Newsletter #1722

News and reaction tonight to the semi-final victory with player and manager reaction, PFA votes and pre season friendly announcements.

We’ve Wembley experiences, pessimism and the usual requests.

Next up: Blackburn.

NEWS SUMMARY

General News

Keeping it Fresh: Following the club’s fantastic FA Cup semi-final win at the weekend, Roberto Mancini has urged his players to up their league form and consolidate fourth place. With the majority of his squad now fighting fit, the boss thinks his side will be fresher than their opponents going into the final weeks of the season and expects them to start picking up some points away from home. Though Vladimir Weiss has returned from Rangers in the last couple of weeks with a broken foot, Mancini believes the return of AJ and Micah will bolster City’s bid for fourth: “The players are looking fresher. We had problems when we played every three days. Now most of the players are available and that is important. Now is the time to start winning more away matches. Every game we play to win but that is not always possible. We have always had a good spirit this year but it has improved a lot. There were times we were really tired because we had a number of injured players.”

Blue Moon Rising: If the Blues did secure fourth place, Mancini is sure that his side could turn the tide in their favour when it comes to local rivalry. For years United have dominated proceedings when it came to success and now, with City set to qualify for Champions’ League football and possibly bring silverware home to the Blue half of Manchester for the first time in 35 years, the Italian boss has warned United to keep a watch over their shoulders: “From next year everything would be different. I don’t know if United think that but I think it will be different if we win. They know that Manchester City are an important team now. We have improved every year, and in the future Manchester City will be an important club in the world. If we win the FA Cup, it will change everything.”

US and Them: City have scheduled a trip to the US into their pre-season preparations ahead of the 2011/12 campaign. In a bid to raise their global profile, the Blues will re-visit the country in which they faced Inter Milan, Sporting Lisbon and New York during last season’s New York Red Bull Challenge. Vancouver Whitecaps will host Mancini’s men on July 19th at Empire Field and Vancouver’s CEO Paul Barber admitted how chuffed he was that the Canadian minnows had organised such a prestigious fixture: “We are thrilled to be playing an English Premier League club in Manchester City FC at Empire Field.”

Squad News

Captain Fantastic: City skipper Carlos Tévez has finished third in the vote for the PFA Player of the year. The Argentine striker, who has scored 19 league goals for the Blues this season, was pipped to the award by Tottenham’s Gareth Bale, while Arsenal’s Samir Nasri finished runner-up. PFA Chief Executive Gordon Taylor praised Tévez for the impact he has had at CoMS this season: “He’s the leader of the team, and if there’s a lost cause to be chased, Carlos Tévez is the man to chase it. His goal scoring record, certainly for City, is up there with the best, but I think the thing the fans love most about him is the fact that he just never gives up, and sets the perfect example to the players around him.”

Carlos in Good Kompany: Though he missed out on the individual award, Tévez was named in the PFA Team of the Year alongside team-mate Vincent Kompany. The Belgian centre back has finally received some long overdue recognition after a season of outstanding performances for the Blues and though he is grateful to be recognised by his peers, ‘Vinnie’ is keen to focus on team matters: “The awards are nice but there’s only ever been one target for me and that’s to win prizes with City. I’m very grateful for it but ultimately my only goal is to lift silverware at the end of the season with my team-mates. But this is all past us now and we have to think about the future. There’s not a single easy game coming up and we’ll need the fans to do the exact same thing as they’ve done in those big games for us. I’m really happy about facing Stoke in the final, but for me that’s a discussion that I’ll want to have a couple of days before that game. Right now there’s so many games in-between that could make this season different from any other season here before. We have to focus on achieving a win at Blackburn, everything else comes later. We take it all one game at a time.”

Hart-y Response: England ‘keeper Joe Hart has been praised by his club manager for responding to the challenge he was set at the start of the season. Ahead of the first game of the season, Mancini was faced with the dilemma of which goalkeeper to choose. Experienced international Shay Given or young prospect Joe Hart. Mancini plumped for Hart and the former Shrewsbury goalie hasn’t looked back since. More clean sheets than any other top flight ‘keeper, a string of outstanding displays and now the established number one for his country, Hart really has come good this season, and Mancini thinks there’s more to come: “It was very difficult for me at the start of the season when I had to decide who to pick because we had two fantastic goalkeepers. The reason I picked Joe was I felt he could become the best goalkeeper in England – and he has. But he is young. It is only his second season in Barclays Premier League. He can improve a lot. He can be the best goalkeeper here for a long time.”

