be bought. Daily Telegraph
Danny Welbeck, who scored in Manchester United's 1-1 Champions League draw against Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday, almost never made it to Ukraine after the United bus left the their Carrington training base without the 22-year-old. Manchester United Evening News
The Football Association has launched a new Tube map that features players instead of stations and lines such as 'the full-back line'. Metro
more bollox soon
Joe Hart's poor form continued as Manchester City's England goalkeeper suffered a nightmare performance in this comprehensive Champions League defeat by champions Bayern Munich at Etihad Stadium.
First he fumbled Franck Ribery's long-range effort into the net as the holders took an early lead, then he was too easily beaten at his near post after the break as Arjen Robben wrapped up a thoroughly deserved win for Pep Guardiola's side.
Thomas Muller scored Bayern's second in between Hart's errors and a fine late strike from City substitute Alvaro Negredo could not put any gloss on a wretched night for Manuel Pellegrini and his team.
Former City defender Jerome Boateng was sent off for hauling down Yaya Toure as the hosts mounted a late rally of sorts, but there was little by way of consolation to be salvaged from this experience.
And after a display that only underlined the decline in his performances, much of the spotlight will be on Hart, who is simply making too many mistakes for the comfort of club and country.
Pellegrini's predecessor Roberto Mancini was running short of patience with Hart, 26, before his sacking and the Italian's departure has not inspired any visible upturn in form.
The goalkeeper was slow to react for Andreas Weimann's winner for Aston Villa last weekend, was beaten at a corner by Cardiff striker Fraizer Campbell in August and allowed a shot from James Morrison to go straight through him during England's victory against Scotland at Wembley.
City's manager must now decide whether to keep faith with Hart or replace him with Costel Pantilimon when Everton visit on Saturday.
England boss Hodgson faces a similar dilemma over whether to drop Hart - who has won 35 caps for his country - for the decisive World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland at Wembley later this month.
Hart was not alone in being off-form, however, as Bayern threatened to run riot. They ruled in all parts of the field, demonstrating the class that won them the Champions League last season and makes them hotly tipped to retain the trophy.
Hart's night of misery began after seven minutes when Rafinha's long pass found Ribery in space on the left. He cut inside and delivered a shot that carried pace and power - but was assisted into the net by a feeble attempt at a stop from the keeper, who got a hand to the effort as it went past him.
It was an error of such magnitude that it prompted loud groans when it was replayed on the big screens and instantly deflated an atmosphere that had been vibrant before kick-off.
David Alaba almost fashioned a second when he again found space on the left. Hart parried his initial cross back to him and the keeper was grateful when the return bounced back into his arms off Matija Nastasic.
If there was any hope for City after a desperate first-half performance it came in the form of the scoreline. Bayern's superiority should have put them out of sight and given them more than their one-goal advantage.
Play mediaPellegrini refuses to blame Man City individuals
City never looked remotely like recovering after the interval, however, and it was no surprise when Bayern doubled their lead.
Gael Clichy allowed Dante's raking pass to find Muller and the defender then failed to react, allowing the Bayern star to round Hart easily and score.
If Hart was having a shocker, Clichy was not far behind and both were involved - and not in a good way - as Robben made it 3-0 on the hour.
Fernandinho was the first at fault when he conceded possession too easily to Muller in midfield. The Germany international set Robben free to beat Clichy with ease before scoring past Hart, who made another unconvincing attempt at a stop at his near post.
Hart at least made a couple of decent blocks, one which saw Muller strike the post from a rebound, before Negredo at last gave City's increasingly frustrated fans something to cheer with 11 minutes left, scoring from the edge of the area with a fine left-foot shot on the turn.
As the clock ran down, Boateng was shown a red card for a professional foul on Toure.
Substitute David Silva hit the bar from the resulting free-kick - but another City goal would have given the scoreline a farcically close appearance given the huge gulf between the sides.
In the night's other match in Group D, CSKA Moscow - who Pellegrini's side face in their next two games - beat Viktoria Plzen 3-2 to join City on three points.
Manchester City
01 Hart
04 Kompany
33 Nastasic
02 Richards
22 Clichy
25 Fernandinho
15 Jesús Navas
42 Touré
08 Nasri Booked (Milner - 70' Booked )
16 Agüero Booked (Silva - 70' )
10 Dzeko (Negredo - 57' )
Substitutes
09 Negredo
06 Lescott
05 Zabaleta
21 Silva
30 Pantilimon
14 Javi García
07 Milner
Bayern Munich
01 Neuer
17 Boateng Dismissed
04 Dante
27 Alaba
13 Rafinha
39 Kroos Booked
31 Schweinsteiger (Kirchhoff - 76' )
21 Lahm
07 Ribéry (Götze - 85' )
10 Robben (Shaqiri - 78' )
25 Müller
Substitutes
26 Contento
15 Kirchhoff
05 van Buyten
19 Götze
09 Mandzukic
22 Starke
11 Shaqiri
Ref: Bjorn Kuipers
JOHN68 GOLDEN BOLLOX - 3rd October 1896
A crowd estimated at more than 20,000 gather at Hyde Road to see City draw 0-0 with Division Two leaders Newton Heath, preserving their unbeaten start to the season. Sam Ormerod’s side will eventually finish sixth.
Gary Neville criticises Joe Hart after Champions League calamity
• England coach Neville says Hart needs to do better • Manuel Pellegrini refuses to criticise goalkeeper
Joe Hart was criticised by Gary Neville, a member of England's coaching staff, for the errors that allowed Bayern Munich to score their first and third goals in their 3-1 defeat of Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
Neville's assessment could have implications for Hart's status as the international No1 before the World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland.
