Newsletter #1907

Well folks, that’s it for the 2012-13 season. Another tonking dished out to Chelsea and it’s off on the players’ summer holidays, for most of them at least.

A strange season in many ways is reflected in the contributions to this edition both, reflecting some of the amazing experiences we had under Mancini’s tenure whilst also acknowledging that there were signs we could see that led to his abrupt departure.

Happy reading 🙂

MANCINI

95% of Man City fans will have fond memories of Mancini, all based on him bringing us the silverware we have craved for so long. In doing so, this ensured that Man Utd fans were forced to take down their “extremely annoying” banner, once and for all!

Well the debate about Mancini rages on and I read a fascinating report from Ian Ladyman in the Daily Mail. Wow, that was eye opening, and a lot of what he wrote, we could relate to.

I cannot deny he brought us a League title and 2 more trophies, and I will always be grateful for this. However, in my honest opinion, he was a tad too abrasive on way too many occasions.

He has probably had more passion than most of the players and his desire for professionalism has not been matched by a large number of City players. He wants that winning mentality, but you must have them on your side first, and when you ask, they will be prepared to go out and shed blood for you. I cannot think of many players who would do that for Mancini.

The following excerpt from the Daily Mail really brought it home to me:

“So, how exactly did the relationship between the man who brought the title to City for the first time in 44 years and some of his players become so toxic? The potent mix of testosterone and ego guarantees arguments in football dressing rooms. The difference with City, was that you would often find the manager slap bang in the middle.”

Look at how he treated Craig Bellamy, a player who has had a chequered past and suspect temperament, but you could not fault his desire to win, and just look at his effort on the pitch. Follow this up with the Tévez saga, and in my opinion, Mancini was to blame for Tévez going walkabout (I will never condone what Tévez did, but you can understand why!). He wanted to manage by confrontation!

I will never forget the hammering he gave Hart for his honest appraisal after our 3-2 loss away to Real Madrid, which was absolutely crass man-management (just imagine how Hart felt, after listening to Mancini’s ill-advised comments – basically putting Hart down!). Then he had another go at Hart, blaming him for United’s winner in the derby (surely it was Nasri’s mistake?) – again mind boggling, and in that moment, he just sowed another seed of discontent!

I don’t know if Mancini is just a stubborn man, or perhaps he does not really care what anyone else thinks – especially his own players – he is the boss… and so be it! Do as I say, not as I do!

He carried on sowing more seeds of discontent with other senior players, not realising this was counter-productive. Look at the way he had a go at Kompany (one of the most eloquent captains in City’s history) when he played for Belgium, even after getting medical clearance! The one time I agreed with his public denouncement of players was when he said he wanted to punch Nasri for being so inconsistent.

His media interview technique was generally poor (though a lot better than Capello’s), and he had a knack of not being able to answer correctly, to questions put to him by journalists. Compare him with some other foreign managers in the Premier League.

His failure to do well in the Champions’ League was also a factor. Just ask yourself, are City a stronger side than Celtic? Probably a definite yes there. Well how come Celtic not only beat Barcelona but nearly drew with them too. How did PSG get so far? He tinkered with formations too often, whilst totally discarding Lescott, a senior England international, whom he treated very poorly.

We might all be fond of Bobby Manc for the success he has brought in his 3 year tenure, but just look at the “seeds of discontent” that he has sowed. His abrupt and confrontational style of man-management would eventually lead to his demise. Remember, “for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction!”

He was far better than Eriksson and Hughes, but the writing has been on the wall, and if all the good reports that I read and hear about Pellegrini are true then I would welcome him with open arms, as all I want for City is sustained success!

Goodbye Mancini, and thanks for all the success you brought us – and welcome to the new man!

Come on City, let’s do better next season!

TOO MUCH OF A COINCIDENCE

I agree with practically all the posts ranging from we’ve won 3 trophies in 3 years, losing Mancini is like losing Mercer, success, stability etc., to poor signings, no plan B, poor media and, if it is to be believed, poor relations with players and higher up. However, what galls me is, again if it is to be believed, a £7.5 million pay off for Mancini and David Platt (who was on £900,000 a year and he resigned!).

How can he be paid that much for replacing Mancini on press calls and being a best mate and little else!?

Where does that leave us, as fans? Are we just watching a soap opera? Is that what football is now?

So, Mancini Out, Fergie In…

Imagine… if they announce it tomorrow.

MANCINI AND THOSE STORIES

What is the main aim of the football club like City? I suggest that most fans would agree that the aim is to win as many of the competitions the club enters as possible and if at all possible by playing attractive football. Let me declare my hand at this point – I’m not a trophyist. For me the main course is always the game on the day and trophies and winning stuff are a very acceptable dessert. I find I’m in a minority over this so let me take the other view for a minute.

The top aim of the club and the manager is always to win competitions and therefore trophies. How did Roberto do with this simple criterion? Not bad really: two cups in three years following zero in forty four. Wait a minute though – the cognoscenti have informed us, via their reliable but naturally unidentified contacts, that Mancini couldn’t handle his personnel. Mancini was cold, unappreciative and expected people to do their jobs come what may. He was too emotional too often when he should have been cool and calm. Just like successful managers always are – yes?

Nope.

A certain Sir Alex Ferguson has been known to win a trophy or two and was every bit as emotionally out-of-control during a game as Mancini has ever been. Just look at the videos. He is sometimes calm when winning, that’s all. Even then he goes utterly ballistic if the referee favours the opposition.

We’re down to day-to-day man management, which we’re told was a very weak point in Mancini’s skill set. So weak in fact that in spite of the wise pundits insisting that you couldn’t buy Premier League success because you needed to build the team first, he went on to win the league in the same season that he had completed his main signings in Agüero and Nasri. Yet his man-management, essential to team building success and trophy winning, was very poor. We are told. By those who understand these things.

I accept this actually but since the objective is to win stuff it clearly doesn’t matter a hoot. In spite of these critical failings, Mancini won stuff and we, the City fans, recognise this even if some analysts, whose allegiance is only to the copy they submit to their editors, don’t.

What is happening at City has a much simpler explanation than the tripe you read about Mancini’s management style: new bosses have different ways and methods. They have players they fancy and players they don’t (Mancini was the same when he came in). They like the incumbent manager or not and in our case Mancini’s face didn’t fit. Of course you can’t put that out in a press statement but it is what City’s statement adds up to. They fancied a change so Mancini had to go. He wasn’t their appointment after all. The rest is such utter bunk it should attract very little credence indeed and for the majority of sensible fans present at the Etihad on the last day of the season, it was clear that they thought Mancini had been given unfair treatment. To many of us he was a hero but to the bosses expendable. As someone commented immediately after an execrable article on the “Eevee life” site (see Graham Schofield’s reference in MCIVTA 1906) had assassinated Mancini’s character and management style: “History is written by the victors”.

We will move on of course and those of us who like to look at the statistics have already noted that during Abramovich’s reign his much vilified revolving door management policy has actually won Chelsea more competitions than stability has earned at United during the same period. So even though I don’t like Mancini’s dismissal or the manner of it, it probably doesn’t matter very much except to Roberto of course.

So welcome New Manager whoever you are. I regret to admit that I’ll probably forget Mancini sooner than I should. A snotty email has been sent to City pointing out the error of their ways but they will soon be able to find out that I’ve already renewed my season ticket and joined all the cup schemes, such is my hypocrisy.

I will, however, remember that glorious day at Spurs, a bogey side for us, when we thrashed them 5-1 on their own ground; when we put five at home then six away past Norwich with the appallingly managed Carlos Tévez getting a hat trick; when we did the double over United including the sumptuous 6-1 on their own ground. And we’ll all remember the Cup semi-final when United were dumped out following which we won our first cup for generations in the sunshine at new Wembley.

Most of all I’ll bore my grandchildren to distraction telling them how our badly managed, disheartened and thoroughly chastened players came from behind to win the league in the finest end to a Premier League season there has ever been.

Before the memories fade – thank you Roberto, you were simply one of the best.

MCFC AND THE NEW MANAGER

Seeing some of Manchester City’s top players coming forward and saying that they want to stay at City says two things: one, players must have wanted to leave if Mancini was still in charge, and two, players must be having confidence in the new manager of City, who as far as we all know will be Manuel Pellegrini.

I have said that I will never be able to say “In Pellegrini I trust”, but just like the Sean Connery Bond movie, “Never say Never”. Of course, Pellegrini will have to earn his trust from all City fans, not just me.

Although many of us have been upset by the way Mancini left us, we all will never forget what he did for City – winning trophies we had not seen for so many years.

I did say in MCIVTA some time back that if Mancini has a downfall, it will be because of Balotelli. It now appears that there were other players that might have had rough treatment by Mancini and wanted to leave.

Reading about some of the players wanting to stay and even getting contract extensions in some cases, and seeing all players in the friendly games versus Chelsea, they all were looking happy.

Roberto Mancini brought in some very good players, and with some players that were already with City from Mark Hughes. Our new manager will be a manager that can work very well with his players, and he still has to bring in who he feels will fit into his Manchester City side.

I think that next season will see a City side to be reckoned with in the Premier League and Europe. We all give Manuel Pellegrini a clean and fresh start, we all move forward together.

We look back at the Mancini era with thanks, and now look forward to the new Pellegrini era!

A big thank you to our owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan for changing MCFC to the club that it is, and what it will be, the best in the world!

Come on you Blues!

AND FINALLY… BLUES IN HONG KONG

As many of you will know, Manchester City will play in Hong Kong on the 24th and 27th July in the Premier League Asia Trophy, alongside Tottenham, Sunderland and a South China side.

For those of you attending from anywhere in the world, the Hong Kong branch of the Manchester City Supporters’ Club will guarantee you a warm welcome at their “Heart of the City”.

They meet for most games at a bar called Maya, which is on the (in)famous Lockhardt Road in the middle of Wanchai. This is an area famed for its bars and its bars so if you are in Hong Kong for the tournament, this will be the place to be both before and after the games.

The Hong Kong branch is co-ordinated by Mike Hill (<mikehill992(at)hotmail.com>). If you need any more information, Mike will be able to help you out.

Looking forward to seeing Blues from all over the world in Hong Kong in July!

AND FINALLY… “Teenage Kicks – The story of Manchester City’s 1986 FA Youth Cup team” (Empire Publications)

We are delighted to announce that the above titled book is now available to buy!

A year in the making, the book covers the moment Ian Scott, David White and Paul Moulden all make their City ‘A’ team débuts as schoolboys in October 1983/84 against UMIST and ends when Ian Brightwell plays his final game in a City shirt against Huddersfield Town reserves in March 1997/98.

In between there is the successful FA Youth Cup victory in 1985/86 (forthe first time in City’s history), Central League champions, FA Youth Cupsemi-finalists, and relegation in 86/87, the 10-1 against Huddersfield in87/88, promotion in 1988/89 and the 5-1 in 1989/90. There are managerscoming and going, players being released each year, one almost dying onthe pitch, two being capped for England and the heartbreak of a crowdfavourite enduring a career defining injury.

Using exclusive and archive interviews with all thirteen surviving players – and the family from the one youth team member who tragically succumbed to cancer in 2006, ‘Teenage Kicks’ is the definitive story of the “Class of 1986”, both collectively and individually.

With a foreword from Paul Power (City’s club captain at the time), the book follows a season by season progress of the team and each individual from 1983/84 to 1997/98, followed by each players’ profile detailing both their pre and post City careers and what became of them after their playing days were behind them.

The book (280 pages) has a RRP of £10.95 – but is available direct from the publisher for £8 inc P&P (UK) – via http://www.empire-uk.com/Kicks.html

The book can also be purchased for £8 from Empire Exchange, 1 Newton Street, Piccadilly, Manchester.

The book is also available via Kindle: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CUTZ2G6

RESULTS AND TABLE

Final League table 2012 / 2013

                        P / GD / Pts
 1 Manchester Utd      38 / 43 / 89 CLQ
 2 Manchester City     38 / 32 / 78 CLQ
 3 Chelsea             38 / 36 / 75 CLQ
 4 Arsenal             38 / 35 / 73
-----------------------------------
 5 Tottenham Hotspur   38 / 20 / 72
-----------------------------------
 6 Everton             38 / 15 / 63
 7 Liverpool           38 / 28 / 61
 8 West Bromwich Alb   38 / -4 / 49
 9 Swansea City        38 / -4 / 46 ELQ
10 West Ham Utd        38 / -8 / 46
11 Norwich City        38 /-17 / 44
12 Fulham              38 /-10 / 43
13 Stoke City          38 /-11 / 42
14 Newcastle Utd       38 /-23 / 41
15 Southampton         38 /-11 / 41
16 Aston Villa         38 /-22 / 41
17 Sunderland          38 /-13 / 39
-----------------------------------
18 Wigan Athletic      38 /-26 / 36 R/ELQ
19 Reading             38 /-30 / 28 R
20 QPR                 38 /-30 / 25 R

MCIVTA FAQ [v1112.01]

[1] MCIVTA Addresses

Articles (Philip Alcock)         : editor@mcivta.city-fan.org
News/rumour                      : 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/Twitter

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://www.bbc.co.uk/news/england/manchester/.

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

http://www.satfootball.com/ provides a listing of Premier League games being shown on UK domestic and foreign satellite channels. A useful site for North American viewers is http://msn.foxsports.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://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/definition/Usenet

[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] Do any squad members have their own Twitter accounts?

A list of genuine player accounts is maintained at http://twitter.com/#!/MCFC/players

[12] Where can I find match statistics?

Statistics for the current season are available from the club site, but for a more in-depth historical 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.

Philip Alcock, editor@mcivta.city-fan.org

Editor: