Why Always Them?
April 30, 2012 at 10:47 | Posted in Manchester City, Matches | Leave a comment
While it was in the September of 2008 that Sheikh Mansour took control of Manchester City Football Club, the 2008-09 campaign for the blues wasn’t the best on the pitch. In fact, it ended with the team outside all of the European places and had a Christmas Day in the relegation zone wedged into the middle of it. That was the last time that City met United just twice over the course of a season; every year since then, there has been more than the minimum two Manchester derbies.
Those two derbies of 2008-09 were bleak for City: Two defeats, no goals and barely a shot in either. There was so much between the two sides, you’d never have believed the gap had looked smaller the year earlier – when Sven’s side had twice beaten their local rivals. Fast forward to a new manager and throw in a few new players and progress had stalled somewhat.
But that’s when City got serious. In a manner, the club declared war on the team from across town. With a summer of additions – including the high profile signing of Carlos Tevez – the blues had suddenly gone from a team with no European football to one that was pushing to finish fourth in the Premier League. That transfer saga was the start of where the bad blood began to get worse between the two Manchester clubs. Previously, City’s mid-table woes and relegation battles had mattered little to United’s title challenges and European nights, and vice-versa. The sides met twice a year and battled it out, with the bragging rights at stake.
But that Tevez switch signalled the start of City’s rise; the now infamous poster being a cheap dig that got United’s back up and had those in charge of the reds foaming at the mouths. They were rattled. It added extra feeling to that first meeting between the two sides and it felt, for the first time in a long time, that City were somewhere near to pushing United all the way. It was the first step in the blues’ rise; they went in off the back of four wins. Of course, we all know how it ended: Michael Owen stole the points with a goal in added time to added time.
We might not have realised it at the time, but that game marked the beginning of a new era of Manchester derbies. This was no longer the haves against the have nots; this was the beginning of a fight for power. City were trying to wrestle it from United and it was no longer simply bragging rights at stake. This was league position and future success for City. For United, it was a battle to stay in poll position and to avoid being eclipsed by their nearest rivals.
Before that match in 2009-10, Sir Alex Ferguson uttered his famous “not in my lifetime” quote – in answer to the question of whether City would go into a derby match as favourites. Not only has he since been proven wrong on that front, as the blues have now gone into a derby with shorter odds than United, but he has himself passed comment on it, claiming the blues were where the money should be placed for this season’s FA Cup tie.
As much as us City fans don’t want it to be true, the fact of the matter is United aren’t going to just go away. They’ve had dominance over England for nigh on twenty years and, as is the case with any sort of evil, undemocratic Empire, the idea of giving up power isn’t one that is ever jumped at. The inconvenience of the matter is that, to become top dogs in this country, City are going to have to dismantle what United have built brick by brick. Mario Balotelli almost hit the nail on the head; he said ‘Why always me?’, when he should have asked ‘Why always them?’
Since the takeover and since City have been climbing the table in their quest for success, they have had to overcome United at every significant point. The coincidental and slightly queer fact that the reds have been constantly standing in the blues’ way for every little achievement is quite symbolic of the fight as a whole. They have what we want and we have to forcefully take it from them. To be a success, we have to stop them from stopping us.
Back in 2009-10, City had their best chance yet of picking up silverware, having just smashed three past Arsenal’s kids and made it to the semi-finals of the League Cup. Leaving the ground, fans were desperately trying to find out who the club had drawn. And then the news broke: Manchester United. To make matters worse, it was the most difficult draw, being the home leg first and the away leg second.
The reds, having played a weakened side all the way up to that point, signalled their intent to the competition and towards City. One could be forgiven for thinking United were more concerned from stopping the blues winning the cup, rather than winning it themselves; the policy of playing fringe players stopped immediately when it became obvious City were serious about lifting the trophy that so many teams shun. United won that battle, but only just.
The progress for City took another dent later that season. The push for a Champions League place over Tottenham, Aston Villa and Liverpool appeared to be swinging into the blues’ favour, until one Manchester United rocked up at the City of Manchester Stadium. A last minute goal again won the game for the visitors, and that sparked a run of form that saw City lose out to Spurs in a penultimate match ‘playoff’. While City had clearly improved, they were still some way behind United.