After Hart allowed Franck Ribéry's seventh-minute long-range shot to go in off a forearm, Neville said: "It's the power of the shot. He's got to do better there, Joe Hart, beaten at his near post. It just goes through his hand. It's not the start Manchester City wanted or the goalkeeper."
Of Arjen Robben's goal on 60 minutes, which was again from range and beat Hart on his near side, Neville said: "You have to say Joe Hart's got to do better again at that near post. That's twice he's been beaten there tonight. He'll be disappointed again."
Roy Hodgson is bound to be asked at length about his confidence in Hart at Thursday's media briefing but Manuel Pellegrini refused to criticise the goalkeeper.
"Of course, I'm worried about the mistakes," City's manager said. "But I think that was not an easy game. We played against a very strong team. But our performance was not the way we are playing. It is important to think about the future and what the solutions are. I will talk about the team, not individual players. We played really badly. Not the team we see every week in the Premier League."
The defeat leaves City with three points in Group D, having defeated Viktoria Plzen in the opening game, going into home-and-away meetings with CSKA Moscow. Of the reverse to Bayern, which featured a late Álvaro Negredo consolation, Pellegrini added: "I think we started playing well but after the first goal our team felt the goal and started losing the ball. That is very dangerous against this team. The second half we improved with the changes.
"Of course, I was surprised by the game we played today. The goal from Negredo was a little thing in the end of the match."
Robben described his side's victory as surprisingly easy. "The first 70 minutes we played some terrific football," said the winger. "We were so dominant against a big team in Europe. We didn't expect an easy game like that. It is a compliment to our team but we expected more from City.
"We didn't give them any space, we pressed them right up to the goalkeeper and they just kicked it away. Sometimes they gave us too much space and we used the space well."
meanwhile in the other group match ...
[youtube]JS-91dtqGHY[/youtube]
... so Hart ain't that bad just yet!
Arjen Robben: Beating Manchester City was easy
Arjen Robben has rubbed salt in the wounds of Manchester City, dubbing Bayern Munich’s Champions League victory as ‘easy’.
The Dutch winger scored a fine solo effort for Bayern in last night’s 3-1 win, adding to earlier strikes from Franck Ribery and Thomas Muller.
Alvaro Negredo pulled one back for the hosts, but the manner of the defeat left Robben questioning City’s potential to challenge at the very top level.
‘We were so dominant against such a big team in Europe – I think we also didn’t expect an easy game like that,’ he said.
‘I think it’s a big compliment to our team, but I also expected a little bit more from City.
‘We didn’t give them any space, we pressed them forwards. Sometimes they gave us a little bit too much space, and I think we are a team that can use the space very well.
‘City weren’t as organised defensively as we had expected and we used the space they offered us clinically. There were some attacks of ours that simply were fantastically executed.’
150 FA TUBE MAP BOLLOX
Lots of current and ex City players feature on this. I think we have the most keepers represented by a mile!
http://img.metro.co.uk/i/pix/2013/10/Tube%20Map.jpg
[spoiler]
[/spoiler]Italian champions Juventus are targeting Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku, 20, who is on a season-long loan at Everton. Daily Mirror
Arsenal and Manchester City face a battle to convince 24-year-old forward Marco Reus to leave Borussia Dortmund, according to the German side's chief executive. Daily Star
Manchester United midfielder Adnan Januzaj's agent has confirmed that "several European clubs" are interested in signing the 18-year-old after talks on extending his contract at Old Trafford stalled. Juventus and Manchester City are among those monitoring the Belgian. DSSC
Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, 26, is still determined to leave Anfield and believes a £41m deal to replace the out-of-form Karim Benzema at Real Madrid could be sealed in January. Intereconomia
Chelsea could move for France international Benzema, 25, in January according to reports in Portugal. Daily Express
Out-of-favour Blues midfielder Kevin De Bruyne, 22, is a target of his former club Werder Bremen. Sun
Borussia Dortmund are lining up a January move to re-sign Manchester United's 24-year-old midfielder Shinji Kagawa. Metro
Steve McClaren is set to make Manchester United defender Michael Keane, 20, his first signing as Derby manager in a loan deal. Sun
Arsenal are preparing formal discussions with manager Arsene Wenger, 63, over a new three-year contract worth £8m per season. DSSC
West Ham midfielder Ravel Morrison, 20, will earn a first call-up into the England Under-21 squad for the European Under-21 Championship qualifying matches away to San Marino and at home to Lithuania. Times
Contrary to rumours on the internet, Newcastle boss Alan Pardew did not offer his resignation to club owner Mike Ashley in the wake of Monday's 3-2 defeat by Everton. The Chronicle
Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale, 24, is set to be out for three weeks as he hopes to overcome a thigh injury in time for the season's first El Clasico against Barcelona at the end of October. DSSC
Birmingham City owner Carson Yeung is "personally' involved in preliminary talks to sell the cash-strapped Championship club, acting chairman Peter Pannu has revealed. Birmingham Mail
Jake Livermore has backed Hull team-mate Tom Huddlestone, 26, to make a return to the England fold and add to the fourth cap he won against Sweden in November. Hull DSSC
England's vital World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland at Wembley have yet to sell out, but the Football Association is confident the remaining tickets will be bought. Daily Telegraph
Danny Welbeck, who scored in Manchester United's 1-1 Champions League draw against Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday, almost never made it to Ukraine after the United bus left the their Carrington training base without the 22-year-old. Manchester United Evening News
The Football Association has launched a new Tube map that features players instead of stations and lines such as 'the full-back line'. Metro
more bollox soon