[Archived] United/Citeh

[RevidgeBlue]

Another poor performance from Citeh so far I thought.

Fortunate penalty. Grabbed Bellamy outside the box, tried to grab him again inside, but didn't really make much contact.

The shot of Rooney with a face like a slapped arse trying to shout something at Tevez to put him off was priceless.

Any lip readers out there amongst us?

[Hughesy]

Both touches on Bellamy were outside the box - dodgy penalty. Bellamy should of been booked too.

[RevidgeBlue]

Both touches on Bellamy were outside the box - dodgy penalty. Bellamy should of been booked too.

I thought there was a very slight linking of arms inside the box but it was the sort of thing that isn't given nine times out of ten.

Having said that I've not much sympathy for Raphael either. He tried pulling Bellamy back twice, just didn't make much contact the second time.

[mellison24]

Any lip readers out there amongst us?

I may be able to help!......if I could be watching

[Guest andrewpickup]

Re tevez celebration, unless it was directed at neville city players didplay a distinct lack of class with alarming regularity

[Majiball]

[DanLad]

Penalty was harsh, but I though City should have had a pen for handball early on anyway.

[tcj_jones]

It's a shame, City are playing fairly negatively at home, much like we did last week.

I'm not sure if it's Mancini's style, but they've gone from exciting attack minded football with men pouring forward from all over the pitch, to playing one up front and two in advanced wide positions, but then all three in the centre playing virtually on top of their own back four. United can pass it about with ease and comfort.

EDIT: What the hell is Tevez's problem? City are fast becoming the most disliked team in the Premier League.

[cletus]

Tevez 2 v United 1

I quite like the fact Tevez is sticking one over Fergie

[Tom]

I don't think that Fergie treat Tevez all that bad really he just didn't want to pay for him.

No need to act like a spoilt brat over it.

Ah well

[RevidgeBlue]

Citeh were a lot better at the start of the second half. I thought United were a lot better once they went two up front, and Mancini did his best to chuck it away towards the end by withdrawing Tevez and Wright Phillips and sitting back too much.

Not sure who'll go through after watching that. ManUre are a pale shadow of former United sides.

[cletus]

I don't think that Fergie treat Tevez all that bad really he just didn't want to pay for him.

No need to act like a spoilt brat over it.

Ah well

I bet Fergie is kicking himself over letting Tevez go & still having Berbatov on the books.

BIG BIG BIG mistake letting him go across the road.

Tevez is now a talisman at City.

That move could be the tilting point in the power balance in Manchester.

City are rich beyond their wildest dreams whilst United are having to sell to pay the rent.

Rumours are Barca want Rooney & are prepared to offer him a fortune to move.

Have United got the financial clout to resist their offer??

Only time will tell....

[Kelbo]

An interesting point here, Man U, City, Liverpool Arsenal and Chelsea???

All playing 1 up top??

Majiball, what are your thoughts/

I prefer 2 up top but why are the top coaches deploying this system??

[Tom]

Supporting the striker:

United - Giggs Valencia

City - Bellamy Wright Philips

Chelsea - Joe Cole Malouda

Lierpool - not working for them really but Kuyt Benayoun

Arse - Arshavin Nasri

Rovers - ???

There is a difference

[jim mk2]

Pulsating match full of flowing moves that provided compulsive viewing IMO.

Giggs and Rooney were brilliant in the last 25 mins.

Will Villa and Rovers be able to entertain the nation in the same way tomorrow night ?

[beerwins]

City seemed to play a lot like us recently with there tactics to stand off and not get stuck in, it works better for them for them as they have more quality and pace on the flanks.

In all honesty though I think from what I have seen of them in recent games they dont look as good as they did and im sure there results in time are going to wither and fans will get sick of the defensive mindset at home, its not as if its not well known for a lot of Italian teams to be so defensively minded, im sure they knew that when they employed Mancini

[RevidgeBlue]

Didn't work for United either tonight.

No-one will convince me that playing Rooney plus another top class striker such as Van Horse face at his peak isn't a lot more effective than Rooney on his own.

Pulsating match full of flowing moves that provided compulsive viewing IMO.

Giggs and Rooney were brilliant in the last 25 mins.

Will Villa and Rovers be able to entertain the nation in the same way tomorrow night ?

Really jim?

I thought the last 20mins were better but there was a distinct lack of quality throughout given the players on show.

[jim mk2]

Really jim?

I thought the last 20mins were better but there was a distinct lack of quality throughout given the players on show.

Well I enjoyed it.

Giggs gets better and better, his movement and first touch are beautiful to watch. Rooney is developing into a very special player

Bellamy was excellent too; we were so lucky to have him if only for such a short time. Why did Benitez pay so much money for him and never play him ? Barmy.

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

Pulsating match full of flowing moves that provided compulsive viewing IMO.

Giggs and Rooney were brilliant in the last 25 mins.

Will Villa and Rovers be able to entertain the nation in the same way tomorrow night ?

I suppose people always judge matches on the last twenty minutes - but on the whole I thought it was an average match - with City extremely lucky to get away with a defensive home showing. First half I was starting to nod off - even second half was probably more huff and puff than lots of quality (Rooney aside)

[Kelbo]

Pulsating match full of flowing moves that provided compulsive viewing IMO.

Giggs and Rooney were brilliant in the last 25 mins.

What about Evra??

[Kelbo]

Maybe from City but I thought United at least deserved an equaliser for their quality of play and efforts.

Having said that United do look like becoming the second club in Manchester in the not too distant future. Have never had any sort of soft spot for City but now I simply can't stand them - moreso than United.

Agree, another point here, when Jack spent money on Rovers players, every one had a higher resale value, cant see that happening at City!!!

[Majiball]

We could always do them a favour though, if Robinho's finished there?

[Anti Euro Smiths Fan]

Mancini did his best to chuck it away towards the end by withdrawing Tevez and Wright Phillips and sitting back too much.

Agreed. I thought in the last 10 to 15 minutes of the match, Man City were sitting far too deep and inviting too much pressure on them, instead of looking to counter-attack effectively by committing more men forward higher up the pitch, exploiting the gaps and space available and going for a killer third goal.

It was overly-cautious and at times somewhat negative Italian tactics from Signor Mancini I thought. A one goal advantage is slender and may not be enough for them in the 2nd leg at Old Trafford. A third goal would have made a huge difference for City.

Giggs gets better and better, his movement and first touch are beautiful to watch.

Giggs will be 37 later this year, but there's no sign that age is catching up on him. He's still a hugely accomplished player, technically very gifted and comfortable on the ball, especially when playing passes on the deck. High crosses from wide positions have at times been one of his rare weak points. I think if his crossing ability had been a bit more accurate and consistent over the course of his career, he could (and perhaps should) have won the European Footballer Of The Year award at one point.

Obviously his career could have taken a different path if Alex Ferguson hadn't twisted his arm and persuaded him not to sign for Man City as a youngster, which at one point he was all set to do.

In an interview last November, Giggs insisted that even if he had the chance to play in seven major championships for England, he would never have chosen to play for the English national team even if new FIFA eligibility rules had been in force 20 years ago.

Giggs's talent has been rather wasted with Wales, but he insists he has no regrets.

Link to that interview with Giggs here

I may be able to help!......if I could be watching

In your profile it says that you are deaf. May I ask if you are partially deaf or have a total loss of hearing? You might be our only deaf board member who is a regular user of this website. This doesn't of course make you inferior to other people. It just makes you different.

[philipl]

It was good to see the player the Glazers couldn't afford and Ferguson said wouldn't be missed scored both goals tonight.

[Anti-Dingle-Brigade]

In your profile it says that you are deaf. May I ask if you are partially deaf or have a total loss of hearing? You might be our only deaf board member who is a regular user of this website. This doesn't of course make you inferior to other people. It just makes you different.

Not that it is any of your business, I am deaf as well. And there are degrees of deafness. Profound, severe, moderate and so on. I'm as close as you can get to being totally deaf, without being totally deaf. Without hearing aids, I can't hear anything below atom-bomb levels of loudness. There seems to be this annoying preconception that you are either totally deaf, or not deaf at all.

I'd insert some sly comment about you being 'different', but I can't be arsed. Not worth the effort.