Then came last season. City managed to earn one more point in the Manchester derbies than the campaign previous, but that was a somewhat soul-destroying and wholly forgettable 0-0 draw at Eastlands. The undoubted highlight of which being the final whistle, when fans could finally go home and wonder how better they could have spent that ninety minutes. In fact, it’s the fixture in February that is more telling – City turned up at Old Trafford and were marginally the better side, a marked improvement on the year before. They only lost that game due to a freak, out-of-this-world, unbelievably good goal, that, on another day, would have landed somewhere on the M60.
But that wasn’t the half of it. With City looking to end a trophy drought of over three decades, it looked like the FA Cup was going well. The big sides were dropping out and the blues had been given favourable draws against lower league opposition and, on the one occasion they drew a Premier League side, it was at home. But then, just before the quarter final with Reading, the balls were pulled out of that strange bowl thing on ITV and, if they got through, City would be paired up with United. At Wembley. The reds were, once again, blocking the path of City’s progress.
This time, City came out on top – and deservedly so. Rooney was missing, as was Tevez, and both sides went toe-to-toe for the honour of being an FA Cup finalist. The banner at Old Trafford proudly displayed the years since the blues had won a major trophy (not that they care, obviously); it wasn’t officially sanctioned by the club, but clearly endorsed, as, had they wanted it gone, it could quite easily have been removed. Roberto Mancini had previously failed on his first attempt to fulfil his promise of tearing it down.
To do it, he was going to have to get the better of United. First it was the League Cup. And then the FA Cup. As we know now, he kept that promise. He went on to complete the cup run by seeing off Stoke in the final and lifting the trophy last May.
The next time the two sides would meet was the Community Shield: The opening game of the season; the curtain raiser. And, back in August, nobody would have predicted just how significant the two teams that contested that match would be. It’s telling now that the showpiece for the English Premier League would be contested by the two teams vying to win it nine months on. City threw away a two-goal lead to lose that game and, from that point on, proceeded to smash records in the opening months of the season, as team after team were dispatched en route to October and a trip to Old Trafford.
A United win would see them leapfrog the blues into top spot. A City win would see them open up a five point gap at the table’s summit. It would turn out to be the blues’ biggest step yet in taking a wrecking ball to Sir Alex Palpatine’s Empire. Six huge hits were sustained that day and City inflicted United’s largest ever Premier League defeat at Old Trafford. Fans that had been arguing that the gap between the two clubs was getting shorter began to argue that it was actually getting wider: That blue had become more dominant than red.
Of course, that was too premature.
The FA Cup was next: The third round draw threw these teams together once again. But for an unjust red card, it could have been a different story; but a club mustn’t lament its bad luck. United made it into the pot for the fourth round, though City gave them a scare, with one man fewer for eighty of the ninety minutes and from three goals behind. That first cup might have gone in the trophy cabinet, but the second one after it was still not going to be an easy task.
And now it comes down to this. This evening, City host United for the final time in the Premier League this season. A home win will see the blues back on top of the league on goal difference. A draw will play right into the reds’ hands, giving them a three point lead with two games to play. An away win will all but confirm the title is heading to Old Trafford. While many of us hoped that the title race would be over well before this match, when the fixtures were announced it was always going to be inevitable that this would play a key role.
United have stood in City’s way in everything they have tried to do since the takeover. If City are to knock United into second place in this country, then they will have to do it both literally and metaphorically. In the wartime metaphor, the battles have been tight and close, and, for three years, City have been gradually gaining ground, while United have stagnated. But in the literal world, the reds have stopped the blues on several occasions in the past.
A win this evening will go some way to swinging the balance of power and will take the war to its next level. United stood in City’s way for Champions League qualification and that was eventually overcome. They stood in the way of a trophy to break the duck and that was eventually overcome. They now stand in the way of league progress. It’s do or die. All or nothing. Win or lose.
To exorcise the ghosts of the past, the torment of United’s success compared to the blues’ exploration of England’s lower leagues, City simply need some success of their own. To get it, however, it seems like they are always going to have to get the better of their rivals.
The next battle in the war begins tonight.
Time To Be Realistic Rather Than Optimistic?
April 1, 2012 at 12:09 | Posted in Manchester City | Leave a comment
That’s that, then. March is done and dusted and it’s a not-so-polite fuck off from me towards the month that has been as good for our title hopes as that last packet of biscuits has been for my training schedule before the Manchester 10k. From a possible fifteen Premier League points this month, City have taken eight. Two wins, two draws and a defeat and finishing the month two points off the top of the league, having played a game more than the leaders.
City started the month five points ahead of second place, also having played a game more. Throw in an exit from Europe and only one of City’s seven games in all competitions producing a good ninety minute performance from the blues and it’s probably been the worst month of the season.
Despite it still being mathematically possible, it’s at this point where I nail the Mooney colours to the mast and confirm, if the mildly sombre tone of this column so far hasn’t already done so, that my towel is in the ring and I have come to the conclusion that City will probably not win the league this season. For me, the time has come to be realistic, rather than optimistic.
The warning signs have been there for a while and a draw with Sunderland isn’t where it’s gone wrong. In fact, at home isn’t where it’s gone wrong, given that point against the Black Cats meant that was the first time since February 2011 that City didn’t take all three points in a home game. The costly errors have been on the road. Fulham and Liverpool early on were minor setbacks, but nothing we couldn’t handle. Same with Chelsea and, to a degree, Everton. But soon, Swansea happened and then Peter Crouch proved why he’s a Jedi, being a true-to-life example of Yoda’s words: “Try not. Do. Or do not. There is no try.”
Nevertheless, hand on heart, I can honestly say I’ve not been convinced by an away performance of City’s after the derby victory in October.
Since then, City have played ten times in the league away from The Etihad Stadium and picked up 12 of a possible 30 points. Of those ten games, City have won three (QPR, Wigan, Aston Villa), drawn three (Liverpool, West Brom, Stoke) and lost four (Chelsea, Sunderland, Everton, Swansea). And they’ve not been particularly convincing in any of them, unlike the away games before them (Bolton, Tottenham, Fulham (albeit a draw), Blackburn, Manchester United). Last season, this stuttering away form and near perfect home form (remind you of anyone?) would have been good enough, but, unfortunately (perhaps unluckily) for us, this season, it’s not.
In fact, any other season, City would probably still be in front and favourites. But, this season they’re not and, the truth is, I wonder where our next away points will come from. Wolves at Molineux is the only game I can see City taking maximum points from; Arsenal, Newcastle and Norwich are away days I really don’t fancy.
And now we’ve hit the situation where United can lose the derby, but still win the league. City need a favour off somebody else. Of course, though, if that favour does come, City really need to help themselves, something they haven’t been doing for the last month, at the very least.
Yet, whatever the outcome, this will be City’s best ever Premier League season, given the club has exactly the same points total now as they did at the end of their previous best ever Premier League season – ie. Last season. Year on year for the last three campaigns, we have had our best ever in the Premier League; there’s been progress and there have been lessons well and truly learnt. Roberto Mancini’s City have always been better with each passing season.
This season, his side re-wrote the record books early on. They stole the consecutive home wins record. They’ve given United their biggest ever home Premier League defeat. They’ve played football the likes of which most City fans have only dreamt of. And this is why anybody considering that the manager should lose his job if the club doesn’t finish top of the pile is so, so wrong.
Okay, so the progress hasn’t quite been as drastic as expected. Last year, we ended the trophy drought and made the step up to the Champions League. This year, barring any disasters, we have stepped up at least one league position, with more points and more goals. And we’ve genuinely challenged for a title – that still could be ours, however unlikely you or I think it now – instead of flirting with the top spot having played three more games than anyone else over Christmas. Mancini has been building on what he’s achieved each season and to scrap that and start again with a new man is ludicrous.
Look at where that’s gotten Chelsea.
That’s not to say we shouldn’t be disappointed if we don’t win the league. We most definitely should; we’ve been on top of the thing for months, so not to finish the job is upsetting. However, the future is surely brighter for City than you would immediately think: Chelsea and Arsenal have fallen away and need strengthening to be able to fight for the title again, especially the latter of the two. United are weaker than most seasons (though not as weak as some would have you believe) and they haven’t played the quality of football that’s set them apart from most of the division – surely, without investment and improvement, they can’t keep on scraping through for another 12 months?
