john68 wrote:Eastlands,
I am sorry if you took my post as a personal attack and as I quoted you, it would appear it seemed that way...apologies mate.
Yours was the latest in quite a number of negative threads that seemed to focus on our failures, possible failures and weaknesses of our manager and team....In what I assert to have been a good season containing plenty of ups and far fewer downs.
To answer your questions:
Taking the Europa Cup seriously could certainly damage our chances of winning the League next season. It will certainly make the challenge much harder. But so would being in the CL too. Isn't that what City should be aspiring to?
We have a stated ambition to reach the very top of World football and to do that we will have to rise to far harder challenges than we are presently used to. We have to get into the same situations as the likes of the rags and Barca and compete on a number of fronts. Remember that it was City was the 1st English club to win both domestic and European honours back in the 70s.
Another point next season, whether gained or lost, in itself, won't make a great deal of difference to next season mate. There are too many other factors that will define whether we have been successfull or not. Our final league position, how we did in the domestic cups and whether we were successfull in whichever of the 2 European competitions we competed in.
One thing is guaranteed though...The journey will be long and challenging...we will have our successes and our failures. There will be times when we skip and dance and others when we try to slash our wrists...such is football and especially City.
No need to apolgise John, but you answered my main point very fairly, and made a decent point about qualifying for the CL.
But I see it this way, if we qualify for the CL, we can attract the type of player we need to challenge for the title, first and foremost. Then have a squad good enough to fight on all fronts, the season after, which happens to be the year when EUFA bring in their new guidelines on the clubs earnings. The type of player we get, is more important than the CL itself, but thats only my oppinion.
Lets hope the season becomes, even more successful over the next 10 days.