Well lovely Arsenal people, City recorded another 4:0 away win. I expected it, although on paper Fulham, just like Brighton away, should’ve been tough days. There’s one problem though, those teams play for nothing. They aren’t getting Europe, they aren’t getting relegated, the season is done for them. Flying kites at training, Iwobi partying in Paris, it’s not serious.
Here’s what really grinds my gears. How come City’s run in was filled with a bunch of teams with nothing to play for. Forest was the one team that actually gave them a game, because they were fighting relegation, but the way Chris Wood missed the open goal, you’d think he’s a City fan.
We had to face Chelsea, Tottenham and now Man Utd. They may be in terrible form, but those are emotional games. Liverpool’s season practically ended at OT, both in the FA cup and in the league and United were dreadful.
They are arguably even worse now, but I’ve seen terrible United sides pick wins against us. We practically started Marcus Rashford’s career with those 2 cheap goals we gifted him. Logic dictates we should absolutely smash them, and honestly our goal difference needs it because City will wipe the floor with West Ham.
Unfortunately football doesn’t always follow logic, and sadly there’s also history which is absolutely atrocious for us at OT. We’ve won there twice since 2006 in the league. Man Utd will raise their level for this game. There’s too much history and hatred between the two clubs. The title is in City’s hands regardless if they lose, so that record of 4 in a row is coming either way.
Also that 4:0 spanking from Palace will hurt and a reaction is coming. Don’t be surprised if Bruno and Rashford miraculously recover for this game, as well as a CB. There is an FA cup final coming, where City awaits and unless United build some confidence, I’d be fearful for the embarrassment the scoreline could reach.
This game could finish 1:1 or 5:0, both results really wouldn’t surprise me, but I hope the team can find the right motivation to win and push it till the last day. Those City wins are real gut punches. I tried to tell people that not beating Villa would cost us the title. We had to be perfect, because City always do it when the business end comes. Especially when, as I mentioned earlier, their opponents have nothing to play for.
If Villa don’t beat Liverpool on Monday, Spurs will have a chance to fight for a top 4 spot. It’s theoretical, it requires a victory against City and Palace beating Villa on the final day, but it would be possible. It’s just funny how that City v Tottenham game was rearranged to be before the final day of the league, when Spurs might not be playing for anything, when they were given a 15 day break earlier.
I don’t want to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but apart from the very-generous-for-City fixture list, I don’t remember one bad decision going against them this season. I do remember Kovacic escaping a clear red twice against us, a clear Liverpool pen not given and so on and so on.
I mean the league was absolutely brutal to Everton and Forest, who are scraping for their lives, but City – who’ve been bending the rules for years and escaping with all sorts of lawyers and tricks in the books, nothing. 115 charges and nothing, absolutely pathetic, but it is what it is.
My last words are ‘don’t pray on Tottenham’. I know City have never scored in the league in their new stadium, well they will now. Spurs, even if they don’t lie down and lose, just so we don’t win it, are so bad at defending it’s just damning. They barely beat Burnley, and their attack hasn’t been much better than their defense and our hope is that they basically outscore them.
They did get a 3:3 draw at the Etihad this year, but the circumstances were different. City in a title race will eat this game up. I just hope we beat United. When we were poor, they always spanked us, so hopefully we can do it this time around.
Konstantin
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If there’s any team who deserve the drubbings we’ve been dishing out this season, it’s United. i hope MIKEL goes all out and set up the boys to anihillate them. That’s the level of disdain i got towards them, especially under their current manager. I hate the fact theres TOO MUCH tension surrounding our title bid, given it’ll be decided on final day rather than few games to spare. I believe we will win the league though.
I like your optimism about winning the league but then, a fact is a fact.
When it comes to the business end of season City owns it. If we had set ourselves up to win against Villa, we won’t have to worry about this. We had it in our own hands.
The standard is so high now that, if your aim is to win the league you have to target upward of 90 points.
I hope we set ourselves up to win mercilessly today. A worthy consolation it will be.
Excuse me , but where future games this week and next weekend are in still inquestion , there are NO “FACTS”, but as yet, only opinions.
And I have never seen any benefitat all, either in being a GOONER ,OR FAR MORE IMPORTANTLY, IN LIFE GENERALLY, in being a confirmed pessimist and giving in before the final “two games each” battle has yet started.
Of course there are FACTS and they’ve been proven over and over. It’s left to you to believe or not.
Don’t forget we’re up against a team Liverpool lost the league to, despite accumulating a whopping 97points.
Now let me ask you. Just give an instance where Pep’s City lost the league cos of points dropped in the last 10 games of the season? How many points have they dropped within the same period in the last 4 seasons or more?
It’s not something worth dragging. In my opinion, it’s all about the ‘monster mentality’ instilled in City players by Pep. They know when and how to go for the kill.