Meanwhile, I’d suggest City will come back stronger next season, whether we win the league or not. Think for a moment of next season’s title challenge if we don’t win it this season; Roberto Mancini most definitely isn’t going to let the squad go out all guns blazing and fade away again. Now imagine City do win the league this season; Roberto Mancini most definitely won’t let the squad go out all guns blazing and fade away again.
Think of how you felt last season when Wayne Rooney’s overhead kick hit the back of Joe Hart’s net. Then think back to October and how you felt the next time those two teams played out that particular fixture, specifically when Dzeko’s second wriggled through De Gea. The overhead kick doesn’t matter so much anymore, eh?
So be disappointed that we dropped two points to Sunderland. Be disappointed that we handed the initiative to United. Be disappointed if we don’t come back and win it. But look at the bigger picture. That title is certainly coming and it’s coming soon.
So We’re No Longer Favourites… This Is A Wake-Up Call
March 13, 2012 at 11:30 | Posted in Manchester City | Leave a comment
So, it’s the morning after the evening after the morning after the night before. And we’re not top of the table for the first time in five months. Defeat in Wales, combined with a United victory at Old Trafford ensured that City slipped a point behind their title rivals and their near neighbours, with just ten games to play. And the world looked on in horror, as thousands of children in blue shirts were jeered by their classmates and many of their parents phoned in sick. And Bono and Bob Geldof launched CityAid, because, with the title out of their grasp, the blues were condemned to yet another season of mediocrity.
Now, I say that not to be offensive and not to be flippant, but just to put into perspective the events of the last couple of days. Worse things have happened, are happening and are going to happen. Even in football, worse things will happen. Ok, so, now we’re the chasers. And we, on paper, have the more difficult fixtures. But it’s not like we’re going to slip out of the league or like we’re not going to be playing Champions League football next season or like we’re on the verge of bankruptcy.
Don’t get me wrong here – I’m not over the moon to be in second place with ten games to go, having been first for so long. In fact, I’m quite fucked off with it, just like you are. However, the title is still very much in our own hands: The equation is quite simple; win every game and we will win the league by, at least, two points. Because both City and United can’t win all their games, given we play each other in one of them.
Perhaps I’m over-simplifying the situation. Winning every game seems a very simple solution to a rather complex problem, but it’s not too far from what United have been doing. To their credit (words I won’t type very often, mind), through their difficult fixtures, United have clung on to City’s shirt-tails like a bit of your morning poo that affixed itself to your best top when you didn’t realise you’d trapped the back of your clothing under the toilet seat when sitting down on the throne first thing. And City didn’t change their shirt, but instead they rather proudly walked into the meeting, blissfully unaware of the horrible ending that was heading their way that day.
But, just as there’ll be more meetings to repair the damage, the job’s going to be a tough one. It’s now City’s turn to play their run of difficult games during United’s easier matches and it’s our turn to make sure that we’re still within those two points when it comes to derby day. Providing that’s the case, the chance to go back to the top of the league (with two games to play afterwards) will be ours and if we don’t take it, then we only have ourselves to blame.
Going behind at this stage of the season isn’t ideal, but it’s not a disaster and it’s certainly rectifiable. It’s just not very nice to slip up in the manner that we did: Conceding that goal to Swansea, knowing United were winning and we were dropping behind them in the league, was very much like giving a blowjob to a rent boy. There was a sense of foreboding before it happened, an overwhelming feeling of disappointment while it was happening and, when it’s over, all that’s left is a nasty taste in the mouth.
All we can do now is take care of our own business and we’ve got ten games to do it in. We might have to face Chelsea at home and Arsenal away, but that’s the way it goes; and, who knows, we might well take maximum points from those fixtures. Who would have thought Blackburn would go to Old Trafford and win? Who would have backed Newcastle to spank United at St James’s Park… Err… The Sports Direct Arena? Who would have thought Sunderland would have nicked our game at The Stadium of Light or West Brom would have taken a point at The Hawthorns?
Exactly. These next ten games are not as easy or hard as anybody thinks. Strange results happen, no more so than at the end of a season, as teams pick up unexpected points all over the place. Those challenging for titles throw them away and those fighting to stay up steal them. And those with no danger of doing anything meander towards the middle of May, liberally sprinkling points towards whoever is kind enough to take them (and there’s another eye-opener because that used to be us, just a couple of years ago).
See, the defeat at Swansea prompted two very large reactions from City fans. The first was to throw the toys out of the pram and scream/shout/hysterically cry/hack own head off because the title race was over and there was no chance City were going to fight back (eurgh). And the second was to point out where City used to be ten to fifteen years ago in a bid to point out that we’ve come a long way and should be happy with our lot (eurgh, also).
Now, I admit, I have a reputation for sitting on the fence (yes, my posterior does contain a few splinters, thank you very much), but this is exactly the time to be perching ourselves neatly between the two arguments. From the first camp, the loss is a reality check: The Premier League is not won until it’s mathematically impossible for any team to pass those sitting in first place. Yes, we’d been top for months, but that means the thin end of knob all when the final table is drawn up. Equally, being top of the league (or thereabouts, now), we can’t just turn up and expect to win games and that we’re now in second place should be a wake-up call to anybody who had developed an air of complacency.
However, from that second argument, it’s also prevalent to note where City have come from in recent years. It’s taken substantial investment to be able to compete for the Premier League title and, since Roberto Mancini has been in charge of the club, we’ve improved every year. And we have improved this year, whether we win the league or not. And we will improve again next year. And the year after that.
We do need to be thankful that our final local (league) derby this season should be against United and should play such a major part in who is going to finish as the best team in England, rather than being against Stockport or Macclesfield and deciding whether or not we will be going up/getting into the playoffs/staying in the division. It’s important to realise the steps we have taken, but, equally, it’s important not to lose that ambition to be the best. There’s nothing wrong with being disappointed with what will be City’s best ever Premier League finish if we’re not champions, but we do need to realise that we are, year after year, getting better.
And so, we have ten games to decide what is going to happen. It’s down to the players, the management team and, crucially, the fans. We need to back the team, home and away. We need not to be grumbling or groaning when a pass is misplaced inside the first ninety seconds. We need not to sigh or moan when we haven’t scored a first half goal. We need not to be anxious when we’re under pressure and tense when the other team are putting up a good fight.
We need to support the team and help them see this through. Perhaps we’ve been complacent and we’ve had our bottoms stung for it; it’s almost as if we’ve expected to win, being the league leaders. If United fans act and their team plays like they have already won the league, then they will lose it. But if City fans act and our team plays like United have already won the league, then we have already lost.
This isn’t over yet.
Come on City.
Let’s fucking do this.
Carlos Tevez: Can We Forgive And Forget?
February 29, 2012 at 13:56 | Posted in Manchester City, Players, Transfers | Leave a comment
As I was considering how to best handle the Carlos Tevez return, the thought suddenly struck me: I am, morally, a hypocrite. Back when the Argentine didn’t come on in Munich and during the ensuing aftermath, I commented that I didn’t care what happens to him. I didn’t give two smelly farts what he decided to do; I just had the best interests of Manchester City Football Club at heart and, if he was or wasn’t a part of that, then I wasn’t fussed.
And for months, while the number 32 was AWOL, that was true. I was focused on watching City smash records and top the table and be brilliant without him. While we might have been light on striking options, we have, on the whole, been lucky with injuries and suspensions up top and very rarely has there been a game where the team didn’t look like scoring at some point. The fact that the first time the blues did fail to find the net was on Boxing Day – a mere 18 league games into the season – tells its own story.
Especially when the extent Carlos Tevez’s involvement in City’s league campaign to that point had been one missed penalty. And that’s it; the goals had come from everywhere else in the team, something which would have seemed very unlikely, given the reliance on Tevez the team had had over the previous two seasons. But, without him, City had been batting away records left, right and centre. And that, combined with his absence, made it very easy not to care about him: His actions meant that he wasn’t available to play a part in City’s season, so I could have a lack of interest. He wasn’t here.
But now he is and I have to be perfectly honest. Morally speaking, I wouldn’t like Carlos Tevez to feature for the first team again. City have stood their ground and refused to cut their asking price for the player, and, in turn, the player hasn’t got the desired move away from the club: City won that battle of wills. There was only one place my support was going to go and it wasn’t to the man whose actions didn’t have Manchester City at heart.
For the last few months, barely a day has gone by where the talking point about Manchester City hasn’t included (to some degree, at least) Carlos Tevez. City’s achievements this season have been at the forefront, don’t get me wrong, but most – if not all – of Roberto Mancini’s press conferences since the start of October have finished with the question: “What’s the situation with Carlos Tevez?” And that was followed by a roll of the eyes from every City fan watching. It feels there’s been so much additional baggage for the last four months that RyanAir would have a field day with extra charges.
Yet, one apology and a strict training regime later, and the man who has recently been nothing but trouble could be a part of the first team set up. And I really don’t want that. I don’t want to see a man whose actions have been no help to the team whatsoever waltz his way back into the plans, by way of a carefully crafted statement with club officials and a bit of fitness work. Morally, I’d hate it: Sergio Aguero, Mario Balotelli and Edin Dzeko have been the three strikers who have gotten the club to the top of the league and deserve to be the ones that win City the league; how would they all feel if they’re dropped due to rotation or poor form for a man who was AWOL for four months? You couldn’t blame them for getting the impression their hard work meant nothing.
And it wouldn’t set any sort of example: It would say to the other players and to any potential future players that they can walk all over the club and, if they’re good enough – because, for all that’s happened, we can’t deny that Tevez is a good player – then they’ll always have a shot at working their way back into the team. And that makes me feel very uneasy.
They say that, while Tevez’s attitude away from the pitch has been questionable, his actions on the pitch have shown that he will always give everything he can. Except that argument took one huge dent when, on the evening of 27 September, he disobeyed managerial instructions and stubbornly remained in his seat on a bench in Germany. The trouble for Tevez was that he held no power cards: City’s strike force had been banging goals in without him and the club didn’t need to offload him. They could afford to keep him and wait for the right offer when the transfer window opened – something that they did, but the right offer never came.
So far, City have played this perfectly. Mancini has left the door open for a return and re-registered him in the Premier League squad (with spare places, it was the sensible thing to do, even if he was AWOL at the time). And Tevez has continually turned his nose up at the chance of reconciliation, preferring golf in Argentina and commenting that he felt he’d been treated like a dog.
Difficult to agree with, given how City had bent over backwards to accommodate the striker the season before. There had been rumblings that Tevez had wanted to leave since May 2010, but Roberto Mancini handed him the captaincy, virtually guaranteed his starting place and built his team around the Argentine for the following season. There was even forgiveness for the transfer request debacle in December 2010. And then there’s everything that’s happened since. In reality, it could be fairer to say that it was Tevez himself who had, instead, treated the club like a dog.
However, eventually, be it through advice from a third party or through his own realisation that he needed to show some willing if he was going to earn a transfer away from the club, he apologised. With City not going to sell him in his absence and a contract that isn’t running out soon, he was backed into a corner and the only way out was to do as the club wanted him to; but, as the song goes, sorry seems to be the hardest word. And, to be perfectly honest, this sorry doesn’t feel like the most sincere there’s ever been – AWOL for months, comments to the media and his actions in Munich don’t suggest any sort of regret.
That being said, the apology was issued and the club have clearly accepted it: It wouldn’t have been released as a statement on the official website unless they were completely happy with it, after all. Though is it possible to forgive and forget, kiss and make up, and thrust him back into the squad, ready for the final push?
Well, here’s where it gets tricky and the boundaries get a little blurred. What would you give to see City win the Premier League? How much would you give to see Vincent Kompany et al lift that trophy sometime this May? And this is why I’m morally a hypocrite, because, if it was going to be the difference between City finishing top of the league and City finishing in second place, I would have no problem with Carlos Tevez pulling on that blue shirt and scoring goals – if that is, as he says, what he wants to do from now until the end of the season.
No problem at all, despite having spent months saying otherwise. Of course, there are fans who would take issue and I can fully understand why. In fact, I admire their principles. But, the truth is, if a fit Carlos Tevez’s inclusion in City’s matchday squad – be it in the starting line-up or coming off the bench – was enough to bring the title to The Etihad, then my principles that want him to play no part in the success can get stuffed. In a few years’ time, I won’t care he played a part in lifting that trophy, but I will care that the trophy was in the cabinet.
The interesting aspect to consider, however, is that his inclusion could have completely the opposite effect. While we’re talking about the man having the ability to score important goals, we’re talking like the rest of the squad will simply accept that he’s back and going to join in. Outwardly, I’ve no doubt that the players will be ‘delighted’ to have someone of the Argentine’s ability around the club again, but that’s not a guarantee that it won’t cause unrest or disharmony. As I have already said, how will the other strikers feel to lose their place to him if not because of injury or suspension?
