The turtle

42 minutes ago, elhombrecito said:

Incredibly underrated city. Everybody just thinks of it as the entry point to such wonderful places as Torremolinos, but it's a great city with wonderful restaurants and nightlife.

Without fail, every time I tell somebody that I'm going to Málaga, they seem to assume that I'm heading to some Benidorm style resort.

Stop telling everyone or the secret will get out.

So. (just reading comments)

Dont invest in the squad to push on with proven quality players. Only young , "hungry - and much to learn.

The best of academy players/younger crop sold within a year. (as always)

The rest stay here : we'll forever be one or two away if get the August window right.(every year)

4-9 points off playoffs.

All the academy statistics , amount of goals , etc etc are useless, when the academy IS the team.

Academy cream players are meant to compliment what you've bought in to push on.

It's almost like, they've registered how fans like home grown players , will be more patient , so let's over load and push that. It's a great way to become self sustaining, fans will lap it up.

Who needs a promotion push when their all one of our owm - or at least own made.

....

You need experience for the dog days of the season, to maintain standards and discipline.

You need quality to push the club forward and for the youngsters to aspire to

And you need youth to keep it fresh, to give keep the club connected to fans.

It's not as hard as they are trying to make it. But it's their version of identity , their obsession to do it the way not done before. Until the next change of direction that is.

43 minutes ago, elhombrecito said:

Tour of Andalucía please 

100

35 minutes ago, Glen hump said:

Think someone’s pulling your leg’ but I do know his sister’s called macey.

His aunt (father's side) is called stacey

2 hours ago, Cole Not Gas said:

What is it with managers' soundbites? We had loads under both Johnsons, Pearson must have said he was frustrated in 50 post-match interviews and Liam is forever talking about 'In Terms of' and 'the process' - enough to do one's head in listening to these guys.

Today on TalkSport, Mark Robins was also banging on about 'the process' ahead of Cov's game with Man Utd. I'm sure Cov fans love Robins for what he has done at one of the worst-run clubs in our league and I would have liked him to have been appointed when Deano had to go. Good luck to them this weekend but enough of 'the process'. It is football management.

Totally, before we know it football managers will be talking about behaviours, behaviours, behaviours.

Torre de Belém.... The face of Portuguese history

(Check out the monestery walking distance away from the torre, and if you're into football stadiums belenenses just behind.

IMPORTANT

Pastéis de Belém = in the cafe named as such; incredible and cheap (This is the only place that can be the true name- everywhere else you're having DE NATA

Bairrio alto at night is worth a visit - a real Portuguese experience (be warned you have to go up up and up) and not everywhere there accepts card as payment, be sure to ask.

The view of the bridge at sunset at the river end of Praça do Comércio is incredible 

Most of lisboa is actually pretty new since 1755 earthquake, for a taste of history ... Check out lisbon cathedral and alfama distract as it's the historic part of the city.

Close by - Castelo de S. Jorge. It's highly recommend. - sadly I couldn't go there, as my 2am night out turned into 7.30am (welcome to lisboa) so that morning was out.

.........

Finally 

Check out pink street in the early evening - then leave. Do not drink there. Worth a view, feel disappointed, then leave (then return in the late late hours if so wish)

August 2023 - end of season 2024

Which players have progressed and/or are seen on a more positive light by the Fanbase

I would say

max has more trust.

Tanner has a bit more respect, actually becoming better with a bit of time out the side.

Knight has been good been more than decent when played in the right positions. But i often feel; if there's a game he's the best player it's because all creativity has been poor. He gives the side energy, he keeps it ticking, but he shouldn't be the best player.

Has anybody else really kicked on? Who can you see currently being developed into something more?

Firstly it's important to understand there are two styles at play;
style A is when the opposition impose themselves 
style B when they let us play the way we want.

Style A has been worked on for a number of years. It's what this squad was built for. Counter attacking pressing football 

You only have to look at the possession stats to know what has happened in city match.
Over 50 it was probably an awful game
Under 50... We were in the game

Style b - is the way manning wants to play. It's the ultimate man city trick, yet death of football as we know it.

Yesterday as an example, we took a goal kick with 3 players in our own box, yet not 1 Huddersfield player was in our half.

For style B to work- you would need.
Multi million pound striker or 2.
A multi million pound AM.
4 super quick, super electric wingers.. Basically rotated on who is in form..

Overlapping full backs on both sides 

And ball playing, pacey DM or 2

It's a lot of money, a whole lot of money. With no guarantee it will work.

Leeds do not play that way 
Ipwich do not play that way.
Both entertain

.........................

The problem with style B, even at it's best there are long periods of games where nothing happens.
There are less threatening shots 
Leds turning the defence
Less crosses 
Less beat your man,
Less get to the byline 

In the few manning pressers i have seen, he likes the phrase we've had to work harder for our goals. Well that goes without saying when the opposition know your plan, and will allow holes elsewhere to stop that plan.

A lot of the footbal in style A is dull, boring, lacking intensity, devoid of, well you know the E word.

There was a moment yesterday when city went back to max from an attacking corner.
The crowd not angry.
Carey on bctc (he was fantastic and insightful bar this comment) insinuated the crowd don't understand the ploy here.

The crowd understood it perfectly, but were making it clear they do not want backwards safe option by instinct football 

(As an aside; I've watched 3 games this week where a co- commentator has implied the crowd didn't understand - - - they did, but rejected what they saw)

Think about it like this. 4 games unbeaten, off the back of a 5-0 win. And yet the crowd were restless and annoyed because the entertainment and enjoyment factor was 0. 
Ashton gate is not a place for safety first  football.
I understand results matter, i understand ultimately that's the games. But it's supposed to be fun, have you on the edge of your seat.
It just doesn't do that, not even mostly for man city 

And yet they've said.... Transfer tweaks.
So what's going to change?
Well everything becomes about the result.
Win or lose
That's it.
The actual entertainment factor, a buzzing Ashton gate.
Will be few and far between.

I hate ball retention for the sake of it football.
It's just not a way I want to spend my Saturdays.
Be intent, be aggressive, and go at the opposition.
Take risks in their half, not yours.

At one point yesterday, the commentator and carey were complimentary because we pulled their striker out of play, and created space for a full back in line with our penalty area.
Do you know what happend next?
Absolutely nothing.
Miles from their goal
And no intent to disrupt their shape where damage can be done.

.....
Away from home will always be a different story. Wins and draws are hard thought and earnt 
But at home- with that style 
I don't exactly live in hope, and I'm not exactly a fan even when it works 

I find the fact that's a penalty ridiculous.

But that's modern football.

It either takes your breath away, puts you to sleep, or makes you go really? 

7 hours ago, AshtonGreat said:

Five unbeaten

And yet!! This is the mood when it's good 

60% possession 

A bit like giving the dog a bone/stick when they prefer to chase it.

Oh i hate it when we try and play this way 

Never liked this city

4 hours ago, GrahamC said:

I do.

When you’ve played poorly & your goalkeeper has saved you from defeat on the back of two wins (one against the side who’ll probably win the league) then a point away from home is absolutely fine by me.

I have been watching us a long time, so realised years ago that expecting us to win every game & even play well in them is unrealistic & pretty naive.

I look every season to make sure that first we have enough points to stay up, so yesterday was another one to that total.

The debate about Tinnion, Lansdown & Manning will go on elsewhere.

I’m definitely not in the “be careful what you wish for” camp, I’d happily see the Lansdowns & Tinnion leave tomorrow but can happily “take the point” & “move on”.

So in essence, a team plays so badly the other team so dominant. You spend 90 minutes with very little entertainment, very little to get excited about. Very little quality from your own team. You've not got close to value for money or value for time. You haven't even seen the other team score to actually feel annoyed.

Yet, and it's the oddest of yets, it was so bad, conversely it becomes satisfying because a point has been added to a league table? Yep, I'll take that.

I understand what you're saying, i just find it alien. 

1 minute ago, Davefevs said:

Shell-suit?

Birth-shell-day suit

26 minutes ago, Bristol Oil Services said:

Can't quite believe that is Lez, off here, on there. He's actually real. Still getting used to @Davefevs actually being real. Amazing. We likely to see "Alan" Robbored on there - don't tell me he's actually a real bloke, too?

Wait till you see I'm actually a turtle 

Just a football musing, but I don't want to glory hog with a new thread. It's not so much about city either.

A strange phrase I've seen a lot today post game = "ill take that"

It has to be one of the stranger emotions. Who pays money and time to walk away from a football match thinking "ill take that" after a nil nil.

It's not like there are exceptions either, because if you play well you aren't taking it.

I'm a master of somehow watching 0-0s and not once have i ever walked out feeling like "ill take that"

Do you know how dominant the other team has to be for "ill take that"

Not once have i been to a game hoping for a 0-0. It simply leaves a feeling devoid of emotion.

I just don't get the phrase or the feeling

2 minutes ago, Bris Red said:

Take the point and move on, one positive for me was i thought Twine looked really promising in spells and he will only get better IMO.

And by August he'll probably be elsewhere 

National broadcast , on the BBC

The British broadcasting corporation.

Wales more important game , easy decision.

5 hours ago, tin said:

I remember hearing the hat story around the time it happened and that summed up my opinion of GJ’s management style. It worked in the lower leagues, but he couldn’t manage the better players’ egos. His boy is cut from the same cloth. Both awful man managers. 

my coffee is now on the floor. DO you know how long it takes a turtle to make a coffee? Took us from deep dodo in league 1, to one game from the promised land. multiple top half finishes! and then there is getting Yeovil to the championship. Humans, honestly. it is true what that say, live long enough and every hero becomes a villain; note how this did not happen to the teenage mutant ninja turtles, heroes for life, no drama. us turtles have class!

how did I do? we are playing a game about who can post most ridiculously, right?

19 minutes ago, Silvio Dante said:

Notes from it:

- Matty James is fully training as is Twine. Williams not as yet

- They’ve had some physically tough sessions which in turn develop mental toughness - have now given them days off as recharging is very important (at this point I believe I saw Jon Lansdown smacking his head against a wall)

- The large volume of games we’ve not won or drawn we’ve been in them. The culture is good and it’s important to stick together

- Questioned as to how much of the plan is set game by game and how much is based on how he’d like us to play. Answer was that the behaviours needed to be right, had to run and had to compete, but he very much sees football as cat and mouse (….sake) and if the opponents are struggling against us then they will change and it’s about having a culture when the players solve the problem and that’s the big bit. 
 

(NB - major issue here. He’s right that opponents will change but the problem is he doesn’t and he can’t expect the players to solve the macro problems. They did when they went off piste vs Swansea but that’s in spite and not because of him)

- Bit about the fans, the youth cup, nothing else major. New phrase is “we need to do us” which is very romcom.

Not worth 8 minutes of your life.

3m 40sec and out

The word behaviours comes in, turtle slowly exits the room

I kmow this might sound a bit crazy.

But instead of getting help. Maybe just maybe we need a manager who had ideas which closely resemble the fan base.

Chris got it, when you've got a chance to get it forward... You take it.

When you've got space infront of you, attack it.

As I've said before, it took my wife one single city game to identify the way the crowd pushes the team forward, demands it infact. She loved that about our club.... As an aside the other thing she knows; around 1745 (Spain time) I'm normally annoyed as city conceded a last minute goal. (True it happens less now)

This is why despite the fact we did actually beat swansea, most were Just like! No no no. The football on the pitch doesn't represent who we as a fanbase are.

LM has an ideology that is simply alien to us. He won't change, it's his career so nor should he. Fact is however, we haven't played a single game this season playing patient build up football, played well and won, how many time have we played his way and enjoyed it? I can't think of any.

The club we don't name, and Watford away both were built on high energy, pressing yet break at speed football.

What's the point in getting someone in to help him? There is nothing to add. He'll still bore us to tears. And the best days won't make the bad ones worth it.

Whoever they get; and i really don't care who, they need to get us, who we are and the football we expect.

For that you need 3 things.  Intent, aggression and emotion. Everything manning just isn't.

GJ and COTTs were successful because they got it. They did it differently, but they got it. Neither were perfect, but they got the sense of adventure absolutely any city fan needs.

He has to go, he will go sooner or later. No help is going to help him. I truly he hope he learns, and understands the importance of researching fanbase first. Knowing which will be patient and which won't. He could easily be next at the club we don't name, swansea, etc etc.  i wish him nothing but success in football he seems knowledgeable and decent, but at city he's simply the wrong man, in the wrong time at the wrong club.

All this outrage, all a bit Johnny come lately. Personally I've been outraged since the peter saville flag mockery shirt of 2010

Even worse was this keeper beauty from 2014. Not a correct England flag in site

All i have to say is; "where were you when we were s**t? Didn't care about the flag colour then did you, eh eh eh?

Glory hogging flag merchants.

12 hours ago, cityexile said:

Let me introduce you to the ‘West Ham’ alternative universe of excuses.

Let me introduce you to Watford, alternative to the alternative 

12 hours ago, Bcfc willzyak said:

I wondered to my self if we never had beaten Southampton would manning still be in his job now?

 

move this to a thread you find appropriate if don’t want another thread  

Then we'd mention how we beat them on championship manager.

Received quite a bit of criticism when first started post Geoff.

Last night very much sounded like a man finding his feet, being comfortable doing it his way.

May it continue.