The mancityfans.net football forum

Ready in 20 minutes.

Dunne's Half-Time Pint wrote:Ready in 20 minutes.

where is it then eh??

I don't know what the script is with formatting and photos (I have 1) but here's what I have written:

City v Cardiff

The writer, short of ideas, desperate and sweating in the heat of the August night, turned to the Telegraph for inspiration. It was there, amidst the buy-to-lets, polenta recipes and Pippa Middleton’s tips, that your part-time hack found this gem: Cardiff City has renamed the [strike]historic[/strike] Canton Stand “Croeso”. Welcome.

Welcome to Cardiff City Stadium for the first Premier League clash in the Bluebird’s 114 year history. History that Cardiff’s billionaire owner, Vincent Tan, has been reshaping with alacrity. The Bluebirds, now Red Dragons, must face off against Sheikh Mansour’s Manchester City in the Welsh capital’s curtain raiser.

Whilst David Moyes has taken umbrage at the fixtures dished up and served cold by the FA’s very own A.B.U. H.A.L., another Glaswegian manager, Malky Mackay, is looking forward to tucking in. Massive Malk, as nobody calls him, has spoken of the “buoyancy” and “positive energy” which has accompanied the Welsh warriors’ (patent pending) stuttering climb to the top flight. Cardiff will need all that and more to resist a Manchester City side which looks irresistible after its summer course of holistic therapy.

Talent has been added to the Cardiff squad in the form of £8.5m man Andreas Cornelius, in contention for his first competitive start and brimming with the sort of confidence that has so endeared compatriot Nicklas Bendtner to the Premier League gallery. Old faces look set to make an impact with the rickety knees, strong opinions and private charitable contributions of former City fan favourite Craig Bellamy bringing guile and class to the Cardiff City flank.

Manuel Pellegrini won’t be the only Chilean on parade today. Carafe-sized midfield man Gary Medel missed the Seville to Manchester City lifeboat and must now float around the Cardiff back line hoping to fend off former colleagues, Alvaro Negredo and Jesus Navas. Whether the “Pitbull” can form an effective barrier in front of Cardiff’s back four will have a significant bearing on a game in which City will look to attack at pace and in numbers.

City’s blueprint for success has not been colour changes and mythical names (though a new badge would be welcome). The Emirati boys have looked to build infrastructure and buy class whilst maintaining a relationship with the core support. Vincent Tan take note.

However, perhaps for the first time in the Sheikh’s reign, an old fashioned Manchester City solution has been deployed to address the dressing room disharmony that appeared to dog our last campaign. The tried and trusted P45 so beloved of Swales and Lee has been revived and Mancini is gone. With him, though not sharing a cab, goes the first successful talisman of the new era, Carlos Tevez.

Pellegrini is smoother than a waxed duck, more charming than David Niven and has a luxuriant head of hair. It is, no doubt, these attributes that have helped him restore shared purpose to a dressing room of stars who were simply too expensive to replace.

This is his first test. Cardiff will be fired up, their fans more so, and the atmosphere will be red hot. Like a dragon. City are favourites but Kompany is missing. Our savvy work this summer has earned the grudging respect of a media which continues to pick and prod at spendthrift rivals: Fail to win and Pellegrini will get his first negative review.

No chance. 0-4. “Croeso” to the Premier League.

Cardiff City v Manchester City

Kick-off Sunday 4pm
Venue Cardiff City Stadium
Last season n/a
Live Sky Sports 1
Referee L Probert
Cardiff
From: Marshall, Caulker, Connolly, Turner, Taylor, Medel, Kim, Bellamy, Gunarsson, Whittingham, Campbell, Lewis, Hudson, Cornelius, Brayford, Gestede, Noone, Smith, John, Mutch, Cowie, Mason, Conway, Lappin, Maynard, McNaughton, Kiss, Velikonja
Manchester City
From: Hart, Zabaleta, Lescott, Nastatic, Clichy, Garcia, Toure, Fernandinho, Navas, Silva, Aguero, Pantilimon, Wright, Kolarov, Barry, Milner, Nasri, Razak, Sinclair, Jovetic, Negredo, Guidetti, Milner, Dzeko
Doubtful Nastasic (ankle)
Injured Richards (hamstring, Sep), Kompany (groin, Sep)
Source: The Guardian

Great read. Well done.

I'd love to be smoother than a waxed duck

Mods...move this into a standalone you lazy bellends

Very nice Senor Pint...and, re PM, you were spot on with the accusations

ant london wrote:I'd love to be smoother than a waxed duck

Mods...move this into a standalone you lazy bellends

Very nice Senor Pint...and, re PM, you were spot on with the accusations

Jinxed it nicely I think. Bring back Bobby.

Stick us down for one mate, if required ;-)

It's been a while.

Did anyone do Hull or was I just too tough to follow?

Yeah, but I was a bit late uploading it. My fault.

I'll add the league cup and chumps league games along with the next two months soonish.

dazby wrote:Yeah, but I was a bit late uploading it. My fault.

I'll add the league cup and chumps league games along with the next two months soonish.

why don't you appoint some supplemental helpers who can upload if you are too lazy and spastic to do it?

Writing the preview tomorrow, will PM it to you dazby, hopefully before I leave for work.

Slim wrote:Writing the preview tomorrow, will PM it to you dazby, hopefully before I leave for work.

Put it on the forum in its own thread and I will be able to put it on the news section on friday.

Wonderwall wrote:

Slim wrote:Writing the preview tomorrow, will PM it to you dazby, hopefully before I leave for work.

Put it on the forum in its own thread and I will be able to put it on the news section on friday.

This. The only reason you'd send it to me first is if you want someone to give it an edit before it goes live. The issue with Clippo's preview was that he can't start threads so it had to go through me first, and he caught me on a busy night.

New matches being added this weekend.

dazby wrote:

Wonderwall wrote:

Slim wrote:Writing the preview tomorrow, will PM it to you dazby, hopefully before I leave for work.

Put it on the forum in its own thread and I will be able to put it on the news section on friday.

This. The only reason you'd send it to me first is if you want someone to give it an edit before it goes live. The issue with Clippo's preview was that he can't start threads so it had to go through me first, and he caught me on a busy night.

New matches being added this weekend.

I'll do them. You all deserve it.

Nov up to mid Dec fixtures added. Sign UP!

dazby wrote:Nov up to mid Dec fixtures added. Sign UP!

Munich and Chelsea?

Can you not see Breks name already down for the Chelsea fixture? But the Munchen's are yours.

dazby wrote:Can you not see Breks name already down for the Chelsea fixture? But the Munchen's are yours.

What's a Brek? Not read the rest of the thread mate, too much hassle.

Slim wrote:Writing the preview tomorrow, will PM it to you dazby, hopefully before I leave for work.

You anywhere near completion yet bro?

Wonderwall wrote:

Slim wrote:Writing the preview tomorrow, will PM it to you dazby, hopefully before I leave for work.

You anywhere near completion yet bro?

Tis done, I was in no mood after the week I've had(destroyed a valuable piece of lab equipment) and had to work twice as hard without it.

However, done. Can you flash it on the news site for us? Couple of pictures and such?