His return could mean his goals fire City to the title. However, it’s not outside the realms of possibility that it could also be the catalyst that derails the steam train that has, until now, been relentlessly chugging towards top spot in May. It’s a very delicate balance.
The biggest bonus here, though, for us fans is that the manager is Roberto Mancini. As evidenced from his time in charge of the club, he suffers no fools. He may appear to be the nice and friendly to the watching world, but behind the scenes I would argue he is ruthless. Anybody who isn’t right for the team and for the football club is moved on and replaced with somebody who is. He’s a man in total control and if there’s anybody that knows the relationships between the players and what decision to make regarding Carlos Tevez, it’s him. The phrase ‘in Mancini we trust’, which has been floating around various fan forums and on Twitter, has never been more appropriate and this is surely one of the biggest decisions he needs to make.
This week, Tevez has took part in a behind-the-scenes match and, judging by the reports of the few who saw it, he’s well off the required fitness to be playing any first team matches any time soon. In fact, after four months without training, he’s probably going to have to complete something of a ‘pre-season’ again before being ready, so the debate as to if he does play a part is perhaps a little premature. The convenience for the manager is that Tevez can always be 2-3 weeks away from full fitness until the summer; he already has his excuse written for him if he decides that Tevez’s inclusion would upset the apple cart and he wants to keep him well away from any action.
The ideal outcome, in my own personal opinion, would be for City to go on and win the league and for Carlos Tevez never to feature in another of the club’s matches. But when I take a moment to think about that more deeply, I find that my ideal outcome is simply that City go on and win the league. As long as that happens, I don’t really care. Roberto Mancini is the man paid to make the decisions that will win or lose this title and he’s got form for getting nearly every one of his calls correct. There’s no reason to believe he won’t do the same again.
Perhaps I can never forgive Carlos Tevez what he’s done this season, but I can certainly put it to the back of my mind and make it the elephant in the room: The club takes precedent over one man and if it’s in the best interests of the club to ignore what’s happened since Munich, then I can do that, too.
If, morally, that makes me a hypocrite, then so be it.
The Strange Case Of Dzeko And Hyde
February 24, 2012 at 14:00 | Posted in Manchester City | Leave a comment
In the mid 1880s, a Scottish poet and author – who shares my birthday, incidentally – wrote a novella about a man with split personalities. It was the tale of a man who was very good when he was good, but very bad when he was bad. This man went from one extreme to the other and it was a mystery to those around him what was going on. Though despite being written a mere 126 years ago, it told a prophecy of something that was coming to Manchester in the year 2011. And, in this story, all that Robert Louis Stevenson got wrong was the name: It should have been called The Strange Case of Dzeko and Hyde.
And I don’t mean that to sound harsh, because it really isn’t. I like Edin Dzeko and I think he’s one of the best strikers in the Premier League, however from his year-and-a-bit at City, the one thing that has become clear is that he’s either totally unplayable or completely playable. He doesn’t really have any distinctly average games: He’s either great and could bag a few goals or off the pace and can’t trap the ball.
His debut, against Wolves in January 2011, showed he had a bit about him. Despite looking a bit rusty, he displayed one or two moments of good ball control and an eye for a pass, epitomised by his role in Yaya Toure’s fantastic breakaway goal and a piece of skill to keep possession mid-way into the opposition half, when under pressure from three defenders and with no support. There followed a difficult day at Villa Park, before his first goal away at Notts County – perhaps one of the most important goals scored last season, keeping City in the FA Cup.
But after that game, he struggled for form. Domestically, he was struggling with the pace of the Premier League. Naturally, a large part of that has to go down to him being a January signing; traditionally, those players signed in the winter window from overseas do find it more difficult to settle into a squad and find their feet. But there was always that nagging doubt in the back of my mind, at least: What if he wasn’t worth the money that had been paid for him? What if he couldn’t cut it in England?
February arrived and he forced the equaliser in the Manchester derby at Old Trafford, firing a shot so far wide that it bounced neatly off David Silva’s pert left buttock and dropped snugly inside Van Der Sar’s post. It went down as a goal for the Spaniard and it was certainly heading nearer to the corner flag than the net when it left Mr. Hyde’s boot.
Through March and April, Mr. Hyde continued to wear the blue shirt. He was completely ineffective – admittedly not the only poor performer and he had a lack of any real support up front – during tough games at Stamford Bridge and Anfield, while the important games in the later stages of the FA Cup or push for Champions League football saw him mainly used as a late substitute or remain on the bench throughout.
It was only really when the pressure was off towards the end of last season – fourth spot was in the bag and the FA Cup was in the trophy cabinet – when Dr. Dzeko turned up. Perhaps it was a slow build up from his first Premier League goal, when he netted at Ewood Park in the last game in April, that he started to find his confidence. And that, personally speaking, I think is crucial: If there’s one thing that Edin Dzeko screams it’s that he scores when he’s in a confident mood; when things are going his way and when he’s been scoring regularly.
Clearly, his confidence came back over the summer. Combined with a pre-season training schedule with his new team-mates, he started off the 2011-12 season where he finished the last. In fact, the final goal of last season came from the Bosnian’s boot and he was the source of the first goal of this season. Throw the Community Shield in there and Dzeko had eight goals in five games.
And what happened next is key to why Mr. Hyde returned in September: Despite scoring four goals at White Hart Lane, Dzeko was an unused substitute for the next match, at home to Wigan. Now, many will say that it won’t have too much of an effect (he’s a professional and must have been feeling good), but he was in form and everything he was doing was coming off, usually resulting in a goal. After that demotion to the bench – for no reason other than squad rotation – Mr. Hyde didn’t score again for a month and a half.
But, while I’ve just inferred there that Roberto Mancini’s management style hasn’t helped the striker, the Italian did pull off a masterstroke in getting Dzeko back on a patch of good form. With precisely just a bit more than 20 minutes of the Manchester derby to go, United were still chasing the game, despite the (then) 0-3 scoreline and the manager knew there were more goals to be had. Looking at his bench, he knew that Dzeko needed to get on the scoresheet; he made the swap for Balotelli, even though he was on a hat-trick.
And, as the game entered stoppage time and the Bosnian had missed a couple of good shooting opportunities, the ball bounced in off Dzeko’s knee. He was a changed man, once again: a second goal quickly followed, before he netted against Wolves twice in two games and then again at Loftus Road.
But, after that good performance at QPR, he was, once again, an unused substitute against Newcastle. And his goal in City’s 2-3 victory in London was the last that he scored until the trip to the DW stadium in January, over two months later. Through November and December, the ball bounced further off his foot when he tried to control it than it did when he tried to pass it, he couldn’t win a header and even his work ethic seemed to go missing. Mr. Hyde was back.
His header at Wigan, though, was exactly what he needed. Hard work won him a free kick on the left flank and a brilliant ball in from Silva gave him little work to do to find the net. And, just like after Ewood Park and Old Trafford, his confidence was back. He converted at Anfield, slotted one in against Fulham and came off the bench to seal a Europa League last 16 place.
From his year-and-a-bit at City, I’m no longer worried that Edin Dzeko hasn’t been worth his money. He has. He’s scored some great goals, some decent goals, some average goals and some tap-ins. Performance wise, he’s had some real stinkers and he’s had some real stormers. He’s bagged himself 16 goals in all competitions so far this season, so it’s obvious he’s no flop; but it appears he struggles with the rotation policy at the club.
It’s very easy to get on a player’s back when he’s not playing well – and, Christ, City fans know that – but Dzeko definitely doesn’t need that when he’s not in form. He just needs that little bit of luck. Right now, he’s in one of his good patches, but that will probably come to an end. When it does, he needs the backing of the fans and not a constant, uneasy buzz or groan about the Etihad when he inadvertently blocks a goalbound effort or when he skies a one-on-one, because, sooner or later, another one of his goals will be crucial in this title run-in.
While it’s The Strange Case of Dzeko and Hyde, we need to make sure that the Mr. Hyde side of him is rarely seen – because, as Stevenson’s story goes, the bad side can be repressed. And let’s face it, his 16 goals have been crucial in firing the team to the top of the league, smashing records along the way. We know what he can do, he knows what he can do; we just need to back him when he’s struggling to do it.
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