Saturday 28 November 2009

City 1 - 1 Hull City

Are we serious about success or not? Does Mark Hughes want to manage
Manchester City in 2010/11 or not? Because this was the third
consecutive home game which we led but failed to win. Never mind how
rarely Chelsea, United and Arsenal blow leads at home - how often do
Spurs or Aston Villa? If we carry on like this we will finish in
seventh - and Hughes will be sacked.

More to follow...

21 comments:

Withingtonian said...

Hughes has to be given until the end of the season - after all this is still the second best premiership start - but I doubt if his paymasters will give him another year if City finish mid-table again. Wednesday's cup game is crucial for all sorts of reasons.

CB Property Sales said...

Is that 7 draws on the bounce? Not good enough, plain & simple! Where was Gareth Barry today? Where is a creative midfield supposed to come from..............depressed!!!!

Lee F said...

A very good team on paper, certainly one good enough to beat Hull at home so where is it going wrong? This is rightly so going to lead to a great deal of pressure on Hughes and he needs to start turning this around. Quickly. Starting on Wednesday.

newsoftheblues said...

crisis now jpb?

im pissed off!

Anonymous said...

This is taking the biscuit, we should be ripping middle and low table teams to pieces.

I blame it on cowardice and half heartedness, Please Bellamy and Tevez drum it into the rest that they have to start playing aggresively but also intelligently.

We need 11 Bellamys on the pitch and yes i am condoning grit and blood.

Its about time we started showing teams who play us that if you dish out the tough treatment, your going to get it in return.

If we are not in top 4 by the end of the season Hughes has to go and be replaced by a top quality proven manager like J Mourinho.

pjdemers said...

Can we please all take a deep breath and please take off our emotional hats for a moment? Because if did so we would actually realize how much were overreacting.

We are four points off third place with a game in hand but if you listened solely to every City fan posting you'd think we were in a relegation battle.

We are not in a crisis. We are certainly in rut at the moment but did any reasonable fan expect not to go through a teething period? Yes there is a lot of work to be done and yes I will admit that we underachieving at the moment but do you really think the players and staff are oblivious to this? Sometimes I honestly think that even if Hughes and the squad could walk on water some City fans would bitch about them not being able to swim.

I strongly urge my fellow City fans who have posted here to read the excellent blog posted today by Norfstander for a broader perspective. There are 38 games to a season, when the season is over we can then cast judgement. Until then let's get behind this team 100% and stop with the gloom and doom and piss and vinnegar everytime things don't go our way shall we?

Unknown said...

well said pjdemers,
the Norfstander piece is well worth a read too.

We all know how we should be playing, and what the results should be, but building a new team takes time and patience, and let's face it, letting slip a lead to "only" get a draw is a small step away from keeping the lead to earn a victory.
Definite progress from hoping to snatch a draw away from home after going behind, and not succeeding, as was the case last season.

Anonymous said...

pjdemers - thnak you for your calm and measured comment. All to often the anti-Hughes brigade forescast doom and gloom and want him out.

After 7 losses on the bounce I could understand it, but we have lost just once this season, and are still within striking distance of 3rd spot never mind 4th. The only teams showing any sort of form at the moment are Chelsea and United. 3rd & 4th spot is up for grabs. Better we go through a rough patch now with time to improve than at the end of the season when it is too late.

Anonymous said...

Would the idiots telling us passionate City fans to stop with the emotions and branding us the Hughes out brigade, go take a long jump of a tall building.

I was there in the Maine stand in the 80's when half of you were probably in nappies.

City are struggling against mediocre and average clubs when an average team like Spurs are flying when we should be flying.

Stop giving it all the we are ok, its fine muppet rubbish because i have pretty much had enough of your pathetic advise, if i wanted advise i'd ask for it.

City are wasting points against bottom 10 club, a run of 5 more loses and draws you you muppets will be just as emotional.

When you have lived 34 years of City then come back and start preaching, not a second before.

Anonymous said...

Cityblue - 40 years and counting. So I know exactly what it's like riding the City rollercoaster.

However, sacking Hughes now is not the answer.

Ask yourself this:

Who can we get at short notice that would be available?
Do you honestly think another foreign manager is the answer?
Do we really want Mourinho?

Unknown said...

City blue,

you blame our current situatuation on cowardice and half-heartedness, which makes you a fool who has learnt nothing in the many years you have been taking up space on the terraces and in the stands.

Thank God you are nothing to do with the coaching staff - would you have kept the team on the pitch at half time and given them a public dressing down? See where I'm going with this?

Where are your credentials in team building and motivation? You're quick to flash the "I've been a City fan longer than you card" as soon as anyone challenges your over-emotive drivel - your qualifications need to be better than that before personally abusing others.

If this was a game of top trumps I'm sure most fans on here could kick your arse for years and games attended - does that make you wiser than a 15 year old, just because you've shown up more?
From what you've said on here, your opinions are shallow, uninformed and over-emotional, I suggest you keep them to yourself until you have something constructive to say.
(Tevez and Bellamy should tell everyone else to try harder - God Almighty give me strength - is that your best advice? I pity your nearest and dearest)
Go get some coaching badges, a degree in Psychology, anything to drag your views up to something worth a read.

Anonymous said...

Jim, I read what you have to say and quite honestly, I could not give a flying what you think.

My opinion stands so choke on it, go preach to someone who gives a damn.

If City are not in the top four come the end of the season then Hughes has to go, certain City players are not doing enough for City or doing enough to justify their price tags. Where are all the match winning performances?, the only one was against Arsenal but they can not even beat an average Hull, Burnely, Fulham or Wigan.

Like I said, its pathetic to see certain City fans accept a run of draws as a fantastic start when we have seen it all before. The only reason we are not 20 points behind the top 4 is because the regular top 3 of 4 are struggling.

Go preach your blindness elsewhere.

Anonymous said...

Henry, the answer is Guss Hiddink, J Mourinho wont come as Milan are still in the CL.

City have the squad to break the top four, Spurs dont but who is in the top four, asnwer that one.

Unknown said...

City blue,

as it happens I do think your opinion stands, just not the way you dismiss other peoples views as "blind", and the way you advise us to jump off tall buildings and choke on your stance - we do tend to get a tad defensive after that!

We all here despite the vitriol want to see City win the Prem and next season lift the Champions League Cup aloft, we've all endured the wilderness years together, we only differ in our opinions of how we get there.

My opinion is that there's more to getting in the top four than meets the eye, and certainly more than you can cover in a quick post on a website.
There are probably factors affecting the team none of us are aware of, so to claim any of us are right and everone else is wrong is just plain big headedness.
I don't know how you break into the big four for certain, I'd love to have a go, nobody's done it regularly in recent years, it's new territory for most people, so all opinions are valid till someone actually does it, and stays there.
Then perhaps we can all look back and analyze what brought success.
If i thought a change of manager would definitely help the title challenge, I would advocate it - but I don't. I don't see anyone out there much better than what we have.
The disruption involved in sacking MH, all his backroom staff etc.. would surely upset the players he has brought to the club.
I would say players like Bridge, Lescott, Toure, Bellamy, Adebayor, RSC etc would most likely hit a dip in form, as they seem like players who need backing to gain confidence, not to mention the youngsters who rightly might suspect they will get less games under a new manager.
I personally think the disruption would set us back at least a season - I could be really wrong, and if MH gets the boot I hope I am.
Newcastle got rid of Sam Allardyce thru fan power, sitting tenth in the table at the time, and now look at them - that's what we "don't sack the manager" brigade are afraid of, not that we blindly think MH is the best thing since sliced bread - we all are the first to say he has it all to prove to us still, and first to say 7 consecutive draws are not as bad as 7 consecutive defeats.
My definition of a winning mentality may differ from yours, for instance getting a lead and keeping it such as George Graham's Arsenal fills me with dread, whereas Barcelona's we'll beat you out of sight mentality fills me with joy - both are winning mentalities, maybe they both have their place at City.
I apologise for getting all defensive, we're all City fans, we all bleed blue.

Anonymous said...

I have my opinion and you have yours, i do not dismiss anyones opinion even if it goes against my own.

I run a blog along side all the other City blogs and not once will you see me dismiss anyones opinion ever, I run the blog because I like to talk about City, sometimes I will present an opinion that others will not be pleased with and they will comment, when they do their opinions will be checked before being published, if their not published it will be due to foul language etc so you will see I respect everyones opinion.

I apologise if my opinion offended anyone but it does not change.

