myboyblue - if memory serves me right, you’re a man city fan? what do you think about the treatment of sven / appointment of hughes? will ronaldinho come to eastlands next year? how does it feel to support a club owned by a complete corrupt nut job?
Isn’t every Club owned by corporate nut jobs these days?
I dont agree with the sacking of Sven, but when Sven went against his wishes of signing The Dinho then he was always in trouble. To publicly joke about your owners wishes like that, especially when its a lil meglomaniac like Thaksin you were always in trouble. I liked Sven, he done a good job, but it was a very shite end to the season, 8 fuckin 1 to Boro!
In essence, its Thaksins his ball so I guess if he wants to take it home he can. I was very worried at the end of the season but with the appt of man like Hughes I am holding out some hope. If we keep Dunne and Micah we have a hope, if one of them goes, then we could be in trouble.
300k a week though for the Dinho, its astonishing money. Still, he’s a fantastic talent, and if he’s bothered, he could light up the premiership.
I’ve always said, its never boring at Citeh.
Bandage was a Citeh fan until he met and fell in love with Rock and switched allegiances to Celtic…
The appointment of Hughes surprised me as he’s relatively unproven despite doing well as Wales coach and leading Blackburn to 3 top half finishes and a few good cup runs. In fairness to him that’s about as much as he could reasonably have been expected to achieve at Blackburn with the resources at his disposal compared to other clubs in the upper echelons of the English game. But I thought after dispensing with a world renowned manager like Eriksson they would have pulled all the stops to get Scolari, Hiddink or someone of that ilk instead of Hughes, who admittedly looks to have good promise and sets up his teams in an organised and committed manner.
I think the question now is whether the players they’re ambitiously targeting will have any desire in joining a club with no Champions League pedigree. The reports suggest they’re going to pay very high wages in order to tempt world class players but it remains to be seen if players in their prime will go there. And, at the end of the day (token pun), what is an extra 10k or 20k a week to ridiculously rich individuals anyway? So if an Inter or Barca or someone offer a player 120k a week and City offer the same player 140k per week then will City get their man?
It remains to be seen but getting one ‘mega’ signing as a statement of intent might set the ball rolling and show other players that something big is happening there. That’s where I think having a Scolari type as coach would have helped - players would see the wages offered as well as a ‘name’ manager being in charge of the project there. As I said, Hughes seems to have the tools to become a very good manager but, despite what Sky Sports will tell you, coming 7th with Blackburn won’t have caused many ripples throughout world football. Anyway, it should be a lively summer there for certain.
I agree with pretty much all of what you’ve said Bandage. No matter what City do, if its a choice between City and a top 4 club, City will lose out. Its similar to the problem Chelsea have in that if you havent got the history you’ve still got very little. Money will only get you so much, at the end of the day, Torres will still go to Liverpool.
However, City should now be at least able to realistically nail down 5th spot and hopefully push on a bit more.
As for the Hughes appt, I am of the same opinion, what makes Sparky better than Sven? But something needed to be done to save credibility when Scolari looked like he wasn’t going to budge, a real name needed to be got in and Sparky is ambitious enough to realise an opportunity when he sees it.
[quote=“Bandage”]
I think the question now is whether the players they’re ambitiously targeting will have any desire in joining a club with no Champions League pedigree…[/quote]
I think the question now is were you a city fan before you met Rocko and how long ago did this happen!!!???
Article in today’s Guardian:
Goodbye blue moon, you’ve left me standing alone
Supporting Manchester City is impossible after Thaksin’s sacking of Sven
Simon Hattenstone
June 11, 2008 12:51 AM
Five weeks is a long time in the life of a Manchester City fan. Since I’ve been away, the beloved leader Dr Thaksin Shinawatra has sacked Sven-Goran Eriksson despite the fact that he had delivered a top-10 finish as requested, despite the fact that Manchester City had done the double over Manchester United for the first time in 40 years, despite the fact that Manchester City won the FA Youth Cup for the first time in 22 years, despite Sven pledging his allegiance to the club by buying himself a fine pair of blue-tinted spectacles. Now I am no Sven evangelical - indeed, my regular reader might well recall that in the past I compared him to Death from Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal and accused him of being a master of mind-numbingly dull football. But the fact is that our boy Sven, as I like to think of him now, done good at City.
Earlier this year, I tried to interview Svennis for the Guardian. Paul Tyrrell, the spokesman for Manchester City, told me that the Guardian would never get an interview with him because we had shown a lack of respect. Among examples he cited were articles written by David Conn and myself (both City fans). Well, Mr Tyrrell, I would like to ask both you and the beloved leader what is more disrespectful: a) questioning the long-term future of a club run by a man with a dubious human-rights record facing criminal charges back in Thailand or http://www.thefreekick.com/board/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cool.gif sacking your manager after he has achieved just what you asked of him in his first season - and a little bit more.
Since then, things have got worse. City have hired a diehard Red as manager, and in the revisionist manner of modern times we’ve been told that if you combine the talents of Sir Alex Ferguson, Albert Einstein and Nelson Mandela you might get something approaching the genius of Mark Hughes. City fans have also been told that Hughes, who has never won a trophy as a manager, could have gone to Chelsea, Barcelona or the White House should he have so desired, but his heart always lay with City. Finally, City fans have been ordered to forget that Big Phil Scolari, who we initially believed would replace Sven, ever existed.
As for Ronaldinho and his 200 grand a week? It makes me sick. This is football as political posturing, football as global marketing, football as showbiz masturbation. The one thing it isn’t is football as sport. Thaksin can call Ronaldinho the world’s greatest player till he’s City blue in the face but we all know the truth. He’s past his peak, looking for a ludicrous payday, and it just so happens that City are prepared to pay twice as much as any club in their right mind. This is not how you create a winning football club, it’s how you create a circus of freaks.
A year ago I said that however hard I would find it to stick Thaksin, I’d find it even harder to give City up. You were married to your team for life - in sickness and health, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, the whole shebang.
But that was then. I can’t stand any more. I’m ashamed of you, City.
Until recently, I was so proud of you - sure, I knew you weren’t the coolest kid on the block, certainly not the most glamorous, but you were warm and funny and human, and decent people liked you. These days you are crude and crass and humourless, and decent people despise you.
I want out. I know that in filing for divorce, I’m not simply splitting up with a football club. There’s family and friends. And that might well be the most painful thing. My daughters could reject me forever - they are always telling me that we are bigger than Thaksin, that he is an imposter and that to leave them now would be an act of betrayal. As for my friend BriceyG, will there be a future for us without City? Well, we can still go for curries at Abdul’s and lamb chops on Green Lanes and discuss the old days. We’ll always have Gillingham, BriceyG.
This is a momentous decision. Possibly a disastrous one. I don’t know if I can kick the habit. Mind you, a few months ago I gave up smoking, and if I managed to give up the cigs I can give up City - even if it does mean going back on the ciggies.
So, farewell City. You’ve had my love for 36 years, but that’s long enough. Other fans might not wish to go the whole hog, so how’s about boycotting the first home game of the season or holding a vigil in matching Sven wig and specs outside the ground?
If there’s a football club with a heart out there (nothing flash, sense of humour preferable) looking for a new fan, give me a call. As for City, I’ll be back when Thaksin’s done with his plaything to help with the rebuilding.
Jaysus thats a bit OTT isnt it? Keep an eye out for that fella down Canary Wharf some day at this this rate.
RIP. His work at City will never be forgotten
There was a great video doing the rounds of some of the golden generation sending video messages. Joe Cole and Owen Hargreaves gave lovely heart felt messsges while Paul Scholes told a man with terminal cancer to get well soon since Michael Owen gave the most non discript vibe killing message you will ever see. Hilarious stuff
Owens was so fucking bad, and Scholes pure cringe - 8:23 here
Gerrards was very heartfelt in comparison
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Yes - found it to post again. The Hargreaves one redeemed it all
https://x.com/c4sport/status/1771205197886562809?s=46&t=bi9TPLB4aIa07RQv_xWOxQ
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Stoic swedish svennis. I felt more emotional than he looked. Who was the bloke with the using him as a human armband?
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Two Man City and Sampa greats 
https://twitter.com/mygreatest11/status/1787197020265939230?s=46&t=YOfhVM10W0bcyIiYSLI3Wg