Newsletter #1352

It hardly seems three months, but the new season is now upon us after a total overhaul at MCFC. Don’s news gives us the latest on new signings including Bonjovi, Sven’s purchasing strategy, the ‘keeper crisis and players now surplus to requirements following the summer rebuild.

We have opinion on the new owner and a plethora of requests.

NEWS SUMMARY

General News

Allegations Continue: The Thailand government has again made the claim that Thaksin Shinawatra purchased City with money that was hidden from the government. The current Thai government and the Asset Examination Committee (AEC) again made the statement that the money Thaksin used to make the purchase was never declared. “The former Prime Minister has abused his power by concealing his shares and converting them into cash,” AEC member Kaewsun Atibhodhi said. Shinawatra says the money he used to buy the club was legitimate, denouncing Thai accusations to the contrary as politically motivated. “The money I had came from the sale of the assets of my own family’s companies, from nowhere else, only this,” Thaksin said on the club podcast. “So the allegations in Thailand are politically motivated to justify the junta staging the coup against me, that’s it.”

It’s All Academic: Apart from dealing with the accusations against him, Thaksin has been outlining his plans to develop the club. He’s outlined ambitious plans to create City youth academies across Asia. “That will begin in September and the plan is to have the first ones opening in Thailand and China,” he said. “One of my major plans is to make the Academy – which has done a great job – even stronger. We will begin that process next month. They will not be just based in Asia or the Far East. We intend to have one in the United States too. We will appoint a senior executive to look at that area and he will be specifically responsible, but the headquarters of the Academy will remain in Manchester.” And of the first team, Shinawatra feels the club should be aiming for a top ten finish at least. “This season, I feel we should be able to finish in the top 10,” he told the M.E.N. “The second season we should be aiming for the top six and qualifying for Europe. I accept the first year is a learning curve but we should start to be successful by the third. That is what I would expect.”

Nice Guy Psycho: As if we needed further proof, we had another example of what a decent bloke Stuart Pearce is (Whether he’s a decent manager is, of course, a moot point). Sven was asked this week if he’d received any good luck messages from fellow Premiership bosses since taking over at City. “No. So far no. But I am sure I will get it,” he insisted. “I’ve had a phone call from the previous manager Stuart Pearce, which was very nice and he wished me good luck for the future. I hope he will come one day and visit us.”

The Only Football Team to Come From Manchester (1): Oh dear, it’s hard being a City person sometimes. Rolando Bianchi was left red-faced on Saturday morning – after turning up at the Reds’ training ground by mistake. Bianchi was picked up from Manchester’s Lowry Hotel, where he is staying following his £8.8 million move from Reggina, and instructed his driver to take him to the Carrington training ground. Unfortunately for the hapless Bianchi, the unsuspecting driver took him to United’s Carrington training ground, which lies adjacent to City’s.

Transfer News and Gossip

The Only Football Team to Come From Manchester (2): Last week’s spending spree ended with a fourth player joining the City ranks – Bulgarian international Valeri Bojinov signing a four year deal. The powerful 21-year-old striker comes from Fiorentina for an undisclosed fee, subject to a work permit. Bojinov became the youngest overseas player ever to make his début in Serie A when he played his first game for Lecce aged just 15 years and 11 months, having been recruited a year earlier after being spotted while playing in Bulgaria. After bagging 16 goals for Lecce over the next couple of seasons, Bojinov moved to Fiorentina in January 2005, by which time he had already made his full international début against Italy at the European Championships in Portugal. He gained valuable experience after being loaned out to Juventus in July 2006, his goals helping the Turin giants back into the top flight of Italian football, but after a year at the Stadio delle Alpi he returned to Fiorentina, but now SGE has moved to add the highly-rated young striker to his squad. Commenting on the deal, City Chief Executive Alistair Mackintosh said: “Our signing of Valeri is another sign of the impact made by Dr Thaksin and Sven-Goran Eriksson. Valeri is an exciting young player and a great addition to the squad.” Bojinov, described on BBC Radio as “the new Stoichkov”, said that the presence of Sven (or $ven, as the article called him) was the deciding factor in his move. “I would like to thank Mr Eriksson for giving me the possibility of this transfer,” Bojinov said. “I have spent eight years in Italy but now is the right time for me to change country. The club in Italy that appealed to me most was Torino, but I heard nothing from them. So, therefore I’m happy to be going to England. Manchester City is a great opportunity.” After such a glowing tribute, the manager then made a bit of a prat of himself. Charged with asking – in Italian – how pleased Bojinov was to be joining City, Eriksson proceeded to ask him if he was happy to be at Manchester United. “He is very happy to be here and I’ve told him it’s Manchester City, not United, he has joined,” joked the shame faced Swede afterwards.