Calling Time? Veteran midfielder Patrick Vieira has admitted that he may play on past this summer. The French international had been expected to hang up his boots at the end of this campaign but the former Arsenal man has admitted that he’s not sure it’s his time to go. Whether he would remain at City is another matter, but Vieira has explained that if an opportunity presents itself then he would have to consider remaining in the game: “Will I end my career in June? It is still 50-50 at the moment. It would not be a problem for me to stop tomorrow because I have been lucky enough to experience everything. I still want to play and if I have an exciting proposition here or somewhere else in England, I would probably play on. If I have nothing exciting, I will stop. There is a chance I could stop, but at the moment my mind isn’t telling me that I will be stopping in a couple of months.”

Rumour Mill: Inter Milan manager Leonardo is keen to bounce back from this year’s awful campaign by spending his way out of trouble in the summer. The Brazilian has struggled to make his mark on the struggling European Champions since Rafa Benitez was sacked last year, and it is rumoured that he is planning audacious moves for Carlos Tévez and Alexander Kolarov. Leonardo’s former club, AC Milan, have again been linked with City striker Mario Balotelli. The controversial striker has made no secret of his love for the Milan club and may be persuaded to move back to Italy following kind words from AC favourite Flippo Inzaghi: “Obviously, I would love Balotelli to join us. He would find many positive examples in the squad to learn from. I’d also like my friend Kaka to return.” Berlusconi’s side have also been linked with a swap deal including Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edin Dzeko. He may have David Silva currently at his disposal, but Mancini is said to be keen to add a playmaker to his current squad. World Cup finalists Wesley Sneijder and Andre Iniesta have both been mentioned, while Kaka and Arsenal’s Samir Nasri are also said to be targets of the Italian coach. If Mancini can capture the signature of Nasri, he may also be keen to bring England wonder-kid Jack Wilshere to Eastlands. The Arsenal youngster has denied such speculation, but it is believed City’s planned £40 million bid would test Arsenal’s financial resolve.

Post-Match Reaction

Head and Shoulders Above the Rest: Not exactly the best way to prepare for their most important game of the season, but safe to say Andy Carroll was well deserving of all three points on this occasion. Two for the latest England striker and one for Dirk Kuyt, Liverpool had the game wrapped up in the first 35 minutes and City, without Nigel de Jong, David Silva and Carlos Tévez (who pulled his hamstring after just 14 minutes) simply weren’t at the races as Dalglish’s side continued their revival. Though it would be fair to say that the players let the manager down on this occasion, Mancini took responsibility for his side’s poor showing: “We did not play for the first 20 minutes, when Liverpool played very well. But tonight I made some mistakes, so it is my fault. The players could do better, but I made mistakes. I’m sorry for the fans, because we only started to play after 20 minutes. It’s for me to know what I did. Liverpool started quickly, they are strong at home and we conceded a lot of chances to them early. After that we played, but not in the first 20 minutes. With all the other teams having won at the weekend, it was important to win this game but it is important we forget this and prepare for the semi-final.” Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish was keen to thank City fans for paying their respects during the minute’s silence in remembrance of the Hillsborough victims: “This week is the 22nd anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster. At the game on Monday night the minute’s silence was brilliantly honoured. We’d like to thank the City fans for that. They deserve a great amount of credit for their behaviour. It shows that people can put aside their football rivalries.”

We Took the Poznan to Wembley! Where to start? From the 8am start to the 1am finish, it was by far the best day of this young Blue’s life. City coaches invaded the M40 on the way down to London, and the lack of United travelling fans was best summed up when Birmingham Radio told Villa fans travelling to their game with West Ham that they may be faced by travelling masses in Blue. No mention of any Red army. No sight of any United coaches. The whole day was Blue.

On the pitch, Gareth Barry was superb, Pablo Zabaleta was unstoppable (even when Paul Scholes was sent off for scraping his studs down the Argentine’s leg) and Yaya Touré was simply awesome. The Ivorian was quick to make the most of a Michael Carrick mistake and his clever finish was the only thing separating the two sides… that and the volume levels of course. How different it could have been had Joe Hart not made the save of the season to deny Dimitar Berbatov from close range, or had Alex Ferguson spent £32 million on a player capable of scoring in an empty net only moments later.

As ‘Blue Moon’ rang around Wembley Stadium at the final whistle, realisation dawned on the 31,500 travelling Blues that a first Cup final for 30 years lay in wait and a 35 year trophy drought may soon be coming to an end. Though Mancini played his part in the staff’s post-match Poznan, the Italian coach has emphasised the importance of putting the club’s Cup final with Stoke on the back burner and instead focussing on the upcoming Premier League games: “Today we have only won the semi-final. I’m very happy for the supporters. They have never had a day like this afternoon but for us it’s important we forget. We still have to play another game. Probably the final will be harder than this.” ‘Keeper Joe Hart made arguably the save of the season with Dimitar Berbatov through on goal and the England goalie expressed the club’s delight at reaching the final: “It means the world, just look at us. The boys are over the moon, the fans are over the moon and the staff are over the moon but we’ve won nothing yet. We’ve done nothing yet but we’ve got ourselves in a good position in the league and in the final and I’m so happy for the people here. Our fans were brilliant.”

Goal-scorer Yaya Touré has earned himself a place in the City history books with his crucial winner last weekend and has said that he hopes to win the trophy as a reward for the fans: “I am very happy. We have beaten our big rivals, which is fantastic and we are going to enjoy it. I am really happy for the fans. They have been waiting 35 years for a trophy. It is a long time. I think this is going to be the year for Manchester City. But it is not finished. We have to take a second step in the final. We know that. We know we have not won anything yet.”

Vincent Kompany was skipper for the day in the absence of Captain Fantastic Carlos Tévez. The Belgian defender was his usual brilliant self as he led his side to glory and though he admits he feels sorry for Tévez who was forced out of the game by injury, Kompany has revealed what an honour it was to be captain for the day and has thanked the City fans for their incredible support: “Tévez is the club captain so it was sad for us that he wasn’t there and we’re all looking forward for him to be back, but to step in during his absence, for me was a great honour. I’ve always been a player who’s grown with responsibility and who’s been that type who likes to drive the others forward. Whether I have the armband or not my rôle in the team stays the same. The fans can make such a huge difference – and they really did at Wembley. You can feel when the fans are really up for it and it becomes a different game for us as well. You saw that as soon as we had the first chance, the game was shifting towards us.”

MATCH VIEW: MCFC 1 MUFC 0

Every Blue who reads MCIVTA was either at the match, watched it on the telly or has seen the extended highlights via the MCFC website. I am not going to attempt to relay the blow-by-blow action. We know the script. It was a fabulous day out; well worth the trip across from Vancouver. Hopefully I can get my hands on a ticket for the final, even though the allocation to each club has been dropped from 31,000 for the semi to 25,000 for the final, plus there will be more hands out from corporate sponsors and players. I just managed to scrape over the line with 2,250 loyalty points on my seasoncard but this may not be enough for the final. Ticket touts must love the way that the FA prices and distributes tickets for the ‘neutrals’. I wonder how many tickets John Terry will have to sell? It was no different in 1981 (I nearly missed out on a ticket thirty years ago despite being a season-ticket holder), and I bet it will be similar in 2041.

Does anyone know which end of Wembley we will be at for the final? On Saturday we were at the western end, and by chance this was how I approached the ground. Seeing hundreds of Blues singing in the sunshine outside every off licence within walking distance of Wembley before and after the match was brilliant. The local shopkeepers were big winners too.

City fans were up for it from start to finish and the enthusiasm infected the players. It was one of the greatest displays of ‘support’ from City fans that I have seen during 35 years of following City in the flesh. Watch the Youtube videos of the City end at the final whistle. It is goosepimple material. We have to do the same in the stands against Stoke because they will be up for it in their first FA Cup Final. Playing against United gave us an intensity that will be difficult to repeat, especially considering we are favourites. Beer and the desire to nullify the banner at OT will help, although I doubt the City fans could drink more than they did on Saturday. My voice is just coming back. I am still walking around with a big smile on my face.

BTW, a pre-season friendly between City and the Vancouver Whitecaps has been announced for Monday 18 July. It is the first season for the Whitecaps back in the big league in North America since the NASL folded in the early 1980s. The friendly will be a sell-out (22,000) and if the sun is shining it will be a fun night out in Vancouver. There are a few City fans based in Vancouver that watch the Whitecaps (in City colours, I might add) and we will arrange a gathering spot to drink downtown for those Blues that make it over. Vancouver in the summertime is a fantastic holiday destination. City will also play two more matches in North America as part of the grandly titled: ‘World Football Challenge’ http://www.worldfootballchallenge.com/. United play Barcelona in Washington DC as part of the same competition. I hope that City get to have a kick-about with Barcelona in North America in the summer. We got to play the CL winners in the US around the same time last year…

OPINION: WEMBLEY I

I went to the semi-final with my 9-year-old son on Saturday and what a day it was!

A mate of mine had got me two tickets in the Club Wembley section of Wembley. It is a disgrace that there were empty seats in this corporate and neutral area. However, it was also a bonus. Our seats were at the United end and as there were quite a few spare seats my son and I decided to see if we could find seats in the City end for the second half. We ended upon the front row of the second tier about 15 yards inside the City half. I’m led to believe these seats cost about £550 and there were two spare seats! It is such a shame how money is ruining football for the everyday punter, but I do also have to count my blessings on this occasion.

A fantastic game and the best atmosphere I have ever experiences at any game of football in 35 years of attending matches.

Two highlights for me. The look on the faces of the neutral fans in Club Wembley as George and I did the Poznan after City scored. And two different sets of United fans who came up to us after the game to say that their disappointment in losing had been tempered by the sight of a father and son enjoying a game of football “more than everyone else we have ever seen”. They’re not all idiots it seems.

A lifelong friend, a complete goon, is getting married on Cup Final day so I won’t be there, but frankly cannot afford it after what I shelled out for Saturday’s tickets. I also think that win, lose or draw it will not match up.

Still, will be watching on the telly or listening in the church on a portable radio.

Come on the Blues!

OPINION: WEMBLEY II

What a great day. I will leave others to talk about the football.

I find it very unfortunate that something has to be said about sort of low life that I met around the stadium. I and 2 friends (average age 60) came out of Wembley Park station in high spirits ready for the fray. There was a “reception committee” of brain dead oiks of various ages leaning on the fences above Wembley Way. All decked out in red needless to say. We were showered with vile abuse and cans of beer and the contents thereof landed on my friend as well as other Blues peacefully making their way to the ground. To say that we were intimidated was putting it mildly. My mate’s ticket would not work as the barcode was knackered by the rubbish thrown at him and we had to get a nice Wembley official to get him in!

I thought that this sort of thing had gone away. When we came out of the ground, the Red scum were coming out of the other side and when we were all funnelled into the slope leading to the station, I have never been so worried for my safety for many years. Some of the behaviour of the Red idiots was appalling. I witnessed one guy of about 50 (with his young son) giving it out to a young City fan of about 16 who was daring to be happy and was waving his blue flag about. The guy was ready to disembowel him if he could get his hands on him. I suppose he was giving his son lessons in how to behave as a Red supporter. It was disgusting and it carried on all the way to Wembley Park station. We passed 3 men of various ages who were prostrate on the concrete with blood pouring out of their heads.

Sorry to be depressing but it has to be said. I am considering writing to the Swamp MD to let him know how his “supporters” react when losing but I don’t suppose they will be interested.

Bought the Evening News tonight and apparently there was not a lot of trouble on Saturday!

Anyway, roll on the final, look out for the Red dead heads who will no doubt be there again as they probably don’t realise that they lost.

OPINION: WEMBLEY III

Are we all aware that City have won their last 5 FA Cup semi-finals, all by the score of 1-0?

There is absolutely nothing of significance I can make of this but it takes my mind off worrying about a top four position this year.

I also know I am getting old when I can actually remember these scores and it seems like rolling up to the final in 1981 was just yesterday.

OPINION: DOWNBEAT BLUES I

After the joy of last Saturday it’s not long before normal gloomy thoughts take over again as usual. Those of us old enough to remember the league title victory in 1968 will also remember the frustration of seeing United win the European Cup shortly afterwards and the shifting of the media spotlight back to them.

In March 1966 a sensational Cup replay victory at Leicester (another Neil Young winning goal) never got the coverage it deserved because of a big United win in Lisbon (George Best El Beatle etc.).

On 14th May, when City hopefully win their first trophy in 35 years, I have the nagging feeling (with Arsenal persistently failing to do their duty) that it could be the day that the League championship is decided. Just a thought. Sorry.

OPINION: DOWNBEAT BLUES II

For a moment I thought Sam Duxbury was being ironic in the last issue of MCIVTA, then I realised that Sam only ever writes in to snipe about Mancini. Even after we have just reached our first Cup Final for 30 years by beating that team from Trafford! I can only assume it was written after Liverpool and before the semi. This isn’t really aimed at Sam but he prompted me to write some reflections on Mancini as I find it baffling that there are so many Mancini ‘outers’ amongst us.

First off a couple of facts: 3 Scudettos, 4 Italian Cups, 2 Super Cups, with 3 different teams in his first 7 years of management. Also, and this is lifted straight from Wikipedia: “During his tenure at Inter, the club won 3 consecutive Serie A titles (an Inter club record) and a European record 17 consecutive league game victories stretching nearly half a season. He was Inter’s most successful manager in 30 years. Furthermore, Mancini had guided the clubs he managed to a record 5 consecutive Coppa Italia finals from 2004 to 2008, with Lazio once in 2004 and with Inter in the following 4 seasons.”

And now he has taken City to their first Cup Final in 30 years. I’m tempted to just let the facts speak for themselves, but as I’m sure all of his critics are aware of his record that isn’t likely to be enough.

Mancini faces two major problems: the British media and an element of the City fan base that seem to believe what they read and have no stomach for the patient transformation of a club culture summarised by the phrase ‘Typical City’.

Firstly, the media. Mancini was always on a hiding to nothing with the duplicitous British media. Simple minded as they are, the media like stereotypes. City, lovable City, Cup for Cock Ups City, were never going to be accepted at football’s top table without a whole load of s**t being thrown our way. We had our place, everyone’s second team – how dare we get ideas above our station? And so they roll out the old trope, which comes in a variety of forms: money can’t create team spirit or buy success; we’re just a team of mercenaries, etc. And yet now Mancini and his mercenaries get no credit for the success money couldn’t buy because it’s all down to… money. The media also have this ongoing obsession with Mourinho. No wonder he wants to come back to England; nobody fawns over him like the British media did and still do. And so because Mourinho came into Chelsea and won back-to-back titles in his first two seasons and because City now have money they are obviously just like Chelsea (see what I mean about media stereotypes?), surely Mancini should have won the title this season? This ignores (as stereotypes do) that Chelsea had won a number of trophies in the few years preceding Mourinho’s arrival, had finished Premier League runners-up the season before, and were Champions’ League regulars (making the semi-final the year before, I think).

The media wrote the script for City’s season before it began: shed load of cash + Italian who doesn’t understand British football culture = overpaid players + mediocre performances. They disapprove of the way their mate Sparky was treated (forget that he’s of a similar age to Mancini and has won sod all) and think with City’s cash they should be playing football like Tottenham (ignoring the fact that City have won more games than Spurs, scoring more goals in the process).

Mancini’s second major problem is that a significant proportion of City fans seem to have fallen for the media’s script hook, line and sinker. But we more than anyone should know better just what a task Mancini faced when he took over at City. For as long as I can remember there has been a culture at City of unprofessionalism, mediocrity, small-mindedness, and defeat from the jaws of victory summed up by the phrase ‘Typical City’. No amount of cash can change a culture like that overnight. When a world class player goes to a club with a history of winning and is surrounded by players and staff who have been winning for years he senses (or should do) that he needs to try hard to fit in and prove himself. When the same player comes to a club like City, however much we would like to think he needs to prove himself, his attitude is different. He has more of an ‘I’m doing you a favour by playing for you’ mentality. When you bring in a lot of new players at the same time, all of those egos take some managing. It is ridiculous to think that a team can be blended out of those egos in an instant. So we get players with bruised egos speaking out in the press about their displeasure with this or that decision and the press love it because it proves money can’t create a team or buy success. And then we get our own fans talking about how Mancini doesn’t have the backing of the players and how Fergie wouldn’t put up with such nonsense. But it all ignores that Mancini isn’t just trying to win a pot or two, he’s trying to change the whole ethos and mentality of the club. So along the way some of the football will look very conservative/dire; players will fall out with him and each other; some will have to be shipped off; others will be given more time to prove themselves. Why? Because we see them for 90 minutes once a week and Mancini sees them every day. And he’s a winner and knows what a winning mentality looks like.

At times our football has been turgid this season. But I’ve seen a bit of U****d this season as well. Do y’know what, at times their football has been equally turgid and yet they are on course for another Premier League title. Why? Because Fergie knows that you don’t win anything the first half of the season, or even the 3rd quarter of the season. His teams peak in March-May, which makes Saturday’s victory all the more significant. Mancini has his team ideally placed: FA Cup final, Champions’ League position, relatively straightforward run-in, majority of players fit and peaking. Mancini knows how to win things over the course of a season. He’s done it before and he’ll do it at City if given the chance. Our job is to stop being so ‘short-termist’ and get behind him. If we do, I predict that in 10 years’ time ‘Typical City’ will mean ‘won another title’.

P.S. For a sense of what Mancini is all about from a journalist bucking the stereotype, this piece from Martin Samuel is old but still very much relevant: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1314670/Roberto-Mancini-Interview-I-came-Manchester-City-win–weather.html

OPINION: BANNERS

Neil Rodgers wrote to the MCIVTA readers last week about any interest in banners being made up by City fans.

One idea that I heard mooted at an away game was to get a banner done mimicking the United banner with the ticker of 34 years. But actually have the rolling debt figure of the amount of millions they owe to the banks.

So as the current figure is £590.4 million in their accounts released in March 11, the banner would simply read “591 million”, but with a 0 rolling over into a 1 for example. We all know the Stretford End will either keep the banner up if we get beat by Stoke or love changing it to the last time we won the league if we win the Cup. So to be able to put up at the same time our own banner (win or lose vs. Stoke) to prod at their impending bankruptcy might be a bit of fun.

So the question is – any ideas on whether people think (a) it’s a good idea and (b) the club would let us put it up?

OPINION: OVERSEAS BLUES

I give to the ActionAid Next Step charity. They regularly send updates on people they have helped: usually through a letter and a photograph of the family dressed in their Sunday best. This month’s photograph was of a family from Ghana. Their youngest son, can’t be more than eleven, is proudly sporting a light blue shirt with a white collar emblazoned with the words ETIHAD Airways and the badge of Manchester City. Well done Alex Channon and all who donated!

OPINION: BLUE HUMOUR

Have you heard about the Man United radio up for sale on eBay? Apparently the volume and bass work fine but the treble’s a bit knackered!

Have you heard they’re creating a new Mr Man character for Berbatov? He’s called Mr Sitter.

REQUEST: WEMBLEY WANTS

Thankfully I was lucky enough to go on Saturday, and will probably be able to get a final ticket as well. Unfortunately I was unable to get my son and daughter a ticket for the semi-final due to personal reasons, but I have promised them I will do everything possible to get them a ticket for the final. So to help a daddy keep his word to his deserving children, please contact me if you have 2 (junior or adult) seasoncards with enough points that I could use to purchase a ticket for them both.

As my mobile battery died just before I entered the ground I never managed to take any video footage on the atmosphere, the famous Poznan or after the match celebrations. I would be forever grateful to anyone who could email copies of any video footage taken on the day.

Finally, does anyone have a spare programme (or know a United fan who doesn’t want his) that they could sell me? I got caught up in the singing and completely forgot to buy one.

Thanks in advance for anyone who can help me out with any of the above requests.

REQUEST: TORONTO BLUES

Call out to any Manchester City fans in the Greater Toronto area of Canada that want to get together May 14th for the Final. I know you’re out there. Please contact me if you want to show the local Canucks how to do the Poznan.

Also keep in mind a City cup win and a United league win means an all Manchester Charity Shield match! Here’s hoping.

REQUEST: FINAL TICKET

I know this is an absolute longshot but I am desperate for a ticket for the Final along with thousands of others! If anyone can help, please call me on 07768 923 825.

RESULTS AND TABLE

20 April 2011

Chelsea               3 - 1  Birmingham City      40,848
Tottenham Hotspur     3 - 3  Arsenal

19 April 2011

Newcastle United      0 - 0  Manchester United    49,025

League table to 20 April 2011 inclusive

                            HOME          AWAY        OVERALL
                    P  W  D  L  F  A  W  D  L  F  A  W  D  L   F   A  GD Pts
 1 Manchester Utd  33 15  1  0 42  9  5  9  3 28 23 20 10  3  70  32  38  70
 2 Chelsea         33 12  2  2 32 10  7  5  5 29 17 19  7  7  61  27  34  64
 3 Arsenal         33 10  4  3 31 13  8  6  2 35 21 18 10  5  66  34  32  64
 4 Manchester City 32 10  4  2 28 11  6  4  6 22 19 16  8  8  50  30  20  56
 5 Tottenham H.    32  8  7  1 25 15  6  5  5 22 24 14 12  6  47  39   8  54
 6 Liverpool       33 10  4  2 29 12  4  3 10 17 27 14  7 12  46  39   7  49
 7 Everton         33  7  7  3 28 22  4  7  5 19 19 11 14  8  47  41   6  47
 8 Bolton Wndrs    32  9  5  2 31 19  2  5  9 15 24 11 10 11  46  43   3  43
 9 Newcastle Utd   33  5  7  5 36 23  5  3  8 12 24 10 10 13  48  47   1  40
10 Aston Villa     33  7  5  4 23 17  3  5  9 19 37 10 10 13  42  54 -12  40
11 West Brom A.    33  6  6  5 27 29  4  3  9 20 33 10  9 14  47  62 -15  39
12 Fulham          32  7  6  3 23 16  1  8  7 13 19  8 14 10  36  35   1  38
13 Stoke City      32  8  4  4 25 16  3  1 12 14 26 11  5 16  39  42  -3  38
14 Sunderland      33  6  5  5 20 19  3  6  8 15 28  9 11 13  35  47 -12  38
15 Birmingham City 33  6  7  4 18 19  2  7  7 16 27  8 14 11  34  46 -12  38
16 Blackburn R.    33  6  6  4 20 14  3  2 12 20 40  9  8 16  40  54 -14  35
17 Wigan Athletic  33  4  7  6 18 31  3  6  7 14 22  7 13 13  32  53 -21  34
18 Blackpool       33  4  3  9 25 33  5  3  9 22 36  9  6 18  47  69 -22  33
19 West Ham United 33  5  4  8 23 27  2  7  7 16 31  7 11 15  39  58 -19  32
20 Wolves          32  7  3  6 24 25  2  2 12 12 31  9  5 18  36  56 -20  32

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[1] MCIVTA Addresses

Articles (Heidi Pickup)          : editor@mcivta.city-fan.org
News/rumour (Alex Rowen)         : 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 by email. Unfortunately we cannot accept email attachments.

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

http://www.mcivta.com/ 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. You can also follow on www.twitter.com/mcivta to get the latest updates.

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

The official club web site can be found at http://www.mcfc.co.uk/ and the official club Twitter page at www.twitter.com/mcfc. The club also has a facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/mcfcofficial

[5] What supporters’ clubs are there?

The Official Supporters’ Club and the Centenary Supporters’ Association have merged to become the Manchester City Supporters’ Club (http://www.mcfcsupportersclub.com/). The club also recognise the Manchester City Disabled Supporters’ Association (http://www.mcdsa.co.uk/).

[6] Where can I find out about Points of Blue?

The committee operates as an interface between supporters and the club. Points of Blue appears on the club website under the “Fans” heading (http://www.mcfc.co.uk/Fans).

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

Live match commentary can be found on the club website. The Radio Manchester pre- and post-match phone-in is available on the web at http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/manchester/hi/tv_and_radio/.

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

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