The Mancini Effect

[Douglas Higginbottom]

Durham was pathetic yesterday in his attack on City's tactics v Chelsea and really only Darren Gough put him straight.He kept on about Mancini not understanding how real City fans thought. Every City fan who rang in told him he was a wally and they were more than happy winning games as we are if that's what it takes to win a trophy and all he did , as ever , was ignore them.

Then ,when they talked about Shrek not travelling with the scum to Valencia, he said he thought that was a masterstroke by Fergy as it would be sensible for them to play 1 up anyway and play with a more defensive approach. Such a tosser.

The reality is that we all want to win something and as a start it's necessary to get the defence right and work on counter attacking football.Yes at times it's not good on the eye and we are too cautious against teams we really need to beat and beat well but for now that's just the way it's going to be with Mancini.It might mean some games are in the balance right to the end and we might even lose or draw the odd one we shouldn't but as long as we are roughly where we need to be that's ok.

The question for me is when or whether we get a little more entertaining if that's the right word. I do expect when Kolarov and Boateng are back that will add an extra dimension to what we do and how we look but also when Balotelli is fit and dare I say Adebayor back properly I do expect a little more attacking than we have seen to date. exactly what team he will play in big games with everybody fit will be difficult to predict.

[sandman]

Spot on, these are the games that have let us down in the past, we beat a big side and then go into small games over confident. If Newcastle are given the opportunity to bring it to us we will destroy them as soon as they spread out.

Well now you are touching on the debate of the moment, cos it is one thing turning up and taking it seriously, the other is that we have to find ways of either allowing teams to play a little bit in order to draw them out, or find ways of cracking them open if we squash them right back into their own area.

Teams will look at what happened to Liverpool when they thought they could come and try and play.

That is true, Liverpool were foolish and got punished, if Newcastle put 11 men behind the ball and play for the draw then they could either have a lucky day like sunderland and blackburn did or get destroyed like burnley did last season. If I was to come to eastlands managing a team I would keep one man forward and defend throughout the rest.

[Fish111]

Did he choose the right tactics for the match? I'd say yes.
Did we get 3 points from the match? pretty sure we did.

Why should we care if teams see us as an attacking force? Why does it matter if we win every game 1-0 on the back of a solid defence? Do you support city or do you just support the stars? Realize that mancini is selecting teams and tactics with the idea of winning in mind. Don't buy into this media bullshit that we played chelsea at home just wanting "not to lose" ... we played chelsea at their own game and beat them tactically and physically on the field. That is something to be proud of.

Be proud of city and drop this shit attitude. That's really all it is. You're down because the media talk shit about us, oh we're boring, we play 'not to lose' ... it's all just bullshit. You need to be mentally stronger to cope with the pressure that comes with assaulting the institution of the top 4. I would rather have a 'dull' 1-0 win then losing 3-2 to some shit team because we can't defend worth shit, 'oh but at least it was a thriller'.

As an aside, there was absolutely nothing boring about that game with chelsea ... that was an intense physical encounter with some great play from both sides. Man up. Get your head straight. Dare to be different. Choose life. Choose City.

Agree with this word for word. We are becoming immense! NDJ is my new hero!

[brite blu sky]

Spot on, these are the games that have let us down in the past, we beat a big side and then go into small games over confident. If Newcastle are given the opportunity to bring it to us we will destroy them as soon as they spread out.

Well now you are touching on the debate of the moment, cos it is one thing turning up and taking it seriously, the other is that we have to find ways of either allowing teams to play a little bit in order to draw them out, or find ways of cracking them open if we squash them right back into their own area.

Teams will look at what happened to Liverpool when they thought they could come and try and play.

That is true, Liverpool were foolish and got punished, if Newcastle put 11 men behind the ball and play for the draw then they could either have a lucky day like sunderland and blackburn did or get destroyed like burnley did last season. If I was to come to eastlands managing a team I would keep one man forward and defend throughout the rest.

It is going to be interesting how Juve set up for the game. Away in Europe nearly all teams adopt their cautious side.. but i am hoping they wont quite be ready for what they get. They have been poor in defence so far this season, so defending might not be their best tactic.. and i dont think attacking will be either ;)

[The Man In Blue]

I'm buying into it. i don't give a shit if we don't play like Brazil circa 1970. In fact, i'd kind of enjoy seeing us turn into some sort of brutal footballing juggernaut; after being the soft touch for years it would make a change eh?

I don't think we are in any danger of becoming a glorified Blackburn/Stoke though, I reckon Mancio's style could be likened to the hand of a beautiful woman encased in a spiked chainmail glove.

[sandman]

Spot on, these are the games that have let us down in the past, we beat a big side and then go into small games over confident. If Newcastle are given the opportunity to bring it to us we will destroy them as soon as they spread out.

Well now you are touching on the debate of the moment, cos it is one thing turning up and taking it seriously, the other is that we have to find ways of either allowing teams to play a little bit in order to draw them out, or find ways of cracking them open if we squash them right back into their own area.

Teams will look at what happened to Liverpool when they thought they could come and try and play.

That is true, Liverpool were foolish and got punished, if Newcastle put 11 men behind the ball and play for the draw then they could either have a lucky day like sunderland and blackburn did or get destroyed like burnley did last season. If I was to come to eastlands managing a team I would keep one man forward and defend throughout the rest.

It is going to be interesting how Juve set up for the game. Away in Europe nearly all teams adopt their cautious side.. but i am hoping they wont quite be ready for what they get. They have been poor in defence so far this season, so defending might not be their best tactic.. and i dont think attacking will be either ;)

I'm almost expecting a 433 against Juve though I imagine it will actually be a 4321 that can drop back to 451 when necessary?

[Lev Bronstein]

Interesting how Bobby is using words like "mentality" and "attitude" at the moment. I think he realises that what cost us last year was slackness at vital moments. Alas, the Blackburn and Sunderland results show that there is some work to do on that score. The best teams are also mentally strong teams, and that's what he's trying to build.

If cock-ups can be eliminated then we should make top 4 with ease. It might not be a pretty sight, but still progress is progress. However, once we become an established CL side, craft will have to be welded to graft if we are to move to the next stage. But that will be a darn sight easier job if we already have a tough team than if we are as flaky as in the past.

Keep going Bobby