[Football] Jonathan Wilson's article on Man City cup final.

[Gritt23]

The FA Cup final made fall a little out more out of love with football if i'm honest. I hope Many City get nailed to the frigging wall for breaking financial fair play. Points deductions, transfer bans and band from Europe.

Don't hold your breath.

 

[amexer]

Forgetting money issues I think City are best side i have seen in Premier league and a joy to watch. It will not last for ever. I enjoy watching Brighton pitting themselves against the big boys. Even for them there are no easy games and we are lucky our top league is not dominated by one or two like so many are. I could name now next seasons winners of French,Italian,German,Scottish and Spanish leagues now.

 

[Ninja Elephant]

If Pereyra had taken the chance at 0-0, or the chance which Kompany blocked with his arm had flown past him, Watford might have taken a lead. Had they done so, and held it for more than 30 seconds, they might have had a chance of an alamo style defensive performance. As it was, City took them apart in a very similar way to how Spain took Italy apart in the European Championships final in 2012, which finished 4-0. One team is totally dominant of the ball and positionally, the other is trying to work their way into the game and gets exposed.

We only lost 1-0 to City in the semi-final and that was in part due to our defensive solidity, but also in part due to City's schedule. They had Spurs in the Champions League to come so they didn't want to overextend themselves unduly. We gave them no cause for concern, so they sat in first gear. They nearly got a second, but Sterling didn't have either an open goal or a 6 yard tap in, so he didn't score.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Do you honestly believe there is any chance they get banned from CL? I'd love to say there was, but there simply isn't.

Aging squad? Not especially. Did you see the talent they had sat on the bench, and that didn't even include Phil Fogden. Where are they about to be weak if they get a 2 window transfer ban.

As for them "now being watched", the reality is that the authorities are completely toothless, so City will just carry on because IF they get a punishment it will be laughable. It will just encourage them to stockpile even more so they can ride out transfer bans with even more ease.

Given they banned Barca from making transfers, I dont see why City are too big to not be punished.

They have already received a fine for breaking FFP once, so the next step is a ban.

I disagree they are toothless, they want FFP to work and hold all the power - all the talk away of breakaway leagues is rubbish.

 

[bhafc99]

The FA Cup final made fall a little out more out of love with football if i'm honest. I hope Many City get nailed to the frigging wall for breaking financial fair play. Points deductions, transfer bans and band from Europe.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jK-NcRmVcw

 

[Rich Suvner]

Wilson's article in the Guardian makes the case that the wealth created superiority of clubs like Man City has created such an unbalanced playing field that there is no longer any true competition at top level football. On the 6-0 slaughter of Watford he argues that ' In terms of competitiveness, you may as well have placed a yellow-and-black blancmange in the middle of the pitch and smashed it with a sky blue oar'. 'Watching Pep Guardiola’s side dismantle their opponents in the FA Cup final was gruesome and reflective of a trend across Europe that suggests the time has come for a super league'.

'But Saturday was miserable, the traditional showpiece of the English season reduced to a grim parade, devoid of any drama, there to satisfy the propaganda wing of a faraway regime. Perhaps some people enjoy watching eviscerations like this: Romans, after all, flocked to the Colosseum for fixtures between lions and Christians that were only marginally less one-sided than this. But even City fans did not seem particularly enthused, grumbling on the underground about a fifth trip to Wembley this season and cheering goals with the weary satisfaction that used to be reserved for a top-flight team battering a minnow in the third round.'

Do you agree?

I think the best solution would be a UEFA implementation of a salary cap (not for individual players, but for a squad). Therefore pay what you want to secure the best talent, but you need to operate within an envelope - like in US sport. Clearly the ceiling would need to be a meaningful one, but that would create a situation whereby you can attempt to reign the worst excess.

But clearly the big clubs won't allow that to happen.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

The City squad is aging so it needs to be refreshed
.

Really?

The FA Cup final line up (replacing the now departed Kompany, with Stones):

Ederson 26
Walker 29
Laporte 25
Stones 25
Zinchenko 22
Gundogan 28
Bernardo 24
D Silva 33
Marhez 28
Jesus 22
Sterling 24

 

[Gritt23]

Given they banned Barca from making transfers, I dont see why City are too big to not be punished.

They have already received a fine for breaking FFP once, so the next step is a ban.

I disagree they are toothless, they want FFP to work and hold all the power - all the talk away of breakaway leagues is rubbish.

Oh transfer ban, yeah, but BANNED from the Champions League? There is more chance of me going home tonight and finding a naked Jess Ennis-Hill lying on my bed waiting for me.

And do transfer bans really mean much to teams who have been stockpiling huge amounts of World Class players for years? Stones, Otamendi, De Bruyne, Sane and Aguero .... that was just their bench!

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

I think the best solution would be a UEFA implementation of a salary cap (not for individual players, but for a squad). Therefore pay what you want to secure the best talent, but you need to operate within an envelope - like in US sport. Clearly the ceiling would need to be a meaningful one, but that would create a situation whereby you can attempt to reign the worst excess.

But clearly the big clubs won't allow that to happen.

There are rules in the PL around the wages

I believe they can only increase up to 7 million per season

 

[Gritt23]

I think the best solution would be a UEFA implementation of a salary cap (not for individual players, but for a squad). Therefore pay what you want to secure the best talent, but you need to operate within an envelope - like in US sport. Clearly the ceiling would need to be a meaningful one, but that would create a situation whereby you can attempt to reign the worst excess.

But clearly the big clubs won't allow that to happen.

Even if they did, what would they do when someone is found to have broken the rules? It'll be the same noddy punishments that UEFA are dishing out for breaking FFP rules.

 

[Mellotron]

Wilson's article in the Guardian makes the case that the wealth created superiority of clubs like Man City has created such an unbalanced playing field that there is no longer any true competition at top level football. On the 6-0 slaughter of Watford he argues that ' In terms of competitiveness, you may as well have placed a yellow-and-black blancmange in the middle of the pitch and smashed it with a sky blue oar'. 'Watching Pep Guardiola’s side dismantle their opponents in the FA Cup final was gruesome and reflective of a trend across Europe that suggests the time has come for a super league'.

'But Saturday was miserable, the traditional showpiece of the English season reduced to a grim parade, devoid of any drama, there to satisfy the propaganda wing of a faraway regime. Perhaps some people enjoy watching eviscerations like this: Romans, after all, flocked to the Colosseum for fixtures between lions and Christians that were only marginally less one-sided than this. But even City fans did not seem particularly enthused, grumbling on the underground about a fifth trip to Wembley this season and cheering goals with the weary satisfaction that used to be reserved for a top-flight team battering a minnow in the third round.'

Do you agree?

Genuinely think I'd be starting to get a bit disillusioned as a City fan at some point soon.

It's like when you play a computer game on cheat mode, giving yourself unrealistic levels of power or money or whatever you need in the game. Great laugh for about 10 minutes or so, then it just starts to feel a bit hollow and meaningless.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Oh transfer ban, yeah, but BANNED from the Champions League? There is more chance of me going home tonight and finding a naked Jess Ennis-Hill lying on my bed waiting for me.

And do transfer bans really mean much to teams who have been stockpiling huge amounts of World Class players for years? Stones, Otamendi, De Bruyne, Sane and Aguero .... that was just their bench!

They received a fine a couple of years ago.

 

[Gritt23]

Forgetting money issues I think City are best side i have seen in Premier league and a joy to watch. It will not last for ever. I enjoy watching Brighton pitting themselves against the big boys. Even for them there are no easy games and we are lucky our top league is not dominated by one or two like so many are. I could name now next seasons winners of French,Italian,German,Scottish and Spanish leagues now.

I loved watching the Harlem Globetrotters, but I only ever wanted to go once, as I prefer watching competitive sport.

 

[bhafc99]

There's a follow-up piece today, which looks at a study proving today's (TV) audience now prefers to watch 'stars' entertain them, rather than actual competition:

“The classic notion of a pure sporting contest in which the outcome is unpredictable has been replaced with one in which the preference is for sporting entertainment delivered by superstars,” they wrote. “The unpredictability of the outcome no longer matters for television.”

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/may/20/football-tv-manchester-city-watford-fa-cup-final

 

[Gritt23]

They received a fine a couple of years ago.

Exactly! A fine, what's the point? How much would the fine have to be to make ANY difference whatsoever to man City? £50m, £100m, £200m? What was the fine they received?

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Genuinely think I'd be starting to get a bit disillusioned as a City fan at some point soon.

It's like when you play a computer game on cheat mode, giving yourself unrealistic levels of power or money or whatever you need in the game. Great laugh for about 10 minutes or so, then it just starts to feel a bit hollow and meaningless.

I can't see this at all. You make it sound like it was a complete given, that they won these three trophies.

They only won the League Cup by a penalty shoot out.
They only got though the fourth round of the FA Cup via a refereeing blunder and a last minute equaliser.
They won the PL title by ONE point.

I'd say as a sports fan, that for your team to consistently win things, but only after some drama and suspense, is pretty much as good as it gets.

 

[Gritt23]

Genuinely think I'd be starting to get a bit disillusioned as a City fan at some point soon.

It's like when you play a computer game on cheat mode, giving yourself unrealistic levels of power or money or whatever you need in the game. Great laugh for about 10 minutes or so, then it just starts to feel a bit hollow and meaningless.

That's exactly the comparison I made to someone yesterday. It's like when you can edit Championship Manager, and you give yourself all the best players you can think of, and all the money it will allow you to have, then play a season where you stuff everyone. By the end of the 1st season, when you win the FA Cup Final 6-0 you are just so bored, you never go back to the game, and play it properly instead, because without competition it's just shooting fish in a barrel.

 

[Gritt23]

I can't see this at all. You make it sound like it was a complete given, that they won these three trophies.

They only won the League Cup by a penalty shoot out.
They only got though the fourth round of the FA Cup via a refereeing blunder and a last minute equaliser.
They won the PL title by ONE point.

I'd say as a sports fan, that for your team to consistently win things, but only after some drama and suspense, is pretty much as good as it gets.

Who's your money on for those trophies next season?

They were odds-on in 36 of their 38 games this season. Only away to Liverpool and Chelsea were the exceptions.

How many times a season as a Man City fan are you genuinely out of your seat punching the air and going batty as the ball hits the net. It won't be many of the 150+ goals they score each season. I'm with Mellotron, I'd be genuinely getting a bit bored of it.

 

[MattBackHome]

Been saying it for ages - the sooner they* **** off to their Globo-League and leave normal football to the rest of us, the happier I'll be.



*Not just City - all of them.

 

[Mellotron]

I can't see this at all. You make it sound like it was a complete given, that they won these three trophies.

They only won the League Cup by a penalty shoot out.
They only got though the fourth round of the FA Cup via a refereeing blunder and a last minute equaliser.
They won the PL title by ONE point.

I'd say as a sports fan, that for your team to consistently win things, but only after some drama and suspense, is pretty much as good as it gets.

But coming away from an FA Cup Semi Final, DISAPPOINTED that your side won 1-0 - people in the media were saying you'd be forgiven for thinking Brighton had won the semi, given the mood of each of the sets of fans walking away from Wembley.

Also, I said "at some point soon", i.e. in the near future if their dominance continues.