Blackburn Rovers v Manchester City

After a disappointing result in the mid-week Champions League game against Bayern Munich, and the other distractions that created, City will be looking to bounce straight back with a good performance against Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.

Blackburn currently sit in 17th spot in the league with 4 points, 3 of those being gifted to them by 2 Arsenal own goals. Steve Kean has come in for a lot of criticism since taking over from Sam Allardyce and the result against Arsenal may have just give him a little reprieve from the demonstrations calling for him to be sacked. Last weekend's 3-1 loss to Newcastle wont have helped his case though.

The same fixture last season saw City run out 1-0 winners on the day with the solitary goal coming from Edin Dzeko. After his reaction to being subbed on Tuesday though he may find himself starting the game on the bench. This, along with the club's suspension of Carlos Tevez could mean Mario Balotelli gets his first Premiership start of the season.

Balotellit has scored twice in his last two appearances for the club, one against Birmingham in the Carling Cup and one coming off the bench against Everton in the Premier League. By all accounts Mario has been working hard in training to the point where Mancini has praised his attitude in recent club press conferences.  

One positive to come from mid-week was the return of Nigel De Jong and I for one can't wait for him to get back into the swing of things as he is part of the backbone of the squad. This will throw up another problem for Mancini though; Who does he drop from the holding midfield role, Gareth Barry or Yaya Toure? Opinions will be divided over that one I'm sure and it may partly depend on who Mancini decides to play in the left back slot.

There were a few disappointing overall performances on Tuesday and we may see a number of changes made to the squad of Saturday. Once again City came undone with a set piece (which incidentally was offside although you wont find that mentioned anywhere) and the formidable Chris Samba will be one of the players City will need to watch from dead ball situations around the 18 yard box.

Another player that may pose a problem is Ruben Rochina. The Spanish forward joined Blackburn on a 4 year deal from Barcelona last January and has scored 4 goals in his last 6 games in all competitions. Goodwillie and Yakubu make up the rest of Blackburn's striking options.

With teams immediately around City looking likely to win their games it's important that City continue their good Premier League form (tell me you didn't just re-read half of that sentence in Mancini's voice, and if you didn't I bet you have now!). Blackburn have conceded 13 goals in the league so far, 6 of them at home so City should be looking to press home their attacking abilities by hopefully getting a big decent goal difference out of the game at the end of the 90 minutes.

FIFA Vice-President Backing City.

I'm pretty sure you're all aware of the latest stunt to be pulled by Tevez by now, and less than 24 hours  has passed before Fifa's vice-president Jim Boyce voiced his own personal views on the situation that City now find themselves in.

When I listened to the interview on SKY Sports I was more than pleasantly surprised at what Boyce had to say as he is wholly in support of Fifa itself taking action against Tevez if Manchester City wish. Jim started the interview stating; "If he has done what has been said, and it appears there is no doubt about it - no matter what has been said this morning - then I think his club would be better off with him not being a part of it."

Tevez released a statement this morning saying exactly what you would expect it to say. He's always professional, he always gives his all, he is ready to play in the future and all this is just a big misunderstanding. This 'misunderstanding' according to Carlos is that he felt he didn't need to warm up any more before taking to the pitch as he felt fine. However Mancini took this as though he refused to play - according to Tevez of course.  


Of course if you rewind back to last night for a moment when Carlos spoke to the press after the game against Bayern he specifically stated that he didn't feel right either physically or mentally to take part in the match and had said this to Mancini. Now correct me if I'm wrong but there is a slight discrepancy there don't you think?

Anyway, back to Jim. After being asked whether the Argentinian's contract should be cancelled, his answer was; "Without a shadow of a doubt." I don't think many people will disagree with him on that one.

What Boyce says next will be music to the ears of fans and indeed managers everywhere. The fear is that if Carlos gets his contract cancelled (like he probably wants) he will be a free agent and may be able to move to any club who will take him almost immediately. If that happened it would pave the way for any player to do exactly the same to engineer a move away from the club they're at without reprisals.


"If Manchester City Football Club prove it, write to Fifa and state the exact circumstances that happened last night then I believe Fifa should have the power, as they do for drugs-related cases and other cases, to ban the player from taking an active part in football."


You can catch the video of the interview here on SKY Sports.