Clear Out: Sven has put Danny Mills, Ousmane Dabo and Paul Dickov on the transfer list. Having signed 8 players in as many minutes (or so it seemed), it was inevitable that some squad trimming would take place. It came as no surprise when this was announced on Tuesday, because earlier in the week SGE had said: “I want a squad of 20 outfield players, so clearly players will leave. It’s never pleasant telling them they will go, but it’s something that has to be done. I’ve already started doing that but it’s never easy. I guess it will take some time to move them on because it won’t happen overnight. We had to take in a lot of new players for now and for the future, but Dr Thaksin has been fantastic and we should be very thankful to him for that.” The BBC reckoned that Georgios Samaras, Darius Vassell, Ishmael Miller and Kasper Schmeichel could also be on the way out. Coventry City have been linked with a deal to sign Dickov, Norwich were said to be interested in taking Mills. On selling Mills, Sven said: “It’s never easy. I have known Danny Mills a long, long time. He played a whole World Cup for England in Japan and did very well. Danny Mills is a super professional football player and is probably one of the fittest we have here. But sometimes maybe it’s time to move on and I’m sorry about that. He is a nice man, a good lad to have around and gives everything out there, you always know what you get from Danny and that’s 100%. He doesn’t have any other gear other than 100%.”

Sven Caught by the Goalies: If Sven still had names on his shopping list of players, he’ll be adding another to the list. A goalkeeper is now required, after it was found that first-choice Andreas Isaksson is likely to miss the first month of the season. The Swede has a hairline fracture of a thumb and, with Joe Hart, 20, also injured, it leaves inexperienced Kasper Schmeichel, 20, in the frame. “Unfortunately we had two goalkeepers get injured within two days,” Eriksson told mcfc.co.uk. “Joe Hart should be back training on Tuesday or Wednesday, a maximum of a week. Isaksson is worse, though, the medical staff say he will be away for four weeks. It’s not the best way to start the Premier League, starting with two very young goalkeepers. We will look at it on Monday. Unfortunately it’s more or less a must that we bring another ‘keeper in.” City were linked with a late bid for Hearts’ international Craig Gordon, but the stopper joined Sunderland instead. There was talk that Hearts were looking to bring in Kasper as Gordon’s replacement, although in the present circumstances this seems unlikely. Three names have been mentioned thus far in this week’s despatches – Scott Carson, Carlo Cudicini and Marco Amelia. City would have to spend big to prise Carson away from Liverpool. The Guardian says Carson is expected to be second choice behind Pepe Reina, but sources close to the England international insist Rafael Benitez would not countenance another season- long loan after his spell at Charlton last season. That impasse means it would take a substantial offer to prise Carson from Anfield. Chelsea’s Cudicini might see the move as an ideal chance to gain some first team football. The 34-year-old Italian has played only a dozen times for Jose Mourunho’s first team in the past two seasons. SGE meanwhile admits he’s keen on Livorno’s Marco Amelia, Italy’s third choice ‘keeper. “I know all about Amelia – he’s a very good goalkeeper,” revealed the garrulous Swede. Knowing Sven’s love of things Italian, perhaps Amelia is Manchester bound.

Bres Stroke: City transfer saga of the week concerned the Blues’ attempts to sign Australian international Mark Bresciano. With Ousmane Dabo being shown the door, Sven had a vacancy for a shaven headed holding midfielder, and the Palermo player fitted the bill. Skysports.com reported that Bresciano was flying in for talks with City, while Palermo Coach Stefano Colantuono all but confirmed the move. “His sale is almost certain, but I am not worried,” said Colantuono. “He is a good player, but I only want determined and motivated men who are eager to be part of this project. I would have fielded him down one of the flanks next season, but it’s not a problem and we will find an adequate replacement. We had already targeted a player, but the President of the club who owns him does not want to sell him.” Then there was silence for a couple of days. On Tuesday came news that Palermo were pulling the plug on the deal. “Manchester City really want Bresciano, but the more time goes on, the more convinced I am nothing will come of it,” said director of sport Rino Foschi on the official Palermo website. “There are not the right conditions to reach an agreement, even if we tried to make the player happy. It’s difficult to see another ending to this, so the player should meet us at training from tomorrow.” Thursday’s Guardian claimed that the Serie A club objected to City trying to structure the deal so they would pay only a small percentage of the transfer fee up front, followed by a series of payments over the course of Bresciano’s contract. Sven remains hopeful that the Blues will be able to complete the signing, however. He told Sky Sports News: “I hope it is still alive, but there were some problems. He was here, he trained with us and he’s a very, very good player. We knew that before, of course. I hope it’s still alive and I hope, in the end, he will play for us. Today’s Thursday, so I think it will be difficult to do something before the game against West Ham on Saturday, but I should welcome it if it happens.”

Chiellini Denial: Another alleged target is Giorgio Chiellini of Juventus. The captain of Italy’s under-21’s has been linked with City since Sven took over – one report claimed this week that City were in talks with Chiellini. Not so, according to Juventus sporting director Alessio Secco. “The news on Chiellini’s departure? There is nothing to report,” Secco told Juventus Channel. “Giorgio is part of the club’s plans and will stay here at Juventus. As for our transfer campaign, I can only reiterate what was already said recently. We have made the signings we want, but we will keep on assessing the various opportunities that arise. The team is basically ok as it is and there is great harmony with Coach Claudio Ranieri on this issue.” File this story under ‘watch this space’, because stories coming out of Turin suggest that City had offered £8.5 million, while Juve wanted £10 million – which in these days of ‘Moneybags MCFC’, isn’t a huge amount of difference.

Boro Bound? Middlesbrough are interested in signing Georgios Samaras. Boro boss Gareth Southgate would like to sign the Greek striker on loan for the season with a view to a £3 million deal next year, according to Sunday’s People. Later in the week, it was reported that City had turned this deal down – they want an outright sale of the striker, with a fee of £4 million being mentioned.

A Rag Bag of Speculation: Here’s another batch of unconfirmed rumours for you. Sven’s chasing Portuguese flyer Manuel Fernandez in a £10 million deal. Fernandes, who spent last season on-loan at Everton, would become City’s most expensive pre-season signing yet, according to Sunday’s newspapers. The Goodison Park club did want to keep the player but were not willing to come up with the huge transfer fee set by his club. Newcastle United face competition from City for Sevilla wing-back Ivica Dragutinovic. The Serbian insists the two Premier League clubs are interested in him and he is keen to move. Elsewhere, Santi Ezquerro is hoping for a move to the Premiership with City and Bolton Wanderers said to be interested in signing him from Barcelona. The 30-year-old has been told that he can leave Camp Nou this summer and is hoping to use pre-season as a shop window to finding a new club. A return to Athletic Bilbao has been mooted, while Celtic have also been linked with a move, but Ezquerro is keen on trying his luck in England. “It is no secret that the player has set his sights on playing in England and we are working towards that happening,” Barça’s technical secretary, Exiki Begiristain, said. And while we’re onto matters Iberian: SGE could be set to splash the cash yet again with a move for out of favour Real Madrid striker Antonio Cassano. Diariosport are reporting that representatives of the striker travelled to England yesterday to strike a deal that will take Cassano to the COMS. The Italian international has a £2 million price tag on his head and will command £2.5 million per season in wages.

Backing Britain? The UK coverage of Sven’s transfer splurge has pointed out that not one of his captures has been homegrown. The manager puts that down to one thing – the price of British talent. “Of course there are a lot of good English players,” he said. “I have no doubt about that. But if you want to buy the best young English players, the prices are over the roof. We have been looking and you will have to see if we sign one or not. But in any case, when the season starts we will have eight or nine British or Irish players, which is a good number. Of course there is room for people like Johnson and Ireland,” he added. “They are excellent players. They showed that last season and they are going to get better and better. It is the same with Onuoha and Richards. They are extremely good talents and they will both play a lot of games. I am not saying they will play 38 league matches, maybe no-one will do that. But they will play a lot. They are part of the future for this club.”

