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Sunday 09 May 2010: Kick Off 1600

It was tempting to write this preview as a post-mortem on City’s failed Champions League quest, but really it all boiled down to the fact we were not quite good enough. The draws, the cagey approach to big games, the supposed rifts between Mancini and some of the playing staff – it is all so much dust right now. What matters is that MCFC and its supporters, players and staff have had, to younger generations at least, a season of unprecedented success. Our highest ever premiership points tally. In the top six for the vast majority of the season, Semi-finals of a cup competition for the first time in this writer’s lifetime, doubling the champions-elect, fourteen goals in a three-game run, Carlitos Tevez. The list goes on.

Then there is the obvious disappointments, but to be honest they can go and whistle – the last thing the club and the fans need is to brood over our shortcomings. Mistakes can be useful, and City need to make sure the mistakes that have been made this season, at all levels, are learnt from and eradicated. The club is in an extremely healthy state, and the scope for further improvement is heartening. We are not in around eight hundred million pounds (looks even bigger writing it out like that eh?) of debt; we are not crippled by the cost of a new stadium, nor are we the subject of some shady boardroom power struggle. Our manager has the full support of the board and the majority of fans and as an aside is unlikely to be charged with tax evasion. We are also not facing the prospect of our best players being sold to service debt.

The critics, upstanding paragons of integrity to a man, will point to the money. “You spent all that money and look where it got you”. These people would have been the same hacks spouting the “You bought it” line had we managed to qualify for the Champions League. Let them write their bile – they are as insignificant to MCFC as say, the opinions of a few thousand Norwich fans are to a certain American family. Make no mistake, City are back among the big boys now and we will only get better.

Three hundred and sixty words in and no mention of the game itself! It may have the feeling of a dead-rubber game, but fifth place is still up for grabs and Villa will obviously do their best to take it from us. A win may not be technically imperative (a draw secures fifth place), but it would be good for everyone connected to the club to end the season on a positive note.
West Ham have had a rough old time of it this season, only securing their premier league status last weekend, so should be right up for this game as the pressure is off. The Boleyn Ground will be packed out and the team should be aiming to pay their fans back for some pathetic performances earlier in the season. The City players will have to have put Wednesday night out of their minds, as for all their struggles West Ham have players that can hurt us, including an Egyptian striker who the Blues are rumoured to be interested in.

Speculation as to Mancini’s team selection and tactics feel somewhat pointless at this stage – whatever team he puts out on Sunday should be, with the greatest respect to a great club, well able to beat West Ham. So let’s get out there, put in a good performance to secure our best-ever premier league finish, and head into what promises to be an interesting football-and-transfer-speculation filled summer with our heads held high.

Thanks to The Man In Blue of ManCityFans.Net for writing this preview.

City Of Manchester Stadium: 05 May 2010, Kick-Off 19:45

There is neither happiness nor unhappiness in this world; there is only the comparison of one state with another. Only a man who has felt ultimate despair is capable of feeling ultimate bliss… the sum of all human wisdom will be contained in these two words: Wait and Hope.”
- Alexandre Dumas.

He talked a good game, that Dumas, but as he wrote those words he could have had no idea what ‘ultimate despair’ really meant. He never saw Robert Taylor race onto a Carl Asaba backheel.
“And that is bye bye Division Two for Gillingham, Division One here we come.”

Without that low there could not have been the high. Paul Dickov dropped to his knees, arched back, head raised to the sky, seeing nothing. Wembley combusted. Only one thing mattered. City were back.
Ultimate bliss? No. But hope. A future. City could wait.

Robert Taylor would break our hearts again, but only by signing a two year deal. We would not then have dared to hope for so much as we have now. Our wait for a trophy continues. That banner is still there. But people talk about it now. They talk about ‘when’, not ‘if’. They talk about us. They talk about little else. And the derision, we’re nobody’s second team, cannot disguise their fear.

A win for City tonight and Champions’ League qualification is in our hands. Kaka’ has offered his opinion. Gianluigi Buffon is intrigued, no doubt his accountant is too. Torres? Villa? The rewards are obvious, just three years ago they were unthinkable.

Spurs have as much to gain. They have spending power, experience, quality. They’ve been on the cusp before. They’ve also won 11 of the last 12 games between the sides. City’s 3-0 defeat at White Hart Lane sealed Mark Hughes’s fate. Under Mancini, City have sacrificed some of their verve for composure. Tactically astute, disciplined, controlled. Not words that you would ever have associated with Manchester City, but it is Mancini’s vision.

The form book holds little relevance. This is a one off. A final. The players must leave everything on the pitch. City will do just that. It may be oil which has fuelled our resurgence but it is the fire in the hearts of our support, in the veins of Tevez, Bellamy and de Jong, which will push us to a level we have not seen before.

In 1999 losing was unthinkable. Tonight may be different. “It’s not do or die for us” said Craig Bellamy. Perhaps that’s true. Perhaps our ascent is inevitable. But for those packed into Eastlands, tonight will still feel like “do or die”. Roberto Mancini has implored his players not to be nervous. For the fans that is not an option. We will do what we always have: Wait and hope.

Prediction:  Impossible.

Form – City: LWWWLD, Villa: LWDWWW
Odds – City: 10/11, Draw: 13/5, Away: 10/3
Last Time Out – Villa 1-1 City (5/10/09)

This weekend City welcome fellow Euro hopefuls Aston Villa to Eastlands to share in that rarity of football extravaganzas; a 3pm Saturday kick off. The Midlands outfit will be looking to end this season by grabbing fourth place and putting the disappointment of a trophyless trip to the League Cup final behind them. Young, English and decent away from home Villa have attracted the attention of more than just Steven Gerrard this season as, impressively, seven of their current squad are in with a more-than-decent shout of an England World Cup spot.

With the race for fourth place as clear as Icelandic airspace at the moment, perhaps Saturday will see the dust settle and a clear leader emerge for that final Champions League spot. However with fellow fourth spot contenders Spurs playing a favourable fixture at home to Bolton this Saturday, the match at the City of Manchester Stadium may well just teach us who is still in with a shout when the season really erupts next weekend.

Last Time Out

A solid defensive display is the kindest label you could put on City’s latest dour affair at The Emirates. A game which produced no goals, no chances and no entertainment seemed to take an age to pass. Even the Arsenal faithful gave up booing returning striker Emmanuel Adebayor towards the end of the game. Eventually the full time came, Arsenal’s slim title chances were officially over and the point that City so painfully played for was awarded. Luckily, then, for Roberto Mancini that no recent City manager has been in trouble for too many draws.

Injustice was theme of the day at Villa Park last Sunday as inept time keeper Martin Atkinson added missing litigate challenges to his referring repertoire as he robbed Birmingham City of a derby point. The irony, of course, was that Villa manager Martin O’Neill had spent much of the preceding weeks complaining about poor referring decisions. The rest of the game was a lively affair and City can take heart at the fact that Birmingham outplayed the home side for much of the game.

Team News

Of course the focus throughout this week has been on City’s number one spot. After an unsuccessful bid to get back their own player City have turned to Hungarian giant Márton Fülöp to help steer them to fourth position. One feels as though the scrutiny of the whole situation may well just be on hold at the moment, waiting to be dug up and examined further if City don’t make that final spot or indeed if Fülöp flops on Saturday. In other team news Adebayor is struggling to shake of a strain and Gareth Barry doesn’t yet know if he’s grown the balls to face up to his old club.

Speaking of returning captains, Saturday marks ex City stalwart Richard Dunne’s first return to The City of Manchester Stadium since his move to Aston Villa. Dunne has been in fine form this season and his efforts have not gone unnoticed as he’s played himself into the PFA Team for 2009/2010. Whatever your views surrounding Dunne’s latter performances with City, I’m sure you agree he deserves a warm reception from the loyal fans he served so well during his time here. Now if only he could get back into the habit of scoring own goals… Bit part players Curtis Davies and Fabian Delph are Villa’s only absentees.

Look Mum’s Prediction

This is the prelude to the big one on Wednesday night. However we need to win to take full advantage of any positive result against Spurs. I believe we will do 2-0.

Saturday, April 17th. 12.45PM Kickoff, City of Manchester Stadium

In the footballing world- and certainly in Manchester- the derby between City and United needs no introduction or added emphasis. One of the most significant and passionate fixtures in the English football calendar, it has, over the years, showcased some truly memorable moments. Crucially, too, form is rarely a factor- the struggling, ever unpredictable City sides of the early 2000’s so often secured the bragging rights against what was then a supposedly unstoppable United. There was Shaun Goater’s emotional double in Maine Road’s final derby to give the then newly promoted Blues a 3-1 win. What about Shaun Wright Phillips’ thunderbolt to christen the City of Manchester Stadium? 4-1 that day to a side who narrowly avoided relegation. Even the seemingly hopeless Stuart Pearce and his bargain basement Blues coasted to victory over United in 2006. Trevor Sinclair and Darius Vassell among the, er, illustrious names to find the back of the net.

Perhaps then, for City fans, a rich vein of form which has seen 14 goals struck against Wigan, Burnley and Birmingham respectively, is ominous? Could United’s lacklustre recent displays against Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Blackburn give the red side of the city a confidence lift heading towards Saturday’s crunch clash? It sounds absurd, but if recent history is any indicator- predict the unpredictable on derby day.

So, if the meeting of these two clubs is ordinarily a huge occasion, how on earth can the significance of this Saturday’s clash be put into words? For the first time in many, many years, the two sides meet with each still in pursuit of glory. City will enter the weekend in 4th place, looking to secure that illustrious seat among the elite in the Champions League next season. Second placed United, meanwhile, simply must not slip up again with four games to play- league leaders Chelsea have capitalised on their recent shortcomings and look set to wrestle the league title back to west London. For Alex Ferguson, the thoughts of effectively losing the title race to, in his opinion, a ‘small club with a small mentality’ such as City must be petrifying. Sickening. Unthinkable.

Much of the spotlight will inevitably lie with a certain Carlos Tevez. The Argentinean ace spectacularly rejected United’s contract offer following the end of his loan spell there, opting instead to jump aboard ‘project City’. With 28 goals to his name so far this season, any suggestions, tinged with a touch of bitterness perhaps, from United supporters that the striker is in fact a ‘headless chicken’ or ‘poor finisher’ have been quashed. So, now the battle is on between Tevez and United’s English equivalent, Wayne Rooney, for the Premier League’s Golden Boot award, and with Rooney currently recovering from an injury sustained in Munich, Tevez might just sense an opportunity to steal in and claim the coveted prize. He will certainly line up for the Blues- 3 of his 28 this season have already come against United- but the big question is whether Mr. Ferguson opts to risk his own star man. It’s highly unlikely that if Rooney does feature, he’ll perform at his stunning best, given the injury was picked up only two weeks ago.

Meanwhile, perhaps City’s biggest area of concern this season has been at right and left back. Neither Pablo Zabaleta nor Micah Richards have excelled on the right, and Nedum Onuoha, who shined so brightly against Birmingham last Sunday, has again struggled with injuries, preventing him from staking a genuine claim. On the other side, injuries to first choice left-back Wayne Bridge have left manager Roberto Mancini to choose between Spaniard Javier Garrido and veteran Brazilian Sylvinho- both are honest and talented players but their downfall is a shared one- pace. Or lack thereof. Unfortunately for City, United’s wingers have been the only bright sparks in a poor run of form recently. Both Antonio Valencia and Nani possess electric pace and dribbling ability, which could well trouble City as it has done on several occasions this season. If, as expected, Bridge is passed fit, he’ll have to perform excellently to shut out Valencia, ensuring that he doesn’t wander forward and leave the left hand side exposed to counter-attacks. On the opposite side, Onuoha will presumably be allowed to continue following his recent performances, and he perhaps has the easier job of the two full-backs. Whilst dangerous, Nani is also, like his compatriot and predecessor at United, Cristiano Ronaldo, something of a show pony, often opting to attempt the impossible. With composure and concentration, Onuoha can outmuscle and outwit the Portugese winger.

