Possibly angling himself towards a future big money signing to replace Aguero?
Manchester City 17/18 discussion | "If you're here for the Champions clap your hands" (#6505)
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Possibly angling himself towards a future big money signing to replace Aguero?
Jesus was phenomenal last season averaging a goal or assist every 60 odd minutes or something.
So you agree, a good coach like Pep actually makes players better with time to coach them.
Caf logic DDG > Hart, Valencia > Zabaleta, Smalling and Rojo > Kompany and Otamendi, Shaw > Clichy, Herrera > Fernandinho, Martial > Sane, Rashford > Sterling, Zlatan > Aguero. City were washed up and had ancient fullbacks. cyberman even went as far as to say that City team would finish closer to Everton than United (and not because he thought Everton would finish above you guy.)
Both teams started the season finishing 4th and 5th with the same points the previous season, one with an FA Cup.
But yeah, Jose has convinced you all he somehow took over Southampton and you've lapped it up because it feels good to be the underdog with no pressure or expectation of winning (trust me as a City fan I know).
He had a top striker and a good midfield (which ironically the Caf laughed about last season as being a naive and stupid trio that would never work). Jose has a top defence which he improved, a better midfield than City (according to this place) and was only really lacking in the attacking department (and even some tried to debate that.)which he spent £350m on to have a team who can come second. He had a good enough team to win the PL last year IMO and came 6th.
Not bothered or worried about a chav from a council estate who won the lottery, Utd are very much lords of the manner.
City are smarting over the Sanchez fiasco and they know we can match and go higher in transfers and fees if we need to, blimey can you imagine if their owners ever decided to pull the plug for whatever reason, absolute implosion!
City are smarting over the Sanchez fiasco and they know we can match and go higher in transfers and fees if we need to, blimey can you imagine if their owners ever decided to pull the plug for whatever reason, absolute implosion!
And the charge of the usual keyboard warrior spouting pure and utter shite while offering nothing to debate, to show how hardcore United he is. I bet you're such a hardcore United loving City hater, even your blood is red.
My God am I cranky today.
The pressure continues to mount as United endeavour to close the gap on City. Your crankyness levels are directly related to this, thus you feel slightly stressed.
I think.
That's a load of rubbish mate. Pep has spent 400 million plus to have a team who can win the PL despite having players who were good enough to do so last season. United despite winning the FA Cup were absolutely terrible that season. Wigan won the FA cup. It doesn't represent anything considering the poor league campaign we had. We may have finished on the same number of points but we had a team who scored 49 goals, a record number of games at OT without scoring. We were getting outscored by teams like West Ham and Bournemouth. If it wasn't for De Gea we wouldn't have come anywhere near top 4. That's how bad it was. The team was relying on him. Upfront we had 2 teenagers (Martial, Rashford) whilst you had Aguero a proven goalscorer in this league. City scored 71 goals. The rebuilding job for Mourinho was a lot tougher than for Pep. I'm not denying that Pep is a good coach and makes players better. You can look at the difference in Bayern Munich after he left. They haven't been the same however no one can say he isn't anything but a cheque-book manager who needs money to achieve silverware. If Pep had joined United instead of City we wouldn't be 15 points clear and he would've demanded an extra 200 million to rebuild the squad since strikers and midfielders cost a lot more than goalkeepers and defenders. That's why I find it quite funny that he's trying to take the moral high ground over transfers.
A. You're changing the goalposts. We didn't just say 22 players. We said world class or top players. Most squads have 22 players or more.
B. He said compete. Not win.
Given how relatively unimportant the league cup and it's equivalent is I'd say any team that has ever won the treble got close. In modern times Bayern, Inter, Barca and United.
None of whom had 22 world class players.
It was a stupid thing for Pep to say. Especially since he's already done it himself without 22 world class players.
I thought the same, he’s done it yet saying it’s not possible lol. Mindbaffling.
Id say the same of any manager that dares moan about money when spending far above what the average manager does. But that's the difference between United fans and city fans these days. If anything we can be too critical of our manager while guardiola can come out with such obscene levels of self indulgent bile and city fans will waste two days arguing his case online.
I prefer call it as it is and he has no excuse for those comments he's got a massive complex about the mitigating factors in any success he has managed
By the way all of this is ridiculous because City could afford to go and buy 22 new players at 100m a pop.
I am not a Pep hater but I would like the bloke far more if he actually would just say how great he thinks he is. To be fair to the man he is an excellent coach.
I think there is something about Barcelona's setup which breads this sort of nature. I read in Zlatan's book that he was shocked when he went there that they all drove ford focuses.
I was saying this the other day. City fans online are the most overly defensive/protective I've seen.
Replacing a defence is less expensive than replacing attackers. If pep had no kdb and aguero when he took over then he would have had to spend another 190m replacing those two. Do you it's easier to get a cheap world class forward or midfielder.
No they can't, the club can't. No once have we shown we can even buy and afford a Pogba.
The owners can but the club has a budget it must operate within, FFP rules to comply with and for Citys budget (lets say 200m net per season) that would be 10 seasons to bring in 20 players. By the time the later come in the former will be retired. This is a good thing for football imho that no club can just buy everyone and run with it.
Of course City are in a very strong position we currently have a squad that cost £700m to assemble and will probably rise to £750m with Laporte (if he comes), the club somewhat balance this by keeping wages around £220k for our best players so we can spend extra on transfer, but in reality we have 20 odd players ranging between £20m and £60m.
I put numbers in your post as I'm too lazy to sort out all the quotes.
1 - Your very argument is flawed my friend...
United who finished with 66 points were absolutely terrible, but City who finished with 66 points should win the league the next season. Yes you scored feck all but you conceded feck all, City scored okish (not near our usual high number) but conceded alot. You were better defensively, us offensively (as it has remained and was before).
2 - De Gea is a player and the best in his position at that. I can counter that with if Aguero didn't score his 24 goals and be genuinely world class we'd of been nowhere near top 4. The team was relying on him.
3 - Again you are only looking at things one way, yes we had Aguero to your Martial and Rashford but you had what many considered a fine defence with Valencia, Rojo, Smalling, Shaw etc.. who were very highly rated to our comedy of errors with ancient fullbacks who couldn't run in Zabs, Sagna, Clichy and Kolarov.
4 - The rebuilding job wasn't tougher or if it was just marginally, just different. Jose needed different things than Pep when he arrived (forwards and a CM), he went and got them. Pep needed a defence and some youthful energy in attack (he went and got them too). Many on here said City needed to gut their midfield (including myself) which Pep has proved completely wrong.
5 - I agree 100% all manager are cheque book managers especially the good ones.
6 - I disagree completely, he'd of bought differently. Look at his key signings that actually play (Jesus £30m), Sane (£45m), Walker (£50m), if he can get Kompany, Otamendi and Delph playing this brand of football as CB's why wouldn't he do it with Smalling, Rojo, Blind, Valencia.
Here's a team he could have built for similar money which imho could easily play Pep football.)
-----------------DDG-------------- (better than what City currently have)
Valencia--Stones---Jones---Shaw (is it really worse than Walker, Stones, Otamendi and Delph, of course adding in Mendy and City become much stronger)
----------------Matic--------------- (better than Fernandinho (in the eyes of many) not mine but they are literally a coin toss to seperate, but I'm unsure if he's agile enough to play Ferns role at City)
-----------Pogba--Bernardo Silva-- (KDB marginally better than Pogba imho but under Pep that could be different, and of course Merlin is far better than Bernardo)
Rashford--------------------Martial (many would say better than Sane and Sterling, I'd disagree but not a huge amount in it, in terms of talent)
----------------Jesus---------------- (because he fits the style so well)
By my calculations Stones £50m, Matic £40m, Pogba £90m, Bernardo £43m, Jesus £29m - thats £260m and its my my opinion but Pep would dominate the league with that team. At worst he'd need another 100m for Walker and Mendy which would put him where Jose's spending is now.
Again only my opinion but you hand Pep that team and say win me the league and he does it, even with Mata, Lingard, Herrera, Smlling, Blind as subs.
Here are some facts. Not that it matters, since United earned the right to monopolise the League.
Source: Both Clubs Audited Annual Reports
Basically, both spent exactly the same amount in the last 5 years.
People would argue that United should be able to spend more than City on transfers, since they generate more revenue. True, but that extra cash went into higher wage bills, loan repayments, and dividends.
People can make fun of City’s free spending, when there is evidence in the past few years that there are limits. Higher than others, but limits regardless. Numbers for this season would even improve, based on increased disposals, and lower wage bill.
Some posters also mentioned United not “buying” Sanchez. Well, they technically did. They have to write off the unamortised value of Mikhi contract (around 16.5M) and add to it Sanchez signing bonus.
Bottom line is this. United is not catching up because of City’s bigger spending. They are because of shit managers and terrible spending in the near past.
Can we move on and enjoy football again?
Source: Both Clubs Audited Annual Reports
Basically, both spent exactly the same amount in the last 5 years.
People would argue that United should be able to spend more than City on transfers, since they generate more revenue. True, but that extra cash went into higher wage bills, loan repayments, and dividends.
People can make fun of City’s free spending, when there is evidence in the past few years that there are limits. Higher than others, but limits regardless. Numbers for this season would even improve, based on increased disposals, and lower wage bill.
Some posters also mentioned United not “buying” Sanchez. Well, they technically did. They have to write off the unamortised value of Mikhi contract (around 16.5M) and add to it Sanchez signing bonus.
Bottom line is this. United is not catching up because of City’s bigger spending. They are because of shit managers and terrible spending in the near past.
Can we move on and enjoy football again?
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I'll end up bald like Pep over it.. (who am I kidding I'm 90% of the way ther already.
I agree with this. Still think he would bring kdb because he's by far the best midfielder in the pl.
Exactly, the owners can. Man City as a football club excluding their owners can not afford to have a £750M squad or a £500M squad or a £350M squad. If financial fair play offered genuine sanctions that meant anything it would have taken you at least 20 years to grow to the point where that was even feasible.
Thats a completely different argument and one thats been done to death but you say 20 years, I say never which is why Roman and Sheik were good for the premier league, to stop it becoming Bundesliga or La Liga.
The idea that City and Guardiola could act on a point of principle and claim moral high ground on the Sanchez transfer or that City are somehow champions of morality and good sense all of a sudden, is beyond hilarious. They have been paying over the odds for players in transfer fees and wages since day one of the sheikh's take over.
Pep and the owners all in their fur coats paid approximately £1billion per title.
Pep and the owners all in their fur coats paid approximately £1billion per title.
You think sugar daddies are good because they have hugely benefited your club and you are rivals with United. Made the league more competitive possibly, although I would say you and Chelsea just took Arsenal's place and your club has won the league a similar amount of times as Arsenal did before Roman.
Even if that is the case then to what cost? If I decide to start a football manager save with Stoke and give them an unlimited budget, does it make the game more exciting? I would argue it makes it much less exciting and kind of empty.
Its not football manager its real life. yes they are. Just because you like a United procession doesn't mean the rest do.
United 8 of 12 titles. Arsenal 2, Blackburn 1. - Before Roman. 10 times in the top 2.
United 5 of 13 titles. Chelsea 5, City 2, Leicester 1 - 8 times in the top 2.
So yeah, not a one horse race and far more level playing field. I also said it long before we got our money about Abramhovic. Much better for football, look at the Bundesliga for an example of what it could have been.
KDB's passes are insane
Did anyone see Sane's injury? Lucky to not break his leg.
The Bundesliga is the way it is because there are no teams remotely close in size. In England Arsenal and Liverpool are huge clubs. We are much more comparable to La Liga and even then there is no third club as big as Arsenal or Liverpool.
When Sir Alex was still around we really weren't that much less dominant than before Roman came in other than a couple of years rebuilding where Arsenal's "invincibles" would have won the league anyway. There was always going to be a vacuum when Fergie retired and it would have been Arsenal and Liverpool filling it.
You can honestly look at it whatever way you need to though, sugar daddies are not a good thing for the game and they are not the only way that clubs can grow. I am sure you are very fond of them and I can't blame you but that doesn't change the way clubs have grown and competed cyclically for 100 years.
You are underestimating the working that was needed at united. Yes we finished equal points to you lot in 2016 but let us be realistic, you lot were always in top 4 and we were hardly there. The fact that we bottled it against Westham and could not progress from a group containing PSV, Wolfsburg and CSKA Moscow proves how crap we were. I know you will find it hard admitting it but Pep took over a better squad compared to Jose. The squad was not only weak on paper but even mentally United were in a shit condition. I understand its your opinion but no way would Pep be winning the league this season if he was our manager. The job was far tougher than people anticipate.
That was pathetic tackle and the player should have been sent off. Having said that it was equally frustrating how that Diaz kid was rolling over like he was shot at the end. Won't be surprised if Sane is back this midweek.
Disgraceful tackle. What else to expect from a side coached by Warnock?
Surely he will be back in 48 hours just like KDB.
If he is back from that before a fortnight, we should bring in their physio team for 25% extra of what City is paying them cuz they are clearly doing a fantastic job.
Only a yellow, wow!
Can't fill a stadium they don't even own, still top 5 on the rich list ahead of many, many, many, many bigger teams. Makes perfect sense.
I’m sure that they’re getting the same “treatment” that Pep’s players got when he was at Barcelona. They’ve probably modernised from injection to aerosol form now though.
But according to some they are divers and roll around. Those tackles are all in the last 6 weeks. Pep is right to be furious.
I don't underestimate what Jose inherited and I think he's done brilliant in rebuilding, I think the opposite, people on here really overestimate the City Pep inherited (myself included), lets be honest if it wasn't for Chelsea downing tools a their team who are good but not amazing would be on 3 premier league titles in a row. Pelligrini single handedly took City's progression back 2-3 years, just look at the clubs Pellers players are now at..
But according to some they are divers and roll around. Those tackles are all in the last 6 weeks. Pep is right to be furious.
All rightful reds so I doubt any sane person can call them dives. You got to get used to this sort of treatment by other teams when you get compared to the second coming of Christ.. when they cant cant compete some teams attempt to bully you off the pitch.