Video Evidence Accepted: During last week’s ‘spend spend spend’ session, the press latched onto Sven’s comments regarding his new players. Apparently he hasn’t seen all of his recruits play yet. He feels that he had little choice but to base his recruitment drive on video evidence offered by trusted advisers, chief among them Pini Zahavi, the Israeli ‘super-agent’. “Most of the new players I have never seen in action live,” Eriksson said. “It’s just not possible because the season has not even started. But I have seen videos of them and I have checked them out with friends who have seen them play. A lot of them the club scouts had seen before. I saw a lot of football during my break, but I saw less live football than I did in the previous five years, much less. I sat at home and watched four or five games during the week, though. I came to Manchester City very late and it came very quickly two months ago. That was the first time anyone spoke to me about City, so I can’t say that I had in my mind which kind of players would be suitable. I had to work quickly and find what we thought were the right players. If you try to go for the best players, such as the players in the England squad, it’s very difficult to get them. I tried for four, and two of the clubs would not even discuss a price to sell. The other ones were very expensive.”

Ex-Blues’ News

Flood of Tears: Willo Flood didn’t have the best of starts to his career in the Scottish Premier League. He’s gone on loan from Cardiff City to Dundee United, but was red carded before half time of his Scottish début against Aberdeen. He received a second yellow card on 42 minutes, for what the ref saw as a dive. The Scottish FA have vowed to crack down on on-field cheating, and United boss Craig Levein believes Flood has fallen victim to the campaign. He said: “With all of the recent hype and publicity surrounding diving and cheating, there was an enormous amount of pressure on the referee, although I want to stress at the outset that I have absolutely no problem with people who dive or cheat being sent off. But it would have to be today for there to be a situation where the referee has a choice to make. And I knew with all the recent publicity that it was a certainty there was going to be a sending-off. Willo said he wasn’t in the penalty area, played the ball past his opponent and was on for a shot at goal, so he had no reason to go down and he was just off balance. But I think there is now so much pressure on referees with all this hype and I don’t blame him for a second. However, it left us with an uphill battle. Luckily we were fit enough to cope with it.”

Jordan Banks on Fresh Start: Stephen Jordan has been talking about how he’s finding life at Burnley, his new club. “I’m settling in very well,” he told the Lancashire Telegraph. “When I met the manager, I liked him straight away, his honesty, and just the way he comes across. I think we can do pretty well this year.” It’s clear that Jordan didn’t expect to be shown the door by City. “I suppose it was a surprise when I left, because I had a clause in my contract where if I played 30 games, I’d get a new one, and I played the games, but the club ‘ummed and ahhed’ about it for almost half a season. When it came towards the end of the season when I was going to be out of contract, they offered me a deal I wasn’t happy with. I suppose I did feel let down, because I played 62 games for the club and was involved a lot in the last two seasons.”

After-Match Reactions and Comments

City Nil…: Valencia spoiled the welcoming party for City’s new owner and manager at Eastlands after a 1-0 pre-season friendly victory on Saturday. With five new signings in Sven’s starting line-up there was always going to be an element of the unknown about the clash with one of Spain’s four Champions’ League entrants. Eriksson would certainly have been able to pick a few positives out of the narrow defeat, not least the performance of young Michael Johnson. But David Silva’s early winner, combined with a series of missed chances including two by striker Rolando Bianchi, confirmed the thought that it may take some time for Eriksson’s new-look side to gel. SGE certainly made the right kind of positive, manager-like noises. He said: “I feel more positive than I did this morning after that performance. I liked what I saw. I am sorry we could not score a goal for them [the supporters], but they will come in the Premier League, I hope. We have some good young players, and I think we will have an exciting team this season. In seven days we will be better, that’s for sure. We will be more of a team. It is difficult to make a team in less than one month. It’s not easy, but I like it. But in fact, more than that, I love the job. It’s pressure, but there is that in any job, and I like that. I had one year without pressure, and I didn’t like it.”

