Well, Ive finally sobered up from yesterday but the feeling of euphoria certainly has not gone. What a game and what a result. First time I've been able to log in today, so havent read many posts yet about the game but just wanted to give my 10 penneth worth as well. We had a scratch team out there yesterday with midfielders for full backs, a debut for a lad who last kicked a ball for us 18 months ago and injuries to our best defender after only 30 mins. We had in fact a totally new defence at kick off and another one after 30 mins against the richest assembled squad in English football history. Man City could field 2 different teams and still have them both finish in the top 4 and to be fair, they had a bulk of the possession, however, to be brutally honest, we had the better clear cut chances in Sessegnon, Bendtner and the goal itself. 3 wins (should have been 4), 1 draw and a very narrow defeat in his first 5 games. Honeymoon period? Luck? Or sheer brilliant management. I dont have to tell you where my vote is do I? There is a clip of MoN on TV,right at the death and about 2 mins from full time, where he can be seen mouthing the words "come on, we can nick this". We did just that. John O Shea (looking every inch the classy, graceful defender now at central defence instead of full back) said after the game how MoN urged them not to lose the game and focused them on positives not negatives and to be fair, we tried to attack at every opportunity. Sessegnon was a the front of everything good we did attacking and the back 4 (all of them) stood firm to keep City to long range shots and snap shots. On the 2 or 3 occasions they got in, Mig kept them out. Special mention as well to Gardener and Colback, who despite playing unusual roles to help out an injury plagued squad, stuck to their task and tackled like Trojans all day too. Larsson was running in empty at the end but showed what a great pro he is and a huge asset at the club and the lad McClean, very raw yes, but totally committed to the cause as well. There is much, much more to come from him. Then I come to the 2 lads in the centre. Cattermole and Vaughan. If the last 3 performances from our captain hasn't convinced those fans that want to get rid of him that he is a terrific player then nothing ever will. He has been a revelation under O Neill and far from looking the wound up liability he was under Bruce, hey now looks totally in control and has been dominant in breaking up that City midfield (valued at about £150m btw) along with Vaughan who worked his bollocks off all day. Catts deserves his MotM award yesterday and I think he was against Spurs as well. Brilliant stuff. Outstanding from all concerned. Absolutely outstanding. 2 other points though are the decisions MoN will have to make about Bendtner and what players we need this month now. If Brown is to be out for a period along with Turner, Bramble and Bardsley, then defensive cover is desperately required and we desperately still need a dominant forward and a goal machine. Unfortunately, I'm not sure whether we will get one in time as MoN hasnt got much time to unearth a couple before the end of January. We shall see. As for Bendtner its a dilemma. He is a disappointment at times although does show glimpses of what he can do but for £80k+ per week, he simply has to score that one on one after 3 mins in a tight game like that . He just isn't offering enough as the target man either and to be fair, Ji may not be the answer (short or long term) but I'd start him against Wigan now, as I firmly believe you play players on highs and who can score. After having practically no game time so far this season, he has only 1 less goal than Bendtner does after he has had lots of game time. The finish from Ji was very classy and showed perhaps a glimpse of what we may see in the future. Far from ****ting a brick with the only chance the lad has had in weeks, he coolly rounded the England No1 and wins the game. I'm off to Wigan tomorrow for my first away game in over 10 years, such is the excitement generated by MoN and I am absolutely convinced we will get something from the game. Thats the confidence factor and I bet the players, as knackered as they must be, cant wait to get out there and play again to keep this run going. Pre Mon we had 11 points in 14 games and looked every inch a relegation haunted club. After only 5 games we now have 21 points in 19 games and the momentum is with us. We were a soft touch 4 weeks ago but we are a team not many would fancy playing currently. PS - its now down single figures between us and 7th place and maybe will be merely 6 points by 10pm tomorrow night. Just pleased we aren't facing Man Utd in our next game after they buggered up SAF 70th birthday on Saturday. Who do they actually play next? Come back Tash, I need a straight man. Lol
I was just as drunk on the joy at that last gasp winner kidda. 10 points from 15 Syd? Spurs, Man City, Blackburn, Everton and QPR. If you had offered me 10 points from those 5 games I'd have laughed at you 4 weeks ago. We have achieved more than even I had dare to dream we could achieve under my hero these past 5 games. What might we achieve over time is too much to think about at the minute. My poorly heed still hurts enough. Lol
BTW, if anyone had posted a few weeks ago that we would beat City with a back 5 of MIG GARDNER..OSHEA..KILGALLON..COLBACK Well we may just have laughed
When I saw that back 4, i was thinking to myself 'oh dear, here comes a complete and utter drossing'. Thank you, O'Niell.
If Bruce had picked that he would have been slaughtered but then again, we wouldnt have won either. Brave decision's indeed but you need to carry a bit of luck with that formation and line up and MoN carries a good slice of good fortune as well. That said mind, they performed heroically and defended like their lives depended on it and that is the difference Mr O'Neill has made. All the players now speak of this self belief and huge boost of confidence. It supports all of our assumptions that we have indeed got a decent squad but unfortunately for all of us, somewhere down the line Bruce lost them as a group of players and we may well never know why. Thankfully Short acted quickly and appointed the ONLY man capable of turning it round so quickly and I dont think ANY other manager could have bettered or even matched what MoN has in only 4 weeks. There are still hard times ahead and I'm not saying the job is done but we all now have a spring in our steps. The fans, Quinny, Short, the manager himself (how does a 59 year old leap so bloody high) and most importantly the players themselves.
Cest, don't forget we still have Campbell and Whickham to come back yet as well as Meyler for the middle, not saying they will have an instant impact but they will give us options.
Not so much a brave decision Cest, he didn't have anyone else to pick which makes yesterday victory even sweeter. It's not like we faces the league leaders with our strongest team, we were ravaged by injury and still beat them.
Smells Like Team Spirit.....................................Here we are now, you entertained us........... We had the Nirvana to beat Citeh
I havent forgotten about either mate and especially Campbell if he can come back the same. Could be an awesome 2nd half of the season for him. Wickham is still raw but I like very much what I have seen so far. In another 12 or 18 months, I predict this lad will be a full England International. One of the biggest laughs I got today was reading or hearing that City played a weakened team? Weakened by what, £200m worth of talent? We were the Rorkes Drift heroes today against the Man City Zulus. We just wanted it more than they did, despite a makeshift team and 2 new defences in one game. Awesome result for us this season imo and one that may well be the catalyst for the next 19 games.
Got to say I thoroughly enjoyed your game yesterday. Well played. Tactics down to a t. Man city looked like they had no clue on how to break you down. A point against that lot is well deserved but anyone who says you never deserved all 3 yesterday doesn't know football.
Well said lad. Football is not all about having the most money, best individuals or highest pay structure in Europe. We were 11 team players that played with heart and spirit and just wanted it more. City are the better players but they didn't have any answers to our tactics and Mon got them spot on. To begrudge us that win would be poor form indeed. 10 points in 5 games. What a turnaround in fortunes.
Absolutely. The key difference I seen watching yesterday is that MON seems to have every player knowing exactly what their role is and how to execute it. A well drilled unit will cause a team of super stars problems every day of the week
Disagree slightly here Cest, we were 12 men, the crowd were a major factor in yesterdays win. Larsson was dead on his feet when he recieved that ball but the crowd willed him on and he found that little bit of spark.
I'm not sure what you are actually disagreeing with mate? I think our spirit and endeavour was awesome and that drives the crowd, which in turn drives the players. It's a 2 way thing. Under Bruce that connection was missing.
well said. i don't know about o'neill not having much time to unearth a few gems in january though, he may have been without a club but it's not like he hasn't seen any football over the past year; arguably he will have seen more players first hand than a lot of established managers. i reckon he knows the players he likes, and will bring in one or two to shore us up for this season.
Excellent OP Cest. Sober? What's that? Happy New Year mate. Watched the game on TV with a Mag, (the twat drank nearly as much as me, we emptied the fridge and had to start putting tins in the freezer to cool them. ) I seem to have been drinking ever since. Just got back from a late New Year celebration with relatives who couldn't get to Sunderland over the holidays. I have now drank so much I think I'm immune.