Incorrect, at least where as not yet finalised results are concerned. Any one can provide facts from the past.
It hardly requires any special intelligence or insight to provide what is, in actuality, history and the past , however recent.
What is in question to us all HERE AND NOW is what will (not has) happen between today and next Sunday.
In other words , the future. Unless you claim to be Nostradus or some kind of fortune teller called Gypsy Rose Lee. then it is NOT POSSIBLE to ascribe the word “FACTS” to something that has not yet happened.
Finally, IF -which I do not and am resolutely opposed to – you always judge the future, even the very near future by what has happened in the past, even the near past, than IMO you are not thinking sensibly.
If that were even remotely true, nothing NEW would ever happen.
It is infact the philosophy of a pessimist and a defeatist and as such finds no truck either with me,OR FAR MORE IMPORTANTLY, our team and manager
Well, your comment can’t be more contradictory.
If you have good grasp of English, you’ll understand that facts have a lot to do with things that have happened in the past and gone through test and scrutiny. And infact that’s not even what I’m getting at.
No where in my comment did I suggest we give up as a team or as individuals. I’m not a defeatist nor I’m I being pessimistic.
Wether we like it or not the records are there and they are meant to push us into stepping up our game and not lose the way we did against Villa.
And for your information, facts almost always point into the future.
Whatever happens I’m proud of the way we’ve improved as a team compared to last season. And will be even be more proud if we end up accumulating our highest point tally (89) since our title wining era.
It’s your choice if you’re optimistic that this current Spurs and West Ham team can take points off City.
The games are to be played. Until then what you have said is past history. They are not the ‘facts’ of this season.
Unfortunately, some people are displaying far too much pessimism and a negative mindset.
If MC pick up the wins and the PL we should congratulate them and then get prepared for the next season.
Until then, the players need to give all they can in the next couple of games. Until the games are played the championship is not done.
I also disagree with this view that MC have some kind of special mentality. This kind of thinking has become a staple of some fans and pundits. It is evident that MC are a well coached team with some of the best players in the world. They also have one of the strongest rosters in world football. Bestowing them with some kind of superior mentality is silly and defeatist.
It seems like for all our differences in opinions, there’s one thing we have in common – our hatred for United. Truth is, I even hate them much more than Spurs
It doesn’t make sense saying that Man City are playing teams who are playing for nothing as if the fixture list which was created more than 9 months ago already knew the teams who would be fighting for nothing come end of season and arranged them all for Man City.
We will beat Man Utd. cos this fixture is different from previous meetings:
1. We have Partey not Lokonga – so they can’t open us up easily
2. Form doesn’t matter but they’re just not only our of form – they’re injury-laden, so they can’t compete
If Bruno played against Palace it wouldn’t get to 4-0
They’ll like get a couple of goals themselves
If they play us without Bruno & Rashford – they’ll be without any identity attacking-wise
There defense is appalling, so that’s just going to be like we whipping a helpless child – something like 5, 6, 7 – 0
With Bruno, maybe 3-0, 3-1
With Bruno & Rashford – then it’s game-on (Garnacho, Anthony etc have almost no effect without these key guys)
But their defense will gift us 1 or 2 goals, they’re that bad – so we’ll win either way
And this is exactly why Chelsea got a spanking at the Emirates
Everybody else in their attack doesn’t really matter if Palmer doesn’t play, I think Sterling also can be a focal point for their attack
But they were without these 2 against so it was just we whooping a helpless child
Chelsea were a big threat in our first leg, they were arguably the better team against City both legs, they outshined Spurs both legs
So why did they go down 5-0 at the Emirates. Cos they were without their attacking identity in Palmer
I think Bruno will start this match
But I think they’ll need both Bruno & Rashford to start in other to be able to match us
Surely, it would be even more accurate to say -as you DID say in your first and plainly correct sentence – that not only was THAT point missed by Konstantin, but that almost all of football reality was also missed by him!
No excuses about the fixtures at the end of day it was in our hands so only ourselves to blame and not the fixture list if we fail to win the prem league City just know how to get the job done but we can be extremely optimistic about the future we will win the Premier league under Arteta unfortunately probably will have to wait till next season!
We may need Pep to leave before we can win
(and that’s if we ourselves are still at this top-top level)
Sigh! SAME OLD TEDIOUS TIMID THINKING KOSTANTIN
Not my sort of person at all!
I just completely reject the whole way he looks at life.
I find it to be self defeating and of no PRACTICAL use whatsoever!
We played the same 19 teams twice like City did, so no excuses.
We were outplayed by Villa at home and it cost us. We know how dominating City can be, especially at the end of the season with the title at stake.
We were in control but lost it at home, so we gave City the opening they needed.
I don’t think City will return the favor, but there are still 2 matches to play so let’s see what happens.