I believe some player at our club are half hearted, Robinho is only interested in attacking and on more than one occasion Robinho had an opporunity to backtrack and break up an opposing attack but he just walked and watched.

Richards against Hull played in a more forward attacking role putting pressure on Toure.

Tevez is not living upto his price tag where as Bellamy is, im starting to think Bellamy was worth Tevez's price tag and V Versa.

Gareth Barry has not impressed at all yet unless your easily impressed that is.

Again i state we can beat Arsenal but not Hull or Wigan, its a complete joke.

Robinho has to go and his middlemen are working on an exit as we speak so dont be surprised if we see a far better left wingman arrive in the Jan window.

I am not happy with dropping so many points against average or below average teams.

We have a tough few games coming up and this run of draws is possibly about to get worse.

Arsenal, Chelsea, Spurs, Blackburn and Everton not to mention 2 or 3 teams in relegation positions.

I honestly belive if we find ourselves out of a European position by the end of the season Hughes will be gone but obviously you got me all wrong, I never wanted Hughes out and I wanted Hughes to succeed but he is failing to live upto my faith.

Anonymous said...

Honestly i hope Robinho is shipped out and Vlad Weiss get his chance.

Culla said...

Just feel we should be under no illusions at where we are. we didn't start that well but were getting wins; we're playing no better now but can't hold on to wins. Yes, we're near fourth but we're also just a few points in front of the stokes and birminghams and deep down you know if we played them at the moment we wouldn't beat them. and most importantly what worries me with hughes is that you can't see how the team is going to progress - there is nothing in the way of innovation or shaking things up either before a game or during it. the defence is not right but he's not brave enough to give kompany, sylvinho and onouha a genuine go to claim either the centre-back or left-back berths.

All this would be more acceptable to Blues if we had a team like we had under pearce, but we all feel that we actually have a team that is good enough for the top 4. So it's frustrating to see them not hit the heights. they do need a kick up the arse but you wonder if the emphasis on fitness in carrington is draining the spirit. Whether any of us like it or not, Hughes will not have that much more time to mould them if we don't pick up soon.

Funnily enough the next few games might help as the team will be up for both matches. I can see a tight but uplifting win against arsenal and a good performance v chelsea, maybe 8 in 8! mabe that's a delusion but whatever happens we then have to learn how to prove it against the also-rans.

Anonymous said...

Culla, well put and i just hope for our sakes that your hopes come true. I am under no illusions that we have had far too many managers and would love Hughes to prove me wrong and repay the faith i have put in him to this point.

But if he fails then i wish not another chance to happen again next season.

pjdemers said...

Let me make sure I understand you clearly. Because I asked readers to take a step back and let their emotions subside a bit before articulating an opinion, that makes me an idiot?

Let me clarify one thing, I have no problem with people responding emotionally, its natural and instinctive, and it also shows you're passionate and that you care. That said, its very difficult for people to make sound, logical, rational decisions, arguments and assessments when their anger is still rushing through their veins. I'm certainly not able to do so I assumed that might be the case with others as well. How idiotic of me.

Lee F said...

Well pjdemers, if you understand people responding emotionally please don't dismiss us telling us to stop the doom and gloom , piss and vinegar because it's not that and I for one am not anti Hughes, just very frustrated after Saturday.

pjdemers said...

@Lee F

Fair enough Lee, however the point I seem to making in vain is that to read the comments I've seen posted here and elsewhere one could easily believe our season is over and that the ship is sinking.

No one is in denial that there are huge issues of concern and that the team is performing well below acceptable standards but there is plenty of time for Hughes and the squad to turn it around but for that to happen we need to be rational and calm and its much more difficult when everyone is reacting emotionally.

Personally speaking I think most of the current problems are mental as several players (Tevez in particular) seem to be struggling for form and confidence and its certainly not for lack of effort.

Sorry Lee, I may be an idiot but I'm not delusional and the "Hughes out crowd" are a huge part of the problem as they seem to subscribe to the magic bullet theory that bringing in Mourinho or Hiddink will solve all of our problems. First off, Jose Mourinho will never come to City in a million years and given Hiddink's close ties to Abramovich, the idea of him coming to City are fanciful at best.

Hughes is no dunce and there is plenty of talent (and time) for this squad to easily string together a series of consecutive wins, but I think it would help if people stopped putting a clock on it.