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Biamp wrote:

Douglas Higginbottom wrote: 70 minutes for Tevez ,scored one ,won a penalty and put himself about as he usually does.

I wouldn't be surprised if he starts on Saturday, even though I think it's too early for him to get a start yet.

Reckon it may be a 5 man midfield with Balo leading the line...or Aguero if he's fit.

According to the Daily Mail Balo was apparently ordered to train on his own, is there any truth of that Doug??

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footba ... round.html

Biamp wrote:Cheers Doug, great read as usual. I read the other day that David Silva has been carrying an ankle injury since mid January. And that's the main reason behind his poor form of late. Is there any truth of that??

Quite a while ago that was reported and I think David Silva has said that he has had some kind of ankle injury but he has had it for 3 years.I personally don't think that is behind his drop in form as it was there during the good spell.

I think it's more to do with the lack of form of the players in front of him and the attitude of the cloggers who are being allowed to kick him freely by the referees. Plus I think he has had illness in his family which may have preyed on his mind a little.

Biamp wrote:According to the Daily Mail Balo was apparently ordered to train on his own, is there any truth of that Doug??

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footba ... round.html

In a word NO. It's typical of what reporters can do when they some tosser of a freelance photographer getting a few snaps from a distance.Mancini is caught apparently shouting at a player and before you know it there is a bust up.The reality is that Mancini was doing his work with the team and was shouting which is quite normal when he is in the middle of the pitch with players scattered around him.He has to shout a bit to be heard by them all.All the photographer needs is a picture of Mancini seeming to shout and get Mario in that picture as well and a story can be created.

I am not saying he wasn't having a go at a player as that obviously is going to happen at times and it's quite likely he would have had a go at Mario but no way was he banished to train on his own.After a while Mancini changes the team he works with,maybe 4 or 5 of the team,and that's all that happened in this case.Mario plus a few others were swapped for others and they just came round the fence onto the other pitch to play in the 6 a side game.

Quite pathetic reporting.

Cheers Doug, good stuff. And thanks for clearing the situation up. I think you are referring to the Silva injury he mentioned in his interview a while back. But, the one I am referring is not a while back. All it says is that he needs a break of two weeks to recover, but Mancini can't afford to rest him.

SILVA PLAYING AT 80 PER CENT DUE TO ANKLE TROUBLES

Manchester City star David Silva has lit up the Premier League this season but the Spanish magician is fighting through the pain barrier as we enter the final nine games of the campaign.

The Sweeper can today reveal the real extent of Silva’s daily battle with ankle injuries that he has been carrying since mid-January, which has coincided with a dip in his personal form as City hit their first rocky patch of the season.

The Spaniard, 26, has a long-term problem with his left ankle, but both are causing him soreness, and the club’s desire to nurse him through until the end of the season has seen him substituted in his last three appearances.

The ideal scenario for Silva would be for him to rest for two weeks, but manager Roberto Mancini feels that he cannot afford to give the former Valencia man time off as City challenge for a first top flight title in 44 years.

The midfielder’s problems are not helped but his refusal to wear ankle strapping like most players as he says that it restricts his feel for the ball.

"Silva is playing at 80 per cent because of his ankle trouble, it’s been causing him discomfort for a while now," a City source told Goal.com.

"He doesn’t need an operation, it’s a case of pain management to nurse him through until the end of the season."

I think it's all one and the same and plain crap reporting again to get a headline.IF he has this problem ankle injury,and especially if it has worsened lately,surely Silva would miss some of the training sessions or at least not take part in all the full contact stuff.

Silva started talking openly about his ankle injury round about the time his form dipped. I've been mentioning it on here for months.