Inter Milan vs CITY

[shawzy]

Kidd out

Kidd-ing ;-$

[blootoof]

Spud head shot

[Douglas Higginbottom]

I would have like to see a little more of a sign that we have a clue.The style of our play or at least what we seemed to be trying to do I find very very worrying buy as it's just a friendly and we were wrongly reduced to 10 men it doesnt matter at all.

[edge275]

Any positives to take from that?

I think the score is a bit misleading in the fact that we had to play with 10 men for 70 minutes, one of their goals was a wicked deflection and another one was a screamer, but what is plain to see is how rigid and lacklustre we look.

Our first competitive game is only 2 weeks away how can we look so devoid of energy? I appreciate Inter Milan are a fantastic side and playing with 10 men is not easy but we played as if the players were hungover and had just got out of bed.

[cityPinoy_fc]

disappointed with the performance inter should us why there are the european champions even with their "b team". theres a long way to go before we can go to the top.

[WiganBlue]

Final score?

[shawzy]

Final score?

3-0

[miss-mancity]

Off to FB to... WTF of a ref... But it is a learning curve fore City..

[TonyM]

We better figure out how to play together before the game against Spurs or we'll be battered. This is just a friendly but there is little sign of a decent style of play - clueless in attack, clueless in defense. Lot's of standing between the goal and the player with the ball but no movement. I'm as worried now as I was towards the end of last season. Maybe the new signings will make the difference but I suspect that there's more than that required. I'm sorry but I don't see what others do in Mancini. I fear he's just as much of a fake as Hughes and Sven were.

I think it's crazy that people give Ireland crap. What we saw again from the team was a complete lack of understanding between players. How can Ireland or any other creative player profit in that chaos. Silva would want to be a footballing God to drag the rest of the team up to the required level (and if he doesn't he too will be labelled as "<blank>")

I also think it's crazy that people see johnson as anything more than a bit player. His legs are like lead after 20 minutes. Until he gets some stamina he's an impact player off the bench.

There are issues all over the park. A lot of work to be done and you've got to wonder if it made sense to go so far away to only play the kids. Would Hughe's German Boot Camp have been better for a team still trying to find their way?

You can't base your opinion on friendlies but they're all you have to go off prior to the season. I'm not confident about this season. I hope I'm wrong though.

(For those who say this is just off a friendly - unfortunately I've been consistently saying that I have yet to see us play decent football under Mancini and I struggel to understand the adoration he is receiveing (as I did Hughers and Sven))

[Ted Hughes]

I would have like to see a little more of a sign that we have a clue.The style of our play or at least what we seemed to be trying to do I find very very worrying buy as it's just a friendly and we were wrongly reduced to 10 men it doesnt matter at all.

I don't agree that it doesn't matter. In one game maybe but we're shit in every game. Imo we've got the whole pre season horribly wrong up to now & we need to get back on track quickly. We had shape & purpose in the 1st game but since then all the changing & fucking around has completely destroyed the focus of the players. We're doing EVERYTHING very badly from back to front. This is not how it's supposed to be & you can tell the players are getting nervous. They're getting worse not better. Now even AJ has gone to shit like everyone else. Yaya looks a better footballer going forward than AJ SWP & Ireland. That's just plain wrong.

Hopefully the new signings will get the spark back in the team along with our 2 best players from last season; Bellamy & Tevez.

So far though we look like England & most of our competitors including the dreaded rags, look a class above us at the same stage.

[mcfc1632]

I think Ya Ya will be immense in the PL - even from the glimpses seen so far

But last season we failed to link MF to attack and I have been searching in the warm-up games for the way we are going to fix that - and there still seems to be a void

It cannot all be about Ya Ya runs - we need the sneijder type player to slip the balls into Ade and Tevez - too often the strikers (particularly Tevez) had to come back to the half way line to get us going - if we sort this issue I think that we will be challengers this year

I know Silva has yet to play - but just not sure of the formation we are going to put out to ensure the linkage - even without Silva available at the moment the formation should be apparent

[carl_feedthegoat]

I would have like to see a little more of a sign that we have a clue.The style of our play or at least what we seemed to be trying to do I find very very worrying buy as it's just a friendly and we were wrongly reduced to 10 men it doesnt matter at all.

I don't agree that it doesn't matter. In one game maybe but we're shit in every game. Imo we've got the whole pre season horribly wrong up to now & we need to get back on track quickly. We had shape & purpose in the 1st game but since then all the changing & fucking around has completely destroyed the focus of the players. We're doing EVERYTHING very badly from back to front. This is not how it's supposed to be & you can tell the players are getting nervous. They're getting worse not better. Now even AJ has gone to shit like everyone else. Yaya looks a better footballer going forward than AJ SWP & Ireland. That's just plain wrong.

Hopefully the new signings will get the spark back in the team along with our 2 best players from last season; Bellamy & Tevez.

So far though we look like England & most of our competitors including the dreaded rags, look a class above us at the same stage.

Ive calmed down a little now and your post sums up my feeling's entirely.

I still shake my fucking head at some of the comments regarding friendlies as if it's no big fucking deal....the fans on here that say its only about fitness and running dont know what their fucking talking about.

I suggest they read the above thread...sums it up perfectly.

[brite blu sky]

I think Ya Ya will be immense in the PL - even from the glimpses seen so far

But last season we failed to link MF to attack and I have been searching in the warm-up games for the way we are going to fix that - and there still seems to be a void

It cannot all be about Ya Ya runs - we need the sneijder type player to slip the balls into Ade and Tevez - too often the strikers (particularly Tevez) had to come back to the half way line to get us going - if we sort this issue I think that we will be challengers this year

I know Silva has yet to play - but just not sure of the formation we are going to put out to ensure the linkage - even without Silva available at the moment the formation should be apparent

There have been a few threads on this stuff of late. I am taking the spanish way of looking at the game, which tends to look a lot more at team formation and the roles of the players in that for the team. As i have outlined once or twice the core issue is having both AMs who are good on the ball, both holding it and pass and move. If you have that and then you have a Yaya type player who is also very comfortable on the ball so can run with it or spread it with accuracy then that combination is very very tricky for opposing midfields to deal with. However it isnt as simple as that, because the Yaya type player also needs back up. ideally you would have two of them on the pitch. Spain did this in the WC with Sergio and Alonso. But it also can be done by having CBs who also act as DMs.. ie very quick to attack loose balls squeeking past Yaya. We dont have those CBs, so the better option for us would be to have Yaya backed up by DeJong or Barry. Spain and Barca also use the fullbacks to control space and they often sit as far up as the half way line.
It is yet to be seen but i have a sense that Mancini is attemting to do something like this. But in order for it to work at all it needs the players who can play those roles, the most important ultimately are the AMs because with their movement and possession control they tie up most of the opposition. Barca often play with no out and out striker at all and it can be difficult to pin down who exactly is playing in what position. Apart from being skilled it is also how they completely fucl up the opposition and take all the pressure of their DMs and defence.
imo Vieira cannot cut it in this style of play, his vision is fine but his touch has gone so he ends up just slowing the game down and allowing a mess in midfield. So far in all the friendlies i have seen him receive and have a clear simple return ball and he tries to do something else. He did this to Yaya last night at least twice and he did it to Ireland at least 3 times in the previous game. I would like to see the backbone to a system something like..

Toure - Kompany
Toure Y.
Silva - Ireland

[Tony P]

Looking at that team, we were missing arguably the four players who will have a say in our season and should take us to the next level: Silva, Kolarov, Tevez and Boateng

[branny]

Ade has disappointed me so far. Granted it was difficult for him v Inter because he was on his own but I was hoping that he'd get out of the habit of drifting out wide. With the midfield sitting so deep he has nobody to cross to so its pointless. If Bobby Manc is looking to use him as a target man he's got it all wrong. He cannot hold the ball up with his back to goal and almost always loses it. If we are gonna play this way (i'm hoping not with the players to come in) then piss Twitchy off with a bid for Crouch.

[Douglas Higginbottom]

If a player is left alone and I mean really really alone as Ade was last night it makes it virtually impossible to play the lone striker role. You must have players running off you , past you or at least towards you but last night there was usually nobody else in camera shot as the ball got to him.

[Bingo Lewis]

Carlos - calm down son. stop getting shirty.
we were missing 5 important people yesterday. tevez, boateng, kolarov and silva, and most importantly the manager.
we were never gonna beat inter without bob, then the "look at me" wanker of a ref has to go OTT in a friendly, and we got taught a lesson.
now then, as you seem to find it so spectacular about my second and 3rd string comments, i'll explain...

bridge - 2nd string
richards - 2nd string
kompany in midfield??? - 3rd string
zaba in midfield?? - 3rd string
SWP - 2nd string
Vieira - 3rd string
jo - 3rd string
cunningham - 3rd string
boyata - 3rd string

now playing all these players (in the positions some played in) against the european champs was just asking for a twatting, and thats what we got. But at the same time it also showed that the result didn't matter to the management. so yeah, i'd have loved to say we beat inter in a meaningless game, but we didn't. not the end of the world. i'm just excited to see everyone in action next week against dortmund. (in another meaningless game.)
now i suggest you take yer missus to bed, take all your frustation out on her, and look forward to seeing silva & co rape the spuds.

[ronk]

I didn't Ade played badly at all. He kept their backline troubled and was a nuisance. It was unfortunate that we were left without a goal scorer in the box but he's not the only one who should have done more.

[carl_feedthegoat]

Carlos - calm down son. stop getting shirty.
we were missing 5 important people yesterday. tevez, boateng, kolarov and silva, and most importantly the manager.
we were never gonna beat inter without bob, then the "look at me" wanker of a ref has to go OTT in a friendly, and we got taught a lesson.
now then, as you seem to find it so spectacular about my second and 3rd string comments, i'll explain...

bridge - 2nd string
richards - 2nd string
kompany in midfield??? - 3rd string
zaba in midfield?? - 3rd string
SWP - 2nd string
Vieira - 3rd string
jo - 3rd string
cunningham - 3rd string
boyata - 3rd string

now playing all these players (in the positions some played in) against the european champs was just asking for a twatting, and thats what we got. But at the same time it also showed that the result didn't matter to the management. so yeah, i'd have loved to say we beat inter in a meaningless game, but we didn't. not the end of the world. i'm just excited to see everyone in action next week against dortmund. (in another meaningless game.)
now i suggest you take yer missus to bed, take all your frustation out on her, and look forward to seeing silva & co rape the spuds.

Mate......I was wound up....I was wound up because I did not see ANYTHING during this tour that made me think "yes....that area of the field looks like a working unit....this player links up well with that player...the defence looks good, ect ect"

I know that we are missing players but the reality is we will lose some of those players through injury or suspension this year and we need to have plan B..........if those players out there are plan B, then going on that, and prior performances, it doesnt bode well does it?

Friendlies for me are all about Fitness,trying out young and upcoming new player's and different formation's that may be applied during the upcoming season.

I do not agree and never will that the result and performance do not matter - Kompany showed that a winning mentality is a must and I liked his attitude last night...he obviously doesnt agree with some of you lot on here that it doesnt matter.


and yes....just had a beauty of a shag....but Im still pissed off slightly.

xxx

[brite blu sky]

Carlos - calm down son. stop getting shirty.
we were missing 5 important people yesterday. tevez, boateng, kolarov and silva, and most importantly the manager.
we were never gonna beat inter without bob, then the "look at me" wanker of a ref has to go OTT in a friendly, and we got taught a lesson.
now then, as you seem to find it so spectacular about my second and 3rd string comments, i'll explain...

bridge - 2nd string
richards - 2nd string
kompany in midfield??? - 3rd string
zaba in midfield?? - 3rd string
SWP - 2nd string
Vieira - 3rd string
jo - 3rd string
cunningham - 3rd string
boyata - 3rd string

now playing all these players (in the positions some played in) against the european champs was just asking for a twatting, and thats what we got. But at the same time it also showed that the result didn't matter to the management. so yeah, i'd have loved to say we beat inter in a meaningless game, but we didn't. not the end of the world. i'm just excited to see everyone in action next week against dortmund. (in another meaningless game.)
now i suggest you take yer missus to bed, take all your frustation out on her, and look forward to seeing silva & co rape the spuds.

Mate......I was wound up....I was wound up because I did not see ANYTHING during this tour that made me think "yes....that area of the field looks like a working unit....this player links up well with that player...the defence looks good, ect ect"

I know that we are missing players but the reality is we will lose some of those players through injury or suspension this year and we need to have plan B..........if those players out there are plan B, then going on that, and prior performances, it doesnt bode well does it?

Friendlies for me are all about Fitness,trying out young and upcoming new player's and different formation's that may be applied during the upcoming season.

I do not agree and never will that the result and performance do not matter - Kompany showed that a winning mentality is a must and I liked his attitude last night...he obviously doesnt agree with some of you lot on here that it doesnt matter.


and yes....just had a beauty of a shag....but Im still pissed off slightly.

xxx

i hope you are not blaming City on your performance there ;)

seriously though and you might think im splitting hairs, it WAS good to see Kompany getting stuck in and you are right, but somehow i still fee that result particularly and performance are not the same as attitude. Kompany's attitude was spot on in his reaction, but then as DoomMerchant mentioned the crowd got the sense the ref was anti-city and for me i saw that our players after the sending off were thinking, this is stacked against us and it a fucking friendly. So it affected our performance completely in the end.. what was supposed to be a test of the two teams readiness turned into a joke. if i had been one of our players i would have instigated to walk off and get the organisers to pull the ref and restart the game. In the end that game served nothing for Milan and very little for City. So what looked like the right attitude from Vincent turned into a whats the fucking point and the individual and collective performance then just reflected that. If they had all haired round as 10 men and got stuck in DeJong style it would have just been more bookings and sendings off, the italians playing their part to the full no doubt.
It was a friendly and then it got turned into a non game.

as for the rest of the games you are right nothing much has stood out to write home about.