It appears Tevez and his 'advisor' Kia Joorabchian have finally met their match with City, especially as they now appear to have the full backing of football's governing body. Joorabchian is already barred from setting foot in the Etihad Stadium, Mancini wants nothing more to do with Tevez, Sheikh Mansour is reported to be 'very disappointed' about what transpired in Germany, some of Carlos' own teammates and fellow countrymen appeared to blank him during the remainder of the game last night and now to top it off he is suspended until further notice or until City come to an agreement on suitable and legal punishment.


The end is nigh Carlos, the only question that remains is how much will your mistakes now cost your career?


@MikeWalsh1880

Carlos Tevez. An utter disgrace.

I've taken a short time to calm down after the revelation by Mancini that Tevez did indeed refuse to come off the bench and play against Bayern Munich.

I'm not going to go into the game as losing the Bayern Munich away from home is no disgrace. What I do have a problem with is the fact that a player refuses to pull on the shirt of the team that pays him upwards of £200k a week and play half an hour of football in one of the biggest games in its recent history. It's absolutely and utterly disgraceful.

Carlos Tevez has tested the patience of City fans and manager to the absolute limit and his latest stunt has pushed it too far. Mancini spoke to Sky Sports after the game and said; "Tevez refused to come onto the pitch.

"I can't accept this one player refusing to go on."

I have already voiced my opinions on Carlos a number of times (you can find all the articles here) and made it quite clear he had a long way to go before regaining any sort of respect from me and indeed many of the City faithful. He has just blown any chance of that out of the water in what is a blatant stunt to get himself out of City, which is what he wanted last December.

The difference this time is that there were no lame excuses about missing his family (as they're now with him) or that he doesn't get on with Garry Cook (who has now gone) or that he has no one in the City he can talk to (Aguero and Zabba both have partners living with them and a number of other teammates speak Spanish). No this time he point blank refuses to play after being asked to come off the bench to try and help his teammates get a result from a game.

The only hint of some sort of reason was that he didn't feel right to play. Really Carlos? Couldn't you have said that before Mancini named you as a sub? Or was it because you were named as a sub?

It's not just a betrayal of the City fans and his manager, it's a betrayal of the players he plays with, his supposed friends. It's quite clear that Mancini has had enough going so far as to specifically say "he is finished" with Carlos and that "he can't play - never" in a very prickly post match press conference.  

What happens now is any one's guess, but Carlos has been given enough chances by everyone at the club. Whether the Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak decides to fine the player or worse is yet to be seen but a decision needs to be swift and it needs to be decisive. No player at any club should get away with that.

The sad thing is though, Carlos wont care one jot and he has the cheek to say that he has been "professional" whilst at City keeps "trying to do [his] best". The guy is on another planet completely. He will likely get the move he wanted in January and Kia Joorabchian will be pleased because he gets another bit pay day along with the transfer. That is unless City really want to make an example of him and leave him unused and unwanted until the end of the season, and maybe even beyond.

What is clear though, the disruptive influence of an unhappy player is potentially devastating to the harmony in the dressing room. Tevez can not be permitted to poison the friendships that have been nurtured within the club.



@MikeWalsh1880

City Stats: Manchester City v Everton

Joe Hart

• Distribution: 19/27 - 70%
• Saves: 2/2 - 100%
• Minutes: 90

Micah Richards

• Shots: 0
• Passes: 53/59 - 89%
• Interceptions: 0
• Tackles: 4/5 - 80%
• Minutes: 90

Vincent Kompany

• Shots: 0/1 - 1 blocked - 0%
• Passes: 58/66 - 87%
• Interceptions: 0
• Tackles: 7/8 - 87%
• Minutes: 90

Joleon Lescott

• Shots: 0
• Passes: 58/62 - 93%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 3/4 - 75%
• Minutes: 90

Gael Clichy

• Shots: 0/1 - 0%
• Passes: 66/75 - 88%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 3/4 - 75%
• Minutes: 90

Yaya Toure

• Shots: 1/2 - 5-%
• Passes: 64/70 - 91%
• Interceptions: 3
• Tackles: 5/6 - 83%
• Minutes: 90

Gareth Barry

• Shots: 1/2 - 50%
• Passes: 50/61 - 82%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 3/6 - 50%
• Minutes: 90