In central midfield, City may well have the upper hand. Whilst unimpressive at times this season, Gareth Barry has recently found his best form and has the experience to deal with an occasion such as this. His colleague, Nigel de Jong, has been simply outstanding in the ‘big games’ so far and will be under instructions to make life difficult and uncomfortable for United’s attacking players. The Reds have a number of options in the middle, none of them particularly special though. Despite his energy and resilience, Darren Fletcher lacks a creative spark so lacking in recent weeks for United, Michael Carrick has disappointed hugely, offering little or nothing in the engine room of the team, and Paul Scholes is, at 35, very much on his last legs and evidently beginning to struggle against the top sides. Brazilian Anderson remains unavailable through injury.

City’s attack is undoubtedly the strongpoint of the team. Even the aforementioned Tevez aside, Emmanuel Adebayor, Craig Bellamy and Adam Johnson have been in scintillating form recently. Bellamy will face either Gary Neville or Rafael and the tenacious Welshman will relish a battle with either of them. His lightening pace and endless endeavour have not only endeared him to the City faithful, but left opposition defenders everywhere nauseous at the prospect of facing him. Adebayor, meanwhile, faces, alongside Tevez, Nemanja Vidic and either Rio Ferdinand or Johnny Evans depending on the extent of a groin injury Ferdinand picked up last weekend. The Togolese forward has returned from both tragedy and suspension to help fire the Blues into 4th spot with dazzling displays against both Burnley and Birmingham. Neither of United’s centre halves will enjoy facing Adebayor, who has just about everything- pace, strength, aerial ability, composure and lethal finishing prowess- in his armoury. New recruit Adam Johnson, though, who has impressed all and sundry with his efforts since joining from Middlesbrough in January, will face arguably the toughest test against Patrice Evra- the Frenchman is exceptionally quick and strong, and rarely loses out in battle with opposition wingers. He is without a doubt United’s best defender at present, offering just as much going forward as defensively, however given Johnson’s obvious appetite for success, he certainly won’t enter the field thinking he can’t overcome Evra.

In Rooney’s absence, Vincent Kompany and Kolo Touré will have to contend with either Dimitar Berbatov or Federico Macheda, or perhaps both. Whilst Kompany, signed before the Abu Dhabi revolution, has impressed consistently and will feel confident in dealing with any of United’s forwards, his more experienced and significantly more expensive partner will need to start showing City fans his worth. Lapses in concentration seem to be a regular feature in Touré’s play, and however unconvincing Berbatov may have been for United since joining, the Bulgarian is well capable of punishing such lapses.

Well then. It’s Mancini vs. Ferguson. 4th vs. 2nd. City vs. United. The winner not only secures the bragging rights for the Summer, but a fighting chance of reaching their target. With Chelsea, in 1st, facing Spurs, in 5th, later on Saturday evening, it could well prove to be a hugely significant weekend in the race for Premier League honours. But forget the statistics, the analysis, the meanings, the commentaries and the speculation. In fact- just forget you ever read this piece. Simply sit back, relax and enjoy some of the best footballers in the world battle it out on that immaculate Eastlands pitch this Saturday lunchtime. Expect goals. Expect passion. Expect excitement. And most of all- expect the unexpected.

Many thanks to Colin The King of ManCityFans.Net for writing this preview.