Nice Day Out: Sven continued: “We saw two players who I have only seen in two practice sessions before now, which was good, but I knew already that Elano was a great player and Garrido is a very good left back. The other thing for me was that we matched Valencia, one of the best teams in Europe today. I thought we played as well as they did and created more chances than them. We had five new players out there, two of them have not played for us at all in pre-season and don’t speak English, so if you take all of that into consideration then today was good.” The manager was introduced to the crowd just before kick off, and was touched by the ovation he received, saying: “It was fantastic, I’m very happy and I want to say a big thank you to all the fans that came up today. It was a nice welcome and gave me a good feeling. Everyone that came today can see that we have brought good players to the club. They are young, hungry, want to play in the Premier League and they will be good for the club.” He also admitted that midfielder Elano Blumer won’t be ready for the Premiership kick-off next week. “Elano has not done anything since the Copa America,” Eriksson said. “It is impossible for him to be at 100% but I am confident he will do a big job for us.”

Did I Ever Say You Were My Hero? Injuries to Andreas Isaksson and Joe Hart meant that Kasper Schmeichel featured for the whole game. And Mini-Smikes was delighted to meet Valencia star Santiago Canizares. He told City’s website: “It was brilliant to play against a side like Valencia, for some reason I’ve always been a Valencia fan since I was five, and now I’ve played against my absolute idol in Santiago Canizares. It was a brilliant feeling to play, but result-wise I’m very disappointed. It’s a horrible feeling to lose at any time, especially in front of our own fans. I thought we played well, hit the bar twice, created a few openings and they did not have that many chances.” Valencia swapped ‘keepers at the break, but Kasper was delighted that his idol took the time to speak to him and give him a memento of the day. “He waited for me in the tunnel at half time and gave me his shirt, which was nice of him. We had a quick chat afterwards, he’s a top man, a real benchmark for goalkeepers.”
Team: Schmeichel, Richards, Onuoha (Jihai 62), Dunne, Garrido, Elano (Geovanni h-t), Johnson (Corradi 71), Fernandes (Hamann 71), Petrov, Ireland, Bianchi. Subs: Mentel, Ball, M MIlls, D Mills, Logan, Dabo, Miller, Vassell, Dickov, Samaras.

Squad News

Rich Pickings: Micah Richards likes what’s happening under the new regime at the COMS, and thinks that a top ten finish is not beyond the realms of reality. “We need a fresh start and to get a winning mentality in the side so we can really push on and have an enjoyable season,” Richards stated. “We want to have a real go at it. We’ve got a new manager, new players and staff and new ideas. It’s a really exciting period for everyone connected with the club. We took a lot of stick last season. Sven’s got the money and he’s certainly got the knowledge – it’s all about fighting the right blend now. With the new squad members and management in place, there’s no reason why we can’t finish in the top ten or eight.”

Vedran’s the Man: Vedran Corluka admits he was surprised at how swiftly his big-money switch to City was completed. “It has all happened very quickly,” he told the club’s website. “I was preparing to play for Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions’ League, but since then things have happened very fast and I’m very happy to be here. Every boy in Croatia dreams of playing in the Premier League and my dream has come true. Dinamo Zagreb are a great club but I have come to a really big club in Manchester City. I think the Premier League is in some ways better than the Champions’ League at times.” Corluka played for Croatia in the Euro 2008 game against England last season, a game which Croatia won 2-0. He feels that this was a good grounding for him in dealing with the Premiership’s finest. “That was my favourite game, because it showed to me and to the Croatian fans that I can play against players as good as Lampard, Rooney and the rest.” Sven said of his new defender: “He’s a good defender, another good player first of all and that’s the most important thing. He’s young and the good thing with him is that he can play in different rôles – centre half or right back. He’s a tall, big guy and we look forward to him starting here, it’s one more and I hope he will do very well for us. Vedran has plenty of international experience already at just 21 which is another plus for us.”

The Didi Man’s Still in Town: He may have been brought to the club by the previous manager, but Dietmar Hamann is determined to prove himself at City. “I want to play more games than last year, and show everyone what I’m capable of,” he told the club website. “We should be looking at the top 10, with everyone to settle in we have to take it game by game but I’m pretty hopeful. We lacked strength in depth last season, if we had a few injuries the cover just wasn’t there so it’s good to have a lot more faces around. It’s up to the team now to put a disappointing season behind us.” And he’s very impressed with the increase in the size of the squad. “More players means more competition, that’s better for me and for the team. You get pushed hard, you need to be on top of your game to play a match but that can only be good for myself. Since I started playing I’ve had competition, I’ve never feared it and I won’t this coming season either. I didn’t play well enough last season, but I’ve had a good pre-season with no injuries and I’m looking forward to Saturday.”

Permit Pleasure: Vedran Corluka and Valeri Bojinov have both been granted work permits. Neither Bulgarian striker Bojinov, 21, or Croatian defender Corluka, 21, met the strict criteria required, but Sven-Goran Eriksson made a personal appearance at the pair’s appeal hearing in Sheffield. Both are now eligible to feature in City’s Premier League opener against West Ham at Upton Park, but how much City fans will see of the pair is open to question. Neither striker Bojinov or defender Corluka has played a pre-season match so far, while Corluka was forced to board a flight back to Zagreb in order to get an official passport stamp allowing him to work in the UK. It means Corluka may not even be able to feature in City’s final training session before they head to London.

And Finally… “If Sven has s*****d your wife, clap your hands.” BBCi’s Chant of the Week, courtesy of City fans at Doncaster (thanks to the Babybruv for spotting that).

Note: I’m away on my holidays next week, so Sarah will be writing next week’s News Summary. Please send any items for the news to the usual email address. So long, for a couple of weeks.

OPINION: FRANK

Dear MCIVTA readers, thanks for the responses, positive and negative, on the long essay on Thaksin’s takeover that ran here about a month ago. I wanted to let anyone interested know that I’ve started a blog that is continuing the discussion of the issues raised there, looking at all sides of the question: http://thaksinskeptic.wordpress.com/

Don’t be put off by the title, I am examining both the arguments for and against our new chairman. The main goal is to provide resources to help City supporters and others make up their own minds about the questions at stake.

Am looking forward to the start of the season, trying to get to know an almost entirely new team, and meeting up with Ernie (Britcityblue) here in Virginia to watch some matches.

OPINION: SHARES

I see from my post that he is still trying to get the shares he needs to get the lot and has extended his offer until the 17th (AGM). I urge everyone who still holds to continue to keep them then we can see how he intends to deal with all this money he has shelled out.

P.S. on holiday for first three games, hope I return to 9 points earned (some hope!)

OPINION: GARRY’S WORLD

And lo…

The messiah did cast his eye over the assembled masses and it was good. Or so the interpreter and his agent said. Tell yer what, if this season is a belter I’ll show me arse in Burton’s winder.

How many times have we seen one great player introduced at another club, not City obviously, and him be a bit off the pace? <over-excited commentator with a Scottish voice on> He’ll tayk a whyle ta serttle to tha speed of the Premiahshep <off> The Premiership is a hostile place to be and previous evidence suggests it will take time for only one player to settle to it. We’ve got piggin’ dozens! Sven… I hope to Christ you are as good as we hope you are. No pressure though.

Hope Sven has used his not-England time to formulate his Fantasy-City side. If you can make this work then your place will be written amongst the greats. Mercer and Allison took a coupl’a years to mould the Greats. You’ve got ’til the Derby. My worst fears see a cricket score. My hopes see a lesson in how to score goals – ours of course.

Bobby Ball I’m excited!

REQUEST: WEST HAM DRINKS

Does anyone know where the City fans will be drinking before the West Ham game on Saturday please?

REQUEST: VALENCIA PROGRAMME

I was at the game on Saturday but because of road works on the M62 I arrived at CoMS too late to buy a programme, so if anyone has a spare one that they would like to sell on, please let me know.

I know it was Sven’s first match programme but there is probably someone out there who would not mind passing it on!

REQUEST: WEST HAM TICKET

Desperately seeking ticket for Upton Park – if you can help please email or call 0790 873 8897.

REQUEST: WEST HAM TRAVEL

I would just like to enquire whether or not anybody is aware of coaches going to the West Ham game with three seats available? I and two friends each have a ticket and a coach would be our preferable mode of transport.

I don’t want to sound like a lonely hearts ad but we are all in our thirties (me being the youngest I think you’ll find) if it makes any difference!

If you have any information, please let me know by e-mail, I’ll pick up any e-mails straight away so nobody will be hanging around.

P.S. Went to the stadium yesterday on the absolute off chance that they may have some spaces available on coaches, and was told that ‘both’ coaches were full. ‘Both!’ I’m assuming that these are 52 seaters. How many tickets were we allocated for this game?

REQUEST: SLOVENIAN BLUES VIEWING

I’m going to be in Ljubljana on Sunday 19th. Has anyone got any idea where I can watch our boys trounce the league champions?

REQUEST: TICKETS FOR THE DERBY

Complete longshot I know considering the interest in this game, but does anyone have two tickets available for the Man United game on the 19th?

I will be in Manchester that weekend and desperately want to go. And also keep you imbibed with Electronic Arts games if needed 🙂

REQUEST: DUBAI AND UAE BLUES

The Dubai Manchester City Supporters’ Club was formed in July 2007 by a group of expat City fans living in Dubai.

The club is based at the Players’ Lounge bar in Bur Dubai’s Chelsea Hotel and offers all City fans living in the emirate (or those just visiting on holiday) the opportunity to watch the boys live in action with fellow Blues.

Any City fans interested in watching the games with like-minded supporters are more than welcome to come down and join us at the Players’ Lounge on matchdays. If interested please view the website on the following link for all the latest happenings and meetings planned. http://www.mcfcdubai.blogspot.com/

MCFC Dubai Forum:
Register here to discuss all the latest goings on at Eastlands with other MCFC Dubai members. http://mcfcdubai.mysmf.com/

Contacts:
If you are interested in joining The Dubai Manchester City Supporters’ Club, please contact us at: <MCFCDubai(at)gmail.com> or <MarkLynch1978(at)hotmail.com> Tel: +971507168579

There is also an MCFC Dubai group on Facebook, so please pay us a visit if you are registered on the site: MCFC Dubai Facebook Group

Fantasy Premier League
Join the MCFC Dubai fantasy football league (entry code 67443-96517) at: http://fantasy.premierleague.com/

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The official club web site can be found at http://www.mcfc.co.uk/

[5] What supporters’ clubs are there?

Manchester City FC recognises three supporters’ clubs: The “Official Supporters Club” (http://www.mcfcosc.com/); the “Centenary Supporters’ Association” (http://www.reddishblues.com/CSAWebsite/CSA.htm) and “The International Supporters’ Club”.

[6] Where can I find out about Points of Blue (formerly the Fans’ Committee)?

The committee operates as an interface between supporters and the club. Points of Blue appears on the club website as a minor entry under “Fans Zone”.

[7] What match day broadcasts are available on the web?

The Radio Manchester (née GMR) pre and post match phone-in is available on the web at http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/sport/manchester_city/index.shtml.

Live match commentaries and archives of games, reports and interviews can be found at http://mcfc.videoloungetv.com/do/preLogin?clubSiteCode=MCFC&CMP=AFC-003.

[8] Where can I find out if City are live on satellite TV?

http://www.satfootball.com/pl.html provides a listing of Premiership games being shown on UK domestic and foreign satellite channels. Useful sites for North American viewers are http://msn.foxsports.com/foxsoccer, http://www.soccertv.com/, and http://www.livesoccertv.com/.

[9] Do we have a Usenet newsgroup?

Yes we do: uk.sport.football.clubs.man-city is our home on usenet. If you are not familiar with usenet, a basic explanation is available here: http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,289893,sid9_gci213262,00.html

[10] Do any squad members have their own web pages?

There are a number available and direct links can be found at http://www.uit.no/mancity/players/

[11] Where can I find match statistics?

Statistics for the current season are available from the club site, but for a more in-depth analysis try http://www.mcfcstats.com/.

DISCLAIMER
The views expressed in MCIVTA are entirely those of the subscribersand there is no intention to represent these opinions as being thoseof Manchester City Football Club, nor of any of the companies anduniversities by whom the subscribers are employed. It is not inany way whatsoever connected to the club or any other relatedorganisation and is simply a group of supporters using this mediumas a means of disseminating news and exchanging opinions.

Heidi Pickup, editor@mcivta.city-fan.org

Editor: