Newsletter #1354

Wednesday night saw another win, with a fine goal from Academy graduate Michael Johnson, against Derby County. Spirits and confidence obviously buoyed amongst the team and fans as we go into the derby on Sunday against a slightly depleted opposition.

Sarah brings us tonight’s news summary, including Thais on trial in the form of both players and the chairman, reaction to the performances and Dunne’s views on the squad.

We have a match report on the Derby County game thanks to Phil, plenty of opinion on the season ahead, the team and the usual requests.

NEWS SUMMARY

Trying Times: The first of a series of corruption cases being brought against the former Prime Minister of Thailand, Thaksin Shinawatra, is due to begin in Bangkok. Mr Thaksin was ousted by a military coup last year and is ordered to appear at the Supreme Court to hear charges he abused his power by helping his wife buy land from a state agency at a favourable price. He will be represented in Bangkok by his lawyers. Alleged corruption under Mr Thaksin’s administration was one of the main justifications given by the generals who mounted the coup, but it has proved difficult bringing the cases to court. When he was first elected Prime Minister, Shinawatra insisted his immense personal wealth offered a clear advantage – there would be no temptation, he said, to repeat the corruption endemic in previous governments, but a special committee set up to investigate him after last year’s coup believes that a number of abuses did take place – the first case is now being heard by the Supreme Court, which is responsible for trying political office-holders. There are at least 12 other cases of alleged corruption being investigated. The most serious allegations are that he concealed his real assets through a complex network of offshore companies, and that his policies helped enrich his family’s giant telecoms business. Mr Thaksin’s lawyers have denied all the charges, describing them as attempts by his political opponents to discredit him. If convicted on any of the charges he could face years in prison. The cases also have a bearing on his purchase of City, as the Premier League’s own rules prohibit anyone with convictions for fraud or bribery from owning a club.

Like it or loathe it – it’s hard to ignore: And for those who love it, orders are now being taken for the new Manchester City away kit. The eye-catching purple strip mirrors the home kit in its use of pinstripes, and is the same colour as the away kit from the inaugural Premiership season of 1992/93.

City gamble on Digibet: And it’s not just new signings on the pitch – City have a new sponsorship as well – with leading European sports betting company digibet. The innovative technology-led betting and gaming solutions company is keen to match the club’s ambitions on and off the field. So Digibet get to provide betting facilities within the stadium and City fans get to spend even more on a match day. A win-win situation for… the Club!

Two From Two (The Boys Done Well): After seeing his side keep intact their 100% start to the season, Sven-Goran Eriksson has reflected further on last night’s 1-0 win over Derby County. When asked what pleased him most about the victory, Sven replied: “The clean sheet, it’s always very good and you can build on that for the future. I’m sure that we can play better football. It will take some time, some of the new players are short on fitness and we need to have more playing time together to work on all the details in football. But so far I’m very pleased and they will be better soon.” With the new players shining on the opening day, last night belonged to City’s youngsters and an “old head”. Eriksson said: “We always talk about the new players, but take Micah Richards, Ireland and Johnson, three coming from the Academy, it was a fantastic performance from all three of them. With Kasper, we all know that he is young and has no experience of the Premier League. But he did well on Saturday and did extremely well against Derby with no mistakes at all. What you are always afraid of is when ‘keepers come out for crosses but he did an excellent job there.” Turning to that ‘old head’, Didi Hamann’s performance again was immense and a major factor in keeping the Rams out, a point not lost on Sven. “‘Well done young boy,’ I told him after the match because he really seems that way, but his experience is incredible,” smiled the Manager. “You could see at the end of the game how he keeps the ball and is very clever. I would be very happy if I could have a Hamann like this for 36 more games in the Premier League. He did very well again.” But Eriksson’s final word had to be about the match winner himself, 19-year-old Michael Johnson. He told us: “Michael scored an extremely good goal and he’s physically strong, can run all day and he’s a footballer, clever, good technique and of course he will get better with more experience. I know he’s only made 10 starts in the Premier League last season, but you couldn’t see that on the pitch.”

Johnson Gets His England Call-Up: Goal hero Michael Johnson is one of three City players called up for the England Under-21 squad to face Romania next Tuesday. The 19-year-old midfielder joins ‘keeper Joe Hart and full back Nedum Onuoha in former manager Stuart Pearce’s squad.

Three More Thais on Trial: Three Thai international players have joined City on trial. The trio, among their country’s top stars, will attempt to show Sven-Goran Eriksson that they are good enough to earn contracts. Eriksson will not be put under any pressure to sign any of them as they will be judged strictly on their merits and could be registered to play in reserve games. Thaksin pledged to give Thai players opportunities and left-back Suree Sukha, 24, centre-half Kiatprawut Saiwieo, 21, and 19-year-old striker Teerasil Dangda are the pick of the bunch. They were all in the Thai squad for the recent Asia Cup with Suree voted his country’s best player in the tournament. Shinawatra, who outlined ambitious plans to create youth academies all over the world, said: “They will begin next month and the plan is to have the first ones opening in Thailand and China. One of my major plans is to make City’s Academy – that has done a great job – even stronger. We will begin that process next month.”

Sven Commits to Youngsters as Ishmael Signs New Deal: Ishmael Miller has signed a new three-year deal and has now gone on a season long loan to West Brom. After making his début in the 2005/06 season, the 20-year-old forward burst on to the first team scene last season with a fine run to set-up Georgios Samaras’ first goal in the 2-0 home win over West Ham. A consistant performer on the reserve stage for City, Miller’s hopes for first team football might now be realised at West Brom, where Baggies’ boss Tony Mowbray believes that “Ishmael will give us a different option up front. He’s a big, quick, powerful lad who is looking for an opportunity to play more regularly. He will increase competition for places with the other strikers we’ve already got at the club.” City’s reserve coach Kenny Jackett added: “He’s ready to go out into the Football League, at 20 now. He’s been around the edge of the City side for a number of years. We think he’s ready to go out there and play, we wish him all the best. He’s full of ability, he wants the chance to be a first team regular and we’ll be watching his progress with interest.”

Dunne’s Who’s Who To The Blues: Blues’ skipper Richard Dunne has given his insight on the new arrivals as the season starts, and despite the wide range of nationalities, Richard says that everyone speaks the same language out on the field of play. “The last two weeks have been a bit strange,” he claims and “It can be difficult with all the languages, I’m having a lot of one-sentence conversations at the moment, but the main thing is that on the training field everyone understands and we’re all on the same level.” Richard has analysed all the newcomers, here’s what he says:

Elano: “I think he is the player that the fans will take to first, he’s a creator in midfield (as seen on Saturday when he set up the first goal) and the some of the skills he’s shown in training already have excited the players.”
Geovanni: “He’s along the same lines as Elano, his crossing is outstanding and I think he’ll be a set piece specialist.”
Martin Petrov: “He’s probably the most well-known of all the signings, he’s got great pace but he’s a really good lad as well. He’s up for a laugh and he seems to have settled in very quickly.” (he seems keen to have a shot at goal too!)
Rolando Bianchi: “Rolando’s been great, he’s another young lad coming to a foreign place and he has settled in really well. It seems like he’s been here for months as he was the first signing, but he’s very dangerous around the box.” (as evidenced by West Ham)
Valeri Bojinov: “A strong looking lad, a 100% player, chases everything down and he looks to have real ability.”
Gelson Fernandes “He’s been great, he’s only 19 or 20 but every time he plays he’s ordering us about and gets stuck in. He’s excitable, chases around and sometimes he drives the rest of us crazy!”
Vedran Corluka: “Vedran’s a really nice lad, a big, tall centre half and he’s probably the best English speaker out of all the new lads. He’ll get on well over here because he’s strong in the tackle and good in the air.”
Javier Garrido: “Javi probably has the least English, but the way he plays will make up for any doubts there. He’s very talented, another young defender and he’s linked up really well with Petrov in training.”

Rejected Tueart Rejects City Seats & Triggers a New Press Backlash: Dennis Tueart, axed as a £30,000-a-year director at City following the multi-million pound takeover of the club, is at the centre of an astonishing public row with the Blues. The Manchester City legend has accused “small-minded people in grey suits” of mounting a “childish” publicity campaign against him. But bemused club officials, who stress their focus has been helping Sven-Goran Eriksson build a new team following the £120 million takeover, deny any campaign and believe Tueart is entirely at fault for the breakdown in relations. Tueart, who has written an angry letter to the local newspaper, claimed it was disrespectful that his request for two directors’ box tickets, a car park pass and access to the boardroom lounge for the friendly against Valencia were rejected. He was instead given two main stand seats and so opted to listen to the game on the radio instead. Shinawatra’s decision not to include Tueart on his new board triggered a Sunday paper outburst last month in which he was critical of deputy chairman John Wardle, former boss Stuart Pearce and chief executive Alistair Mackintosh. He also complained he lost his directorship when his resignation letter was e-mailed to him a process that the club say is normal procedure when a takeover has occurred. Tueart’s letter reads: “I find myself having to defend my support for the club after a childish spin campaign managed by people in grey suits. I stand by what I said about the unprofessional way my resignation was handled but that will have no effect on the unqualified support that I have for Manchester City and its fans. From the time I signed in 1974, I feel I have developed a unique bond with you, the supporters. Whether it has been playing in the Blue shirt or representing the club from the boardroom, my vision has been to give the supporters a team to be proud of.” He goes on to say that the new recruits will need time to settle to achieve success and that he feels the City faithful will also be patient, before having another dig at the board “Those small-minded people in grey suits will not influence the depth of my support. I have too many fantastic memories from my playing days, working with the Academy, travelling around many of the supporters’ clubs speaking to fans and feeling as disappointed as they were after defeat. I would like to thank you personally for all the support that I have had over 33 years and look forward with you to an exciting future for Manchester City.” However, the club stressed that no campaign had been conducted against Tueart. Mackintosh and Wardle have had several meetings with him in an effort to find him a `consultancy rôle’ at City and the duo were surprised he went public (one never really knows what goes on behind closed doors, but I can’t help feeling that Tueart is appearing to be rather childish here – and I would like to know what rôle he had in the events that led to the departure of the former great chairman David Bernstein).

Bits & Pieces: As the ‘keeper debate rolls on, City are rumoured to have signed former Brighton and Hove Albion ‘keeper Richard Martin, who was released by the club at the end of last season, on a month’s loan. The 19-year-old ‘keeper, once targeted by liverppol and Everton, has been snapped up by City boss Sven Groan Eriksson after being recommended by their goalkeeping coach, ex-Seagulls legend Eric Steele. He will become 2nd choice ‘keeper following a recent injury to the Blues’ first choice ‘keeper Issakson. However, we currently have Schmeichel and Hart and who knows whether Amelia will sign as rumours abound of a proposed swap involving Bernado Corradi, who has also been linked with a move to Napoli. As the ‘News’ closed Sven was praising Schmeichel’s performances against West Ham and Derby and ‘realising’ that perhaps the solution to the ‘keeper crisis is actually within our own hands!

Mills Set For Rovers: Doncaster Rovers are believed to be close to signing City defender Matthew Mills on a six-month loan deal. Mills, who played under the current Rovers’ boss Sean O’Driscoll at Bournemouth is expected to sign in time for Saturday’s match vs Hartlepool. And Preston may not be without a City striker altogether as, although they lost out on Miller, they are reported to be interested in Vassell after losing David Nugent to Pompey.

Mpenza Makes a Comeback: Emile Mpenza (I had wondered what had happened to him) last night featured in the reserves match against Bolton, playing 45 minutes in his return from injury. City lost the match 2-1, but have a chance for revenge next Wednesday when they play the same opponents again. Mpenza also came on as a late sub vs. Derby.

MATCH REPORT: MCFC 1 DCFC 0

With a new owner and new manager in a new era, Manchester City opened the campaign at home with a deserved win against an enthusiastic, well organised Derby side in a rousing atmosphere that hummed with optimism.

Sven kept the same eleven that defeated West Ham so impressively with the hard-working Bianchi playing as a lone striker with the skilful Brazilian, Elano, just behind him in an advanced midfield rôle. City started off with purpose, with the intelligent Elano pulling the strings in midfield, ably supported by the pacy Petrov who excites down the left, and the guile of Ireland on the right. Michael Johnson, who seems to have grown a couple of inches since May, looked accomplished in central midfield, combining particularly well with his partner, Hamann. The young Mancunian started off hesitantly in front of goal before hitting one long range effort a foot over the bar. It was a warning shot of what was to come.

Derby too attacked spiritedly and Schmeichel was forced to save sharply from Pearson after it seemed like he had come out too far. City had a tendency to give away free kicks on the edge of the box, one of which brought a booking for dissent by Petrov. Thankfully, none of these free kicks came to anything.

The game’s decisive moment happened as the game moved towards half time. With two minutes left before the break, Michael Johnson drove forward powerfully from midfield and played the ball to Elano, who cleverly swivelled and played an inch perfect pass through into the path of the advancing Johnson. The youngster advanced into a big gap in the centre of the Rams’ defence, controlled the ball on the run with his left foot, and hit a sumptuous rising drive with the outside of his right foot over the Derby goalkeeper and into the net. He was mobbed by just about every team mate as the stadium erupted with joy. Johnson, who bears a passing resemblance to the great Colin Bell, scored a goal that was worthy of the man that Malcolm Allison nicknamed Nijinsky. That said, it would be really unfair to put too much pressure on the young man by making any such comparisons, and in any case, Michael Johnson is a very promising player in his own right.

Derby lacked teeth in the second half with their biggest threat being a low cross that Schmeichel gathered cleanly. The young Dane’s shot stopping ability was very good throughout and he grew in confidence as the game went on to the point where he gave the defence the sort of rollicking that his famous father dished out. The one concern with him is his lack of height: one cross totally eluded him in the first half due to his lack of inches but he redeemed himself with a confident claim in the 2nd half.

The City defence looked the part, though they were not truly tested by a limited Derby side. Micah Richards looked particularly solid as a left sided centre back and Richard Dunne dealt with the aerial threat as reliably as ever. If there is one criticism of Dunney, he needs to sharpen up his passing, especially as Sven wants to play a passing game on the deck and he has with competition from the likes of Onuoha and Corluka, who excelled on this occasion as a right back. Indeed, the Croat was very impressive and showed some lovely touches going forward as well as being very competent defensively. At left back, Garrido, though not as quick as the Croat, read the game well.

Sven brought on the subs in the last third of the game, with the tricky Geovanni replacing Petrov and Bojinov replacing the industrious Bianchi; it nearly paid dividends when Geovanni’s cross from the right eluded all the sky blue attackers, including Ireland’s flailing boot.

The deserved man of the match was the revitalised Hamann, who showed that he is a true class act when surrounded by players who are on the same wavelength as him. He made countless tackles and kept the game simple, showing some lovely control throughout.

It wasn’t quite the fluent performance of the previous Saturday, with clever ideas not quite coming off on several occasions but it is unfair to expect so many players to be on the same wavelength immediately. This was a good result in the circumstances against a stubborn, newly promoted side and it was an entertaining game. After so much dross last season we were given something to cheer, and the atmosphere was like it used to be at Maine Road: noisy, humorous and buoyant, putting paid to the myth that the new stadium lacks soul. It was certainly good to be part of the banter between two passionate sets of fans, and even better to enjoy football again.

This report is dedicated to the memories of my wife’s mother, Heather Dolan, and my father, Binayendra Banerjee, who both passed away recently and are missed very much. Heather worked with distinction as a nurse for many years and my dad worked tirelessly as a doctor in the North West for more than 35 years. He ignited a passion for football within me and introduced me to Manchester City in 1980. Thanks for everything, Dad. May they both rest in peace.

OPINION: THE NEW SEASON

I must admit it’s been a helluva fun couple of months. Last season ended like so many of the bangers I used to buy as a nipper. Fizzle fizzle and no bang. Definitely ended on a whimper. We all loved Psycho. Great bloke, trained electrician, animated as hell with punk credentials. However, it just didn’t work – we know all this. Now we have new bloke, trouser snake Sven.

To be honest I was excited about getting Tinkerman, I thought it was a done deal. We need some foreign objectivity. Then that fell through. Dour Sam was touted and I thought he was a done deal. Then that went pear-shaped. Typical City. My plan at this point was to get genial Joe Royle back, give him a budget of 50 quid and tell him he we were in the old First Division and we needed promotion bad. Andy Andy Andy Andy Morrison was to get 2 new knees and be played as a roving striker / hit man. Genius, right?

Then my old fella tells me that Sven is the secret “dark horse” that will lead the Blue revolution. Incidentally, Thomas Cook arranged the travel facilities for that renowned battle that involved a certain famous cavalry charge. It’s fate I tell you! I’m ignoring the Frank money issue. So much money in footie is dirty as hell. There is no getting away from that. Fox, Nike etc.

But back to the Sven factor – he’s pulling in class internationals. Younger quality players. Nothing against Dickov, but what did he bring to the team on his return? He’s getting rid of the surplus and moving us forward. I seriously think now we can be a force in the Premier League. Corradi, who I still rate, is finding his form. Last season you could see his frustration with the formation and playing style. He looked like a thoroughbred with giant haystacks on his back (well, sort of).

And lastly it’s great for the Blues to get tons of press. Living in the USA we had all that “phony Beckham mania”, which lasted like 2 weeks (Yanks have very short attention spans), then “poster boy diving prancing pony hammer horror teeth” Tevez all over Fox Sports online. But the Sven factor kept knocking them off the top stories. Marvellous.

So I say “bring ’em on – it’s good to be a Blue again” I might even get over to the CoMS this year.

OPINION: SPEND, SPEND, SPEND

I just have to comment on Mike Holden’s comments in MCIVTA 1353, and to some extent Joel Perry’s as well.

Firstly, my comments about buying new players were not “a rant” or an “outburst”, nor were they “truly spectacular”. They were thoughts that I decided to share.

In the time between my writing those thoughts to MCIVTA and them being sent out it transpired that Sven did most of his signings off scout reports and video. As such I kind of feel a bit vindicated: he rushed it a bit.

I wasn’t suggesting that the signings were bad (or that they were good, for that matter), just that they were hurried and this could have an impact on the club as a whole that I hadn’t seen discussed in MCIVTA.

This isn’t being negative, this is about asking questions around a club we all care about. Suggesting that a manager actually thinks about what he’s doing before spending money isn’t “berating” anybody – it’s common sense.

Mike Holden also implies it’s a bit ludicrous to suggest that players who’ve been with the club a while deserve a chance to prove themselves under the new regime. This is exactly what Sven himself said they had the opportunity to do – shortly before making it clear with his signings that he didn’t really mean it.

You know, some of the players we played last season are never going to represent their country, because they’re just not good enough. They know that. Instead of wallowing, they work hard to stay in the Premiership. We can’t think what they go through – physically, mentally, emotionally – to stay good enough to walk out on that grass every week.

They give everything they can, even if everything they can is not the best in the World, or even this country. It’s all we had, it’s all they had, and they cared. They’re sincere about their passion for this game. They did well enough to keep us alive, to keep us in the top tier.

We owe them at least a bit of respect. On our behalf, so does Sven.

That was my point.

Joel Perry’s comments are more constructive but I can’t entirely agree with him. Yes, some of the signings were needed to address weaknesses from last season, but eight? Eight!? Surely there can’t have just been three places on the pitch we had enough strength last season? If so, our lack of relegation is truly remarkable – bordering on a miracle.

I agree that Sven is a man who has experience and an eye for the game that is rare at any level – we’re fortunate to have him. My only suggestion was that his actions were rushed and that they aren’t guaranteed to be a success. I’m sorry if people think I’m wrong for voicing these concerns.

Personally, I think the signings all have potential. However, I think it’s disingenuous to suggest that because we’ve spent money something positive has happened – it just means something has happened, and it’s going to take half a dozen games or more to work out whether that something is inspired or crack-pot. Yes, I’m excited, but I’m also curious.

In the software industry (which I work in) there is a phrase known as “drinking the Kool-Aid”. To have drunk the Kool-Aid means you’re blindly following hype without really thinking about what you’re doing. I think a lot of people around City are so pleased that something interesting and constructive is going on that a few have had a bit too much Kool-Aid.

The whole point of MCIVTA and other forums is to give us a chance to constructively debate all of these issues. Dissent isn’t a sign of wallowing, it’s a sign of fans who think about what is going on. We ask about the consequences of each decision instead of just blindly insisting that the manager “must know best”. After all, we’re City fans, not United fans…

OPINION: FRANK

So our esteemed new owner is now subject to an international arrest warrant. It’s never dull, and always a first.

Word of advice Frank, keep a lower profile please as your publicity seeking is just drawing more unwanted attention and such action, and if you are innocent (until proven guilty, as is the law of the land) then go and prove it and let’s get this all over and done with and City can move on and concentrate on trying to keep where they are in the league right now.

OPINION: COUPLE OF POINTS

Monday’s Telegraph had this to say about the first game of the season:

“Elano, a 26-year-old Brazilian costing £9 million from provincial Ukraine, was on a different plane …”

Perhaps that’s why he “ghosted” past the opposition. They say the battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton, but I always thought that was about inculcating mental toughness rather than a warp in the time-space continuum. Mind you, if Svengali has been recruiting doppelgangers it’s bound to be good value for money. They could turn out for the first team and the reserves simultaneously. Or you could bring one on as a substitute when the other is tired. But it might be upsetting to see them hugging each other if one of them scores. And if there’s any voodoo involved, I hope there’s a by-law against slaughtering poultry in venues to which the public have access.

The other day I was half-listening to a song I hadn’t heard for years (Joan Baez, Carry it on) when I was suddenly struck by the inspiring words of the last verse:

“When you can’t go on any longer,
Take the hand of your brother,
Every victory brings another,
Carry it on, carry it on
Carry it on, carry it on.”

Marvellous stuff for a football crowd. Imagine five thousand or so singing that (you’ll have to trawl for the music yourselves). Bit low in parts, but not so low as “blowing” in “blowing bubbles”. Bit high in parts, but not so high as “never” in “never walk alone” or “Road” in “Scotswood Road”.

For me, Blaydon Races is the best footie song. The fans who happen to be in possession of it probably don’t realise how lucky they are to have it.

OPINION: AND ANOTHER COUPLE

1. After a few postings on the matter at certain points over the years,another one on City playing in white. I think this should be made our mainaway kit. It looked so cool on Saturday, shades of Whitey scoring four atVilla in midweek c/91 and Quinn bagging the perfect hat-trick at Palace.This kit should never have been limited edition and I am going to write tothe club and urge them to put it out on a wider basis, and with a long-sleeved version made available.
2. An exchange of texts between me and a friend at 4.50pm Saturday:
   “City’s new signings are going to have trouble adapting to the pace of thePremiership, so I hear”
   “The Premiership is going to have trouble adapting to the pace of City.”

OPINION: AND ANOTHER

1. Great to see that even after all the spending, Sven can still findspace for our Academy players – with Micah and Nedum standing out – a runthat if Elano had made the critics would say what class Brazilians have!
2. Are Peter and Kasper the first father and son to play in thePremier League? Surely some Stattos out there may have the answer? Anotherfirst for City?

Great to have something really positive and exciting to read about the team – long may it continue!

OPINION: ONLINE VIEWING

I was desperate to watch the West Ham match on Saturday and searched around on the Internet for an appropriate site. I came across pcfootie.com that boasted £7.50 for the season and thought I’d give it a try.

To watch the match you have to download the appropriate software and install it, but I gave it a go and was rewarded with seeing City destroy WHU in the first half hour! The picture quality was good enough to enjoy and the commentary was in English. Great for those games you can’t get to.

Despite his critics Sven has made a fantastic start, I hope he makes them eat their words, if the lads can keep up the standard we could be looking at the top six. Can’t wait for Wednesday and Sunday and am so excited about the season. Come on City, let’s be top by the end of the week!

OPINION: THIS CHARMING MAN

Quoting Phil Banerjee from MCIVTA 1353:

“As for those lazy hacks who say that Eriksson’s teams only play dull, stereotyped football, well (to use a Sven-ism), they are about as wide of the mark as those people who said that The Smiths were depressing. They just don’t get it!”

It’s only people who think the Smiths weren’t depressing who don’t get it. The whole point of the Smiths was about being depressing. But Sven has started to cheer me up.

REQUEST: DERBY TICKET

My friend Andy is after one derby ticket – if anyone has a friend who doesn’t make it and you’re holding their ticket at midday Sunday, please contact me on 07712 179 346. I’ll put you straight in touch with him. He’s been told he’s got more chance of knitting fog but I promised him I’d post this.

REQUEST: KINGSTON (UPON THAMES) BLUES VIEWING

Are there any fellow City fans in or around the Kingston upon Thames area who would like to meet up for a beer and watch Man U get slaughtered on Sunday?

REQUEST: NEW ZEALAND BLUES

We are looking to try to kick start the Centennial Supporters’ Club off again. If you are interested, please contact me at the address below.

REQUEST: DERBY COUNTY PROGRAMME

Please does anyone know where I can get hold of a programme for the game against Derby County? I collect them, but 10 minutes before kick off they were all sold out.

REQUEST: FIXTURES CONUNDRUM

Does anyone know why on some fixtures lists, it says we’ve got either Newcastle at home or Boro away for the last game of the season? Odd.

RESULTS

15 August 2007

Birmingham City       2 - 2  Sunderland            24,898
Fulham                2 - 1  Bolton Wanderers      21,102
Manchester City       1 - 0  Derby County          43,620
Reading               1 - 2  Chelsea               24,031
Wigan Athletic        1 - 0  Middlesbrough         14,007
Portsmouth            1 - 1  Manchester United     20,510

14 August 2007

Tottenham Hotspur     1 - 3  Everton               35,716

League table to 15 August 2007 inclusive

                             HOME          AWAY        OVERALL
                    P  W  D  L  F  A  W  D  L  F  A  W  D  L  F   A   GD  Pts
 1 Everton          2  1  0  0  2  1  1  0  0  3  1  2  0  0   5   2   3   6
 2 Manchester City  2  1  0  0  1  0  1  0  0  2  0  2  0  0   3   0   3   6
 3 Chelsea          2  1  0  0  3  2  1  0  0  2  1  2  0  0   5   3   2   6
 4 Sunderland       2  1  0  0  1  0  0  1  0  2  2  1  1  0   3   2   1   4
 5 Newcastle Utd    1  0  0  0  0  0  1  0  0  3  1  1  0  0   3   1   2   3
 6 Arsenal          1  1  0  0  2  1  0  0  0  0  0  1  0  0   2   1   1   3
 7 Blackburn R.     1  0  0  0  0  0  1  0  0  2  1  1  0  0   2   1   1   3
 8 Liverpool        1  0  0  0  0  0  1  0  0  2  1  1  0  0   2   1   1   3
 9 Fulham           2  1  0  0  2  1  0  0  1  1  2  1  0  1   3   3   0   3
10 Wigan Athletic   2  1  0  0  1  0  0  0  1  1  2  1  0  1   2   2   0   3
11 Portsmouth       2  0  1  0  1  1  0  1  0  2  2  0  2  0   3   3   0   2
12 Manchester Utd   2  0  1  0  0  0  0  1  0  1  1  0  2  0   1   1   0   2
13 Birmingham City  2  0  1  0  2  2  0  0  1  2  3  0  1  1   4   5  -1   1
14 Derby County     2  0  1  0  2  2  0  0  1  0  1  0  1  1   2   3  -1   1
15 Reading          2  0  0  1  1  2  0  1  0  0  0  0  1  1   1   2  -1   1
16 Aston Villa      1  0  0  1  1  2  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  1   1   2  -1   0
17 Middlesbrough    2  0  0  1  1  2  0  0  1  0  1  0  0  2   1   3  -2   0
18 West Ham United  1  0  0  1  0  2  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  1   0   2  -2   0
19 Bolton Wndrs     2  0  0  1  1  3  0  0  1  1  2  0  0  2   2   5  -3   0
20 Tottenham H.     2  0  0  1  1  3  0  0  1  0  1  0  0  2   1   4  -3   0

MCIVTA FAQ [v0708.01]

[1] MCIVTA Addresses

Articles (Heidi Pickup)          : editor@mcivta.city-fan.org
News/rumour (Don Barrie)         : news@mcivta.city-fan.org
Subscriptions (Madeleine Hawkins): subscriptions@mcivta.city-fan.org
Technical problems (Paul)        : paul@city-fan.org
FAQ (David Warburton)            : faq@mcivta.city-fan.org

[2] What are MCIVTA’s publishing deadlines?

Deadlines for issues are nominally 6pm, Monday and Thursday evenings bu email. Unfortunately we cannot accept email attachments.

[3] MCIVTA Back Issues and Manchester City Supporters’ home page

http://www.uit.no/mancity/ is the unofficial Manchester City Supporters’ home page. Created in 1994, it is the longest running of the Manchester City related web sites. Back issues of MCIVTA are also hosted on the site.

[4] What is the club’s official web site?

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: