Newsletter #1748

With the news at home full of phone hacking, corruption and dodgy deals, it is something of a relief to be able to talk about football without any of those themes cropping up (ignoring the “foul” claims around our stadium deal).

Tonight we have a look at the games and who’s standing out in this mini-tournament over the pond, continued debate on the stadium deal, the want-away Argentinian, and a look at what we have to be grateful for.

There’s a ticket plea from Paul Down Under so hopefully someone will be able to assist him and his boys get to a game, together with the latest KK edition.

OPINION: PRE SEASON TOURNAMENT I

The first pre-season North American tour game got under way on a baseball pitch where San Francisco Giants play. Not the perfect place for a game but the weather was nice although a little on the hot side. City came away the winners 2-0 against Club America from Mexico.

The second game had more interest in it and was a sell out. The game was nearly called off due to all the rain the day before but on the day the sun came out and helped dry out the pitch some. Roberto Mancini bravely said: “We are from Manchester, we know what rain is”. Vancouver went ahead with a lucky kind of goal that deflected off new player Savic, and let’s be honest he was unlucky, and the deflection caught Joe Hart wrong footed.

The game was played on a soggy pitch with grass that was not at its best. Vancouver were giving City a tough test, and when Edin missed an open goal, I started to think “when will City score?” In the second half City got a nicely headed goal from Guidetti to make it 1-1, and from this point City seemed to take more control of the game, and SWeeP came through to brilliantly score the winner in 84th minute.

The two players that stood out for me in this game were Weiss and SWeeP. I am pleased that both players are still with MCFC so far for the coming season. In general, a tough exercise for the players; I was disappointed in Balotelli’s performance – he seemed a little lazy and looked as if he had put more energy into getting the tunes on his IPod than into this game. I was disappointed that Edin didn’t score; otherwise he did look good!

Pre-season games are to condition the players ready for the season, and there is still work to be done. The next game will be an important game with a sterner test in The L.A. Galaxy; it would be nice to see the team selected to be first squad players in this game including if fit the Spanish magician David Silva!

After tonight’s game, the main concern will be Yaya Touré; how is he after it appeared he fell awkwardly and twisted his ankle? Many players played in both games so far, and success with two wins.

Come on City.

OPINION: PRE SEASON TOURNAMENT II

Watched the City vs. Vancouver game on TSN last night. Typical pre-season stuff for City played on a shocking bad field (causing Touré’s injury). A few things don’t change: Dzeko still misses sitters and Balotelli is still a petulant little beggar who drifts in and out of the game as he sees fit. Defensively, we look set and Vancouver’s goal came off a flukey deflection, although Taylor looks like a liability in goal if Hart (shudder the thought) ever got injured.

What has been a revelation has been the early form of SWP. He and Weiss were by far City’s most effective forwards and his winning goal against Vancouver was top drawer. Definitely have to figure a way of keeping both players on the roster. If Tévez has gone we definitely need a replacement and Nasri might be needed in midfield if Touré is out for any length of time.

Final thoughts: don’t know what the fuss about the Etihad Stadium is all about. Every sports stadium in North America is corporately named. Finally, as for Beady Eye’s version of Blue Moon, like the Doves’ version better!

Beckham’s LA next on the agenda.

OPINION: WHAT’S IN A NAME? I

With regard to naming of stadiums, as far as I and many friends are concerned, we still go to “Maine Road” for home games and always will! Great being old isn’t it?

I could never conceive of saying to my manager (wife), “just off to the City of Manchester Stadium love, see you later.” Even she knows what Maine Road means so why complicate the issue?

OPINION: WHAT’S IN A NAME? II

Just found a football blog that has really detailed articles on the business side of football. They have done an interesting and very (and I mean, very) in-depth article on the Etihad deal with City. The conclusion is:

“There may be a whiff of creative accounting around this incredible deal, but there’s also genuine substance and benefit to the community. City’s commercial growth might have been fuelled by money from companies that are at the very least “friendly” towards their owner, but when the deals are broken down the sums are not inordinately high, so are more or less in line with benchmarks.”

Here’s the link: http://swissramble.blogspot.com/2011/07/manchester-citys-incredible-deal-know.html

OPINION: TÉVEZ

As I write this Carlos Tévez is still a City player after a long saga of him on the verge of leaving for various clubs on both sides of the Atlantic. The latest, with a more positive move, is Corinthians from Brazil, a former club of Tévez. It looks like Tévez will be making the move soon, leaving MCFC with the power to bring in his replacement striker Sergio Aguero.

I have always liked Carlos Tévez, but I never liked what he said about the great city of Manchester. To me, Manchester is a great place and the number one reason for this is its people, who are friendly, and for the best part, down to earth! It must have been tough for the Tévez family to be in Manchester after Tévez had played for both United then City; we can all only guess what kind of treatment some of the United supporters would give.

I don’t think for one moment that Carlos Tévez should ever be called a legend for he was only with City for two seasons. Certainly he should have the title of a great player though. We should let Tévez go with happy memories, for he did help City win the FA Cup and win third place in the Premier League; he also got a share in the Golden Boot award.

And just remember, City paid 20 million for Tévez when City got him from United; today, two years later his value has gone up to double that – not bad business was it! So let us all be kind to Carlos Tévez as he leaves us for he did us a lot of good.

Also good luck to Shay Given going to Villa; we can’t blame him at his age for he wants first team football.

P.S. After writing this I do presume that Tévez will be on his way! Although now that Corinthians have pulled out, the saga of Tévez continues. If not gone by 52 days, Tévez will stay as a City player – nothing wrong with that!

OPINION: REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL I

I was slightly bemused when I read Thad Williamson’s opening salvo in MCIVTA 1747, where he was questioning corporate stadium names. Being labelled a wannabee, when we are getting an estimated £400 million for using our sponsor’s name for our stadium. These are times of austerity, and you want us to retain COMS and say “thanks but no thanks to £400 million”? Are you for real? I am sure I am like many a City fan who has been starved of success for so long, and when a wealthy benefactor comes along and helps to make my dreams come true, am I going to say, “no thanks”, and then crawl back under that rock of obscurity? Does it matter that we are watching our beloved team in the Etihad stadium or the Quantas Stadium or the Coca Cola Stadium? I could not give a rat’s arse! I go there to watch my team! If it matters so much to some people, then pay MCFC £401 million and rename it the COMS Stadium. I could not care less that none of the other big clubs, aren’t savvy enough to maximize their marketing potential; that’s their loss (and most of them are in the red!)! It was that two-faced Platini who decided to curb the clubs that were purchased by rich benefactors, who in doing so, raised the level of the competition of the “big minority” and un-balanced the status quo. Yet he was happy to play for Juventus, a big player in that era, and never batted an eyelid when Real Madrid and some Italian clubs were constantly breaking the world records for transfer fees! It will be no surprise when he takes over from that other megalomaniac Blatter.

In MCIVTA 1734, I gave my views on Tévez the player and Tévez the man, and as much as we all value his 100% commitment on the pitch, he has always found a way to complain about one thing or another, bad mouthing our management and then declared his desire to leave. Well, I for one cannot wait for him to be sold, and a replacement bought, as we need a “happy team”, one where we are all singing from the same hymn sheet and a real team ethos. I am sure this is exactly what’s in Mancini’s mind, and he has to be diplomatic in his interviews. He was asked a question by the media about Nasri, and yet his simple but frank answer totally infuriated Wenger, who subsequently threw his toys out of the pram!

These next two weeks will see plenty of transfer activity, especially as the season is not far away, and most teams want their new players integrated into the team before the big kick off!

I watched City’s first pre-season match against Club America, where we played very well in patches. We have so many players, it just amazes me how they all can be happy. It was very noticeable just how big an impact Yaya Touré is on the pitch; he is a true giant who glides past players and was very impressive. Once Mancini has cleared the decks of the “surplus to requirements” players, we will need a squad of players that in my opinion, need to be totally comfortable in possession anywhere on the pitch. We will need an out and out goal scorer to complement either Balotelli or Dzeko, and I guess City are looking at Aguero (why is he valued at £45 million and Tévez less?). I also like the look of Pato from AC Milan, and Müller at Bayern.

If we can get Nasri, that would be a good signing, as I thought he was very good for Arsenal and France, and he is still quite young. We need someone who can create something from nothing, a guy who buzzes around in front of the midfield, someone like Modric, or Sneijder, but my preference is still Juan Mata, technically very good and showed his worth in the recent U21 championship.

Bring on the new players; cannot wait for the season to start.

Come on City!

OPINION: REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL II

Either Thad Williamson is a closet Red or he can’t bring himself to be happy with anything City do, period!

Sponsored stadiums are nothing new, but one of the reasons “big” clubs haven’t done it is because it will be massively difficult to establish a sponsor over something that has existed for decades. Camp Nou, Santiago Bernabeu and dare I say it Old Trafford are recognised worldwide institutions and brands whereas Eastlands or the Etihad Stadium is a mere 8 years old as a football stadium. The next 10 years could be the biggest in our history, in which case Etihad would surely want to continue to be associated with it for many years to come after this deal has expired.

As for Adebayor, does he really deserve anybody’s sympathy? The fans (unlike Arsenal’s) backed him while he wore the shirt despite his off-field moans about not playing. Compare him to Dzeko, who has been nothing but professional since January despite not always getting the chance to play. I’m afraid he’s burnt his bridges at City; he did his reputation no harm at Madrid and his value and worth will not change because he hasn’t gone to America.

REQUEST: SWANSEA TICKETS WANTED FROM DOWN UNDER

My name is Paul Keelagher. I live in Melbourne, Australia but am an ex-pat Dentonian and long time Kippax season ticket holder. I used to organize the Melbourne end of the Australian supporters’ club.

I was hoping for a bit of advice from some of the UK-based supporters. I am over in Manchester at the beginning of August; I booked my flight in a “sale” in January. Obviously the fixtures weren’t out then and the idea of us being in the Charity Shield would have seemed fanciful! So during the nearly 5 weeks (8/8-9/10) I am in the UK there is only 1 City home game (D’oh!).

I have a good mate from Audenshaw who is a manager at Brother. He has over the years always managed to sorts me out with tickets for games etc. However, he is away on holiday at the moment so I cannot contact him. I have twin 8-year-old boys and it has always been my dream to take them to a City game. My boys were only 4 the last time I was at Eastlands (Etihad!) and I thought this was too young for a night game.

So to the point. The only game I can make is the first home game with Swansea. Obviously ticket demand will be high (first game, warm night, high expectations etc.) but (being a Monday, on Sky, work commitments etc.) I hope maybe some tickets will be available. Does this seem likely? Do most of the games sell out these days?

I have been on the website and have seen the blue card for 10 pounds but does this give me a chance to buy a ticket for a game? Or do I have to take out the 15 pounds priority ticketing to give me a chance of maybe getting a ticket?

If I take out 4 cards with the ticket priority for 100 pounds, will I have a good chance of getting 4 tickets together or am I wasting my money?

There is a possibility of booking seats on the Internet but most of the sites look dodgy to say the least, although on a Thomas Cook site, their price, which includes a night in a hotel (which I don’t need), works out to 400 pounds for the 4 of us (Mum wants to come too). Has anyone used this site? Is it approved by the club?

Or better still has someone got 4 tickets they are not able to use that I could buy?

Any thought or advice would be greatly appreciated.

REQUEST: KK 189

We are pleased to announce that, after 23 years, King of the Kippax fanzine number 189 is the proudest issue we’ve ever done. It is, of course, the F.A. Cup winners’ special, and it should hit the outlet at Aleef, corner of Market Street and Cross Street on Friday, followed by being on sale at the Dublin Super Cup, the Community Shield and the games versus Swansea, Bolton and Spurs.

As you’d expect, it’s a bumper 52 page A4 special with a colour front cover of Roberto (naturally) holding the Cup with a clever (I think) caption! The back cover is also in colour and shows George Heslop (R.I.P.) and the class of 1968 holding up the Charity Shield after City’s record 6-1 win over W.B.A. Fantastic.

It’s on sale for just £3 and can also be purchased for £4, including P&P from (cheques to) King Of The Kippax, 25, Holdenbrook Close, Leigh, Lancs, WN7 2HL.

This issue contains, amongst other things: the fabled KK Kompetition, Class of 2010/11, My City World diary of summer events, knobhead pundits of the year, Mike Doyle tributes, pre-season preview, views on Carlos Tévez, complete 2011 Cup run review, UEFA Financial fair play update, match previews and reviews including the final, cartoons, pics and comments on all things Blue, plus the odd pop at the dirty, filthy, nasty, despicable Rags.

Thanks to all at MCIVTA for the compulsive reading and the excellent debate and comment.

REQUEST: HULL BASED BLUES

My son is moving up to Hull University in September and wants to know contact details for the local supporters’ branch. Can anyone help?

MCIVTA FAQ [v1011.01]

[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: