"Burnley midfielder Barton said: “Fair play to Hull, they’ve gone off like a scalded cat but I’d much prefer to finish like a scalded cat." http://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2015/11/13/burnleys-joey-barton-issues-warning-to-hull-city/ Of course I respect the wisdom of Joey Barton as much as the next man. but in my experience the pressure on the team at the top is usually less extreme than the pressure on the chasing pack. The leading team not only gains the extra confidence of being top, but they also often create an inferiority complex in their opposition. For example I think Brighton accumulated more points at the top than their form and abilities deserved, due to the extra respect they received from other teams. The other thing is having a single focus directed solely at the accumulation of more points. This means the next game is all the staff and players have to think about, and not their own fans on their backs if they drop out of the play-off zone, or having to win a tough game because those around them have easier ones that weekend etc. etc. Yes there's the problem of lower table teams parking the bus or wanting to shoot down the leader, but that happens to all of the teams at the top, and when the opposition shows little attacking intent it invites the top team to attack more (which we seem to be getting the hang of quite well lately). The only issue with being top is avoiding complacency and hopefully City have enough experienced heads on and off the pitch to be vigilant of that.
id rather have the points in the bag so yes happy to be at the top plus we can sing we are top of the league how ever there is not much in the top few teams and still a long way to go, Burnley do look good but so do we but isn't it great to be involved at the top end of the table and having others talking about us
Only we know we haven't gone off like a scalded cat! We haven't even got going yet! I think there's a lot more to come from us! And some teams are gonna get a good seeing to!
I agree and we also have strength in depth for when injuries and suspensions bite, I sometimes have to blink when I look at our bench
Barton probably isn't aware of how much experimenting Bruce did for ten games or so before coming up with a good blend. City are now less a scalded cat more a sleek feline winning machine.
Boring. Basically a bag of billy-bollocks bullshit brought by Burnley bad boy bastard Barton, bereft of basic bona fide benefit. Today's post is brought to you by the letter B. B. The letter B.
That reminds me of the Sports Mail headline: Terry's Tigers Topple The Table Toppers. Quiz. Who had City beaten to generate that headline?
