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C.Kane said:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/39926264

<applause>
Quite an honest, humble assessment from a man we've taken much pleasure in deriding. Certainly not as embedded up his own backside as his nemesis across the city.

Deep down, I do worry about a resurgent City next season. True, Pep has made some horrendously bad misjudgments this season, but they probably have the best array of attackers in the league and have limitless resources. If he has truly learned the harsh lessons of the PL, they will be a force to be reckoned with. Arsenal and Liverpool don't scare me, the two Manc clubs do.
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This will go down really well with the City supporters

"In my situation at a big club, I'm sacked. I'm out," said the Catalan.

They think they are a massive, massive club :grin:
 
C.Kane said:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/39926264

<applause>
Quite an honest, humble assessment from a man we've taken much pleasure in deriding. Certainly not as embedded up his own backside as his nemesis across the city.

Deep down, I do worry about a resurgent City next season. True, Pep has made some horrendously bad misjudgments this season, but they probably have the best array of attackers in the league and have limitless resources. If he has truly learned the harsh lessons of the PL, they will be a force to be reckoned with. Arsenal and Liverpool don't scare me, the two Manc clubs do.
Click to expand...
He's made some schoolboy errors.
Bravo.:eek: The centre back pairings :eek: Fernandinho or Navas at RB :eek:
He inherited a decent squad of players, albeit some ageing ones.
He brought in some youth, but he got rid of a decent 'keeper in favour of a clown, he ignored defensive weaknesses and he didn't get them playing consistently well. He relied on talented players digging them out of a hole often enough to get in the top four and be 15 points off the pace in the league. Name any manager you like in the PL and I'm sure they could have done as well at least.
 
littleDinosaurLuke said:
He's made some schoolboy errors.
Bravo.:eek: The centre back pairings :eek: Fernandinho or Navas at RB :eek:
He inherited a decent squad of players, albeit some ageing ones.
He brought in some youth, but he got rid of a decent 'keeper in favour of a clown, he ignored defensive weaknesses and he didn't get them playing consistently well. He relied on talented players digging them out of a hole often enough to get in the top four and be 15 points off the pace in the league. Name any manager you like in the PL and I'm sure they could have done as well at least.
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Agree with everything apart from that line. He didn't. He inherited a squad that just about scraped 4th place last year on GD over a really, really poor United side. They have only gotten older and rustier a year on. They could end this season a position higher and 12 points better off. I get that his transfer strategy and overall squad management have been a joke, but my point was simply: if he has learned his lessons (interviews such as this one suggest that he has), they could be a force to be reckoned with next season.
 
C.Kane said:
Agree with everything apart from that line. He didn't. He inherited a squad that just about scraped 4th place last year on GD over a really, really poor United side. They have only gotten older and rustier a year on. They could end this season a position higher and 12 points better off. I get that his transfer strategy and overall squad management have been a joke, but my point was simply: if he has learned his lessons (interviews such as this one suggest that he has), they could be a force to be reckoned with next season.
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He inherited a squad that went on holiday as soon as it was announced Penguin was leaving, had City made the change in the summer and kept the players thinking the manager was staying then they would have been much different.
 
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C.Kane said:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/39926264

<applause>
Quite an honest, humble assessment from a man we've taken much pleasure in deriding. Certainly not as embedded up his own backside as his nemesis across the city.

Deep down, I do worry about a resurgent City next season. True, Pep has made some horrendously bad misjudgments this season, but they probably have the best array of attackers in the league and have limitless resources. If he has truly learned the harsh lessons of the PL, they will be a force to be reckoned with. Arsenal and Liverpool don't scare me, the two Manc clubs do.
Click to expand...

You should read the guardian version. Theres an additional quote in there where pep has a subtle dig in there at our english game lol.

I'm with diego pep has so far proved to be terrible. Hes taken a pellegrini team that downed tools when they knew he was leaving added his own 2 wingers, playmaker, striker, centre back and goalkeeper at stupid prices to an already world class attack.

Hes achieved less than pellegrini (league cup, semi final cl and top 4) after spending all that money. They have played some good stuff but with that attack who wouldnt. I would argue that pellegrinis first season was better.

Has he improved the players that are there? Arguable but not really. Are they better than the sum of their parts. Absolutely not.

I hear these excuses that pep can only be brilliant when he has the players that understand his football and can play. Give me the best 11 players in the world i can make them play too!
 
Heres peps dig.

But I’m here to [be] helped so maybe you can tell me why it’s so special. You English guys – why is it so special? I’m not from here, I don’t know the answer.”

I agree to a certain extent that pep is going to be a big force next season though. Hes going to have a big transfer again and if hes got half a brain he will buy some world class defence since he already has a world class attack and a tidy midfield.
 
I'll give Pep that he's had sufficient (John) Stones to admit that he's performed poorly this season. I'm not sure that self-awareness is going to put things right unless he's more willing to be pragmatic. This isn't Germany or Spain and Citeh aren't Bayern or Barcelona.

Next season will be unbelievably competitive. If Citeh continue to **** around with the ball at the back as much as they have done this season it will cost them, no matter who they have in goal or the back four. They have tremendous pace up front but seem to get insufficient reward for it because there's a bit too much emphasis on possession. Can he turn that trait off? I'm not sure. It seems to be central to his 'philosophy'. We don't go direct too often but we don't have the raw pace to exploit it. They do but he's not using it. Bad management.

Chelsea have to be heavy favourites for next season for me. Arsenal and United aren't in the race at this point. They're finishing this season where their performances deserve. Heavy rebuilding again for United and under Wenger, Arsenal are screwed. Europe League is going to drain both teams.

Liverpool need to buy exceptionally well, as they are half a team away from being a really good side and have no squad. Unfortunately for them, they just don't have the kind of money to go out and buy 'off the peg' Premier League attuned players. Nearly all foreign players take time to acclimatise but they are cheaper on the whole, so I don't see Liverpool coping with CL and doing anything better than third or fourth. Citeh to do better next season but Chelsea should win again. They have a team already and vast wealth to buy a squad and some great young players, if they have the nerve to play them.
 
humanbeingincroydon said:
Since it's being reported that Chelsea are not cooperating with the investigation into historic abuse, would it be churlish to suggest The FA should immediately dock them twelve points?
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Normally 15 point deduction isn't it? Mind you, based on the favourable decisions that the referees give Chavski, a 10 or 12 point penalty is more likely. And you can bet your bottom dollar, that despite the offences being committed this season, any points deduction would be applied next season.

And as an aside, if they were relegated by the league, there is an historic precedent, would they still be classed as champions?
 
humanbeingincroydon said:
Since it's being reported that Chelsea are not cooperating with the investigation into historic abuse, would it be churlish to suggest The FA should immediately dock them twelve points?
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Just seen your link, was reading the guardian myself. From how i read the article:

8 clubs aren't co-operating (they are not named).

In addition, there are 20 clubs they have wrote to (named by the media where things have happened) of which Chelsea is one of them asking if they are doing their own reviews and if not, why not (7 clubs are then named). This is a separate thing to not co-operating as mentioned from 8 un-named clubs.
 
BobbyD said:
Heres peps dig.

But I’m here to [be] helped so maybe you can tell me why it’s so special. You English guys – why is it so special? I’m not from here, I don’t know the answer.”

I agree to a certain extent that pep is going to be a big force next season though. Hes going to have a big transfer again and if hes got half a brain he will buy some world class defence since he already has a world class attack and a tidy midfield.
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https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...a-bayern-munich-pep-guardiola-manchester-city

Why's it so special? Take a look at yourself, Pep.
Win percentages: Barca: 72.47%, Bayern: 75.16%, City: 57.41%.
League positions: Barca: 1st, 1st, 1st, 2nd. Bayern: 1st, 1st, 1st. City: Not 1st or 2nd. 3rd to 5th.
Trophies: Barca: 3 titles, 2 cups, 2 CLs. Bayern: 3 titles, 2 cups. City: Crickets.

He sounds like he's trying to get the sack because he's struggling badly, compared to previous campaigns.
He's normally pissing it, strolling through the Champions League and picking up trophies left and right.
If he didn't realise that his tactics weren't going to work as well with this squad, then he wasn't paying attention.
I knew and I'm ****ing clueless! <laugh>
 
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BobbyD said:
Just seen your link, was reading the guardian myself. From how i read the article:

8 clubs aren't co-operating (they are not named).

In addition, there are 20 clubs they have wrote to (named by the media where things have happened) of which Chelsea is one of them asking if they are doing their own reviews and if not, why not (7 clubs are then named). This is a separate thing to not co-operating as mentioned from 8 un-named clubs.
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Chelsea are actually giving the appearance of doing everything right, appointing a lawyer with significant experience in that area.
The youth system's extremely important to how the club's being run now, so they simply can't afford this sort of scandal.
Even if you ignore the moral aspect of the case, it's in Chelsea's best interests to do everything that they can to get on top of this.
 
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"Thanks for that Brian" said:
My dad's mum used to speak Yiddish, she was a Russian Jewish emigre brought up in Germany. I hardly understood a word without translation.
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I'm illiterate in Yiddish. I learned German more than a little imperfectly, beginning with two of my first six years in Germany. Then we moved to a Jewish neighborhood, where I delivered a paper route where I and some of my older customers found we could communicate in Yiddish (though on my end it was German with a number of Yiddish words thrown in). I can't make hide nor hair of the alphabet, though.

Schmuck is actually jewelry. It's gets its Yiddish meaning because "the family jewels" either has a Yiddish analog or was originally a Yiddish metaphor.
 
Last edited:
Steve Cotterrill declines the opportunity to stay at Birmingham as Harry's assistant.

Come in Kevin Bond and with Joe Jordan set to leave Middlesbrough after Sunday's final game, the ex-Spurs management team could be reunited again.

Redknapp was deep in conversation with Crouchy on Sunday. I can't possibly imagine what that was all about <whistle>.
 
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