David Silva

• Shots: 1/3 - 1 blocked - 33%
• Passes: 44/56 - 1 assist - 78%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 1/1 - 100%
• Minutes: 90

Samir Nasri

• Shots: 1/2 - 50%
• Passes: 65/72 - 90%
• Interceptions: 0
• Tackles: 2/3 - 66%
• Minutes: 83

Sergio Aguero

• Shots: 1/3 - 33%
• Passes: 28/37 - 1 assist - 75%
• Interceptions: 0
• Tackles: 0/2 - 0%
• Minutes: 79

Edin Dzeko

• Shots: 0/2 - 0%
• Passes: 13/24 - 54%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 3/3 - 100%
• Minutes: 60

Mario Balotelli

• Shots: 1/2 - 1 goal - 50% - 50% goals/shots ratio
• Passes: 8/11 - 72%
• Interceptions: 0
• Tackles: 3/5 - 60%
• Minutes: 30

James Milner

• Shots: 1/1 - 1 goal - 100% - 100% goals/shots ratio
• Passes: 4/7 - 57%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 0/1 - 0%
• Minutes: 11

Stefan Savic

• Shots: 0
• Passes: 1/2 - 50%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 0
• Minutes: 7

Team Stats

• Shots: 7/19 - 2 goals - 39% - 10% goals/shots ratio
• Passes: 531/692 - 2 assists - 76%
• Interceptions: 10
• Tackles: 34/48 - 70%
• Possession: 63%
• Corners: 7
• Fouls: 9

Manchester City v Everton

After 11 changes were made for the mid-week Carling Cup draw against Birmingham, City's '1st' string of players should be fully rested and ready to take on what has become our bogey team of late, Everton.

Even before the transfer of Joleon Lescott there was no real love lost between the two, however since then this fixture has become more like Everton's cup final, but to be fair to them, they've stepped up their game on each occasion. In fact we've only actually beat them once since the win in January 2007 and only got 3 draws in any fixture against them since then. This is something that has to change.

The last fixture saw City dominate the first half but only score 1 goal, then the performance dipped in the second (sound familiar?) and Everton came out fighting and won the game after scoring 2 goals in the 2nd half. If City are to genuinely challenge for the title it's these kind of games we need to be getting positive results in. I know that sounds kind of stupid as you need positive results in all games ideally, and it's that consistency that City lacked last season.

With a tough trip to Germany 3 days later it's unlikely that Mancini will field what many consider to be the strongest squad, but coming 2nd isn't something Bobby ever wants to do so don't expect a weak team to take to the pitch. Lets be honest, can City actually field a weak team at the moment?

In this fixture you can never really say you expect a win given the recent results, but it's got to change some time and there's no time like the present. City, despite their fantastic start, will have to be wary of Everton. The Toffees will be in high spirits as they go into this game on the back of a 5 game unbeaten run (3 Premier League and 2 Carling Cup) have won all but 1 of them.

Perhaps what's quite impressive about their current form is the fact they have had  different 9 goal scorers in those 5 games, although Arteta (2 goals) has left the club for Arsenal. Surprisingly Cahill isn't one of them and with his ability in the air City will have to keep an eye on him in set pieces as that is where City's defence has been asked questions for some time.

Of course City aren't without their own significant threats. Edin Dzeko and Sergio Aguero have scored 14 goals between them in the Premier League. Even if neither of them start City still have Carlos Tevez and Mario Balotelli who are both potent goal threats. Which one or two of them will start is anyone's guess though.

What may be more crucial is who starts behind them. Will Samir Nasri and David Silva both start with only 3 days before playing Bayern Munich? Will just one of them start? Or will neither play? Personally I'd say at least one of them has to start as they are easily the 2 most creative players in the squad and link the centre of the midfield to the attack.

James Milner may also start in the centre as he featured as a substitute against Birmingham after recovering from a knock, and City fans will no doubt be wanting to see Gareth Barry back in action too. We'll probably have more of an idea after the press conference this morning although Mancini rarely gives much away.

Another step closer

Yesterday saw Manchester City submit the planning application for their new 80 acre development program after a 6 week public consultation in which 97% of people voted in favour of the project. We will find out in December whether the plans have been approved or not.

I wont go into too much detail about everything that is planned as I've covered most of it before but here's a quick overview.

The new complex will consist of;

• Space for up to 400 Academy players to train and study alongside senior players.
• 1 half size and 11 full size youth development pitches.
• 1 half size and 4 full size first team pitches.
• Accommodation and classroom facilities for 40 young players.
• 1st team changing, gym, refectory and rehab centre.
• 7000 capacity stadium (5000 seating) for youth team matches.
• The stadium will also be open to the public during certain times.
• Staff offices and media centre.
• Bridge linking the Etihad Stadium and rest of the Etihad Campus to the site.
• 5.5 acres specifically for use by the community which could include education facilities and sports institute.

You can find out more about the proposals at mcfc.co.uk and manchestercityfootballacademy.co.uk. But before you go, here's a collection of pictures and videos showing what City has planned.

Aerial view by night...

... and by day

Outside the 7000 capacity stadium...

... and inside.



The bridge connecting the site to the Etihad Stadium



Makes you proud doesn't it? :)

@MikeWalsh1880



City Stats: Fulham v Manchester City

Joe Hart

• Distribution: 17/27 - 63%
• Saves: 4/6 - 66%
• Minutes: 90

Micah Richards

• Shots: 0/2 - 0%
• Passes: 44/54 - 97%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 9/9 - 100%
• Minutes: 90

Vincent Kompany

• Shots: 0
• Passes: 56/59 - 95%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 2/2 - 100%
• Minutes: 90

Joleon Lescott

• Shots: 0
• Passes: 44/50 - 88%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 2/2 - 100%
• Minutes: 90

Gael Clichy

• Shots: 1/2 - 50%
• Passes: 59/70 - 84%
• Interceptions: 2
• Tackles: 6/8 - 75%
• Minutes: 90

Yaya Toure

• Shots: 0/1 - 0%
• Passes: 99/110 - 90%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 1/3 - 33%
• Minutes: 90

Gareth Barry

• Shots: 0/2 - 0% (2 blocked)
• Passes: 77/83 - 92%
• Interceptions: 0 
• Tackles: 4/6 - 66%
• Minutes: 90

Samir Nasri

• Shots: 0
• Passes: 46/60 - 76%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 1/3 - 33%
• Minutes: 81

David Silva

• Shots: 0/1 - 0%
• Passes: 56/63 - 88% (1 assist)
• Interceptions: 0
• Tackles: 2/2 - 100%
• Minutes: 69

Sergio Aguero

• Shots: 3/4 - 75% (2 goals) 50% goals/shots
• Passes: 26/29 - 89%
• Interceptions: 1
• Tackles: 0/3 - 0%
• Minutes: 83

Edin Dzeko

• Shots: 1/3 - 33% (2 blocked)
• Passes: 23/38 - 60%
• Interceptions: 0
• Tackles: 2/5 - 40%
• Minutes: 90

Pablo Zabaleta

• Shots: 0/2 - 0% (1 blocked)
• Passes: 10/15 - 66%
• Interceptions: 0 
• Tackles: 2/3 - 66%
• Minutes: 21

Adam Johnson

• Shots: 0
• Passes: 11/12 - 91%
• Interceptions: 0
• Tackles: 0
• Minutes: 9

Carlos Tevez

• Shots: 0/1 - 0% (1 blocked)
• Passes: 9/9 - 100%
• Interceptions: 0
• Tackles: 0
• Minutes: 7

Team Stats

• Shots: 5/18 - 27% (2 goals) 11% goals/shots
• Passes: 576/679 - 84%
• Interceptions: 8
• Tackles: 31/46 - 67%
• Possesion: 57%
• Corners: 9
• Fouls: 9

Fulham v Manchester City

Both Fulham and City go into the game on Sunday having played European games midweek. City played 24 hours before Fulham though and their strength in depth will be a major factor this weekend as we can reasonably expect Mancini to shuffle the pack again.

Fulham have yet to clock up a win in the league and find themselves in 18th after the first 4 games and only 2 goals scored, not what new manager Martin Jol will have wanted. Their involvement in the Europa League is bound to have an affect on their performances this season though as they had to return to competitive games at the end June rather than August like the majority of the Premier League.

Coming up with a starting 11 for City will be almost like trying to pick the winning lottery numbers, Mancini just has so many options at his disposal. Although the centre of midfield is hit with a few injuries at the moment with only Yaya Toure and Gareth Barry the two players match fit, although Pablo Zabaleta can deputise if need be. The biggest question though is who will Mancini pick to start 'up front'? Silva, Nasri, Aguero, Dzeko, Tevez, Balotelli, Johnson are the players available.

Balotelli has yet to start a game this season and has just returned from the trial of one of Italy's crime bosses where he was required to give evidence following his walk around Naples last year. There is (unlike the media will tell you) nothing that links him having any criminal dealings with the Mafia in any way.

The next most rested players are Carlos Tevez and Adam Johnson having only appeared as substitutes in the 2nd half of City's Champions League clash against Napoli. Although Tevez hardly covered himself in glory, and apart from one winding run which came to nothing he didn't appear to be the same player he was last season.

Whoever Bobby picks, it will be a strong team that walks out onto the pitch, and as we also saw against Wigan there may be scope for one of the younger lads to make an appearance from the bench. It obviously wont be anyone that played in the  NextGen Series two days ago but there are several player who weren't involved who may be given the chance. Maybe one of either Jeramy Helan, Frederic Veseli or Abdul Razak?

The same fixture last season saw City produce one of their best performances in the 2010-11 calendar with a 4-1 victory at Craven Cottage with Tevez scoring either side of goals from Zabaleta and Yaya Toure. But despite City's obvious squad depth and blistering start to the Premiership campaign, nothing is ever a given in the Premier League, there are no easy games.

We could be in for another glorious display but with every game the players can never take anything for granted. One thing that Mancini will want to see is the killer instinct that has been lacking for so many years. Against Spurs City took the foot off the gas for a while before Dzeko scored his last minute goal to close the game. Bobby wants to see the team play to score all the time, especially as there is only goal difference that separates City and United in the table.

Match Review - Manchester City v Napoli

Last night the Champions League finally came to the City of Manchester as City and Napoli took their first steps into Europe's biggest competition in its current format.

City created enough chances to kill off the game but the lads rarely got a shot on target with only 1 in every 6 shots heading for the back of the net. That is partly down to the pressure from Napoli's defence but you have to expect better, Mancini expects better. Only Kolarov's free kick in the 2nd half saved City's blushes.

Kolarov also had his nose broken in the first half which is surprising seeing Zabaleta was on the pitch. It's usually the Argentinian who  sticks his face on someone's elbow or boot and walks away bloodied and bandaged at the end of the game.

One thing Mancini did point out was that in the first half the lads were "guilty of taking one touch too many" and he is exactly right. City's front 4 tried to be a little too elaborate and the Italian defence did well to put the pressure on them in and around the box.

It was never going to be an easy game, and the Italian side was, A very well organised defence and played on the break. Napoli's pace on the counter though was quite simply rapid and it caught out City's defence on more than one occasion. City can take solace in the fact that the combination of Hamsik, Cavani and Lavezzi can be matched by only a hand full of teams even in the Champions League. And they came through it relatively unscathed.

There were a few mistakes through the duration of the game though, and they could have potentially ended the match on another day. Thankfully Napoli probably had as many nerves on the night as City did and they failed to capitalise on all but one of them.

Mancini noted that players seemed nervous before kick off, and I can't blame them. It was City's first time in the Champions League and they had the expectation of the club and the fans firmly on their shoulders. Even though most of them had experience in the competition, for a few players a mixture of nerves and excitement got the better of them a couple of times. Although the lads didn't play badly, they know for sure they can play better than that and will take a lot away from this game.

As an overall performance I'd give the squad a 6.5, good but could do better and must learn from the mistakes they made during the game. Thankfully the players are well aware of their abilities and where they could have done better with Vincent Kompany telling mcfc.co.uk "We tried to do things too well and too quick and to be honest that's what cost us on the goal. I think we'll just learn from this game and we have a good enough team to see us through." 

It was a fair result in the end and hopefully we'll see a more assured performance in Germany.

Player Review: David Silva

David Silva

D.O.B: 8/1/1986

Height: 5ft7

Position: Attacking Midfielder

Joined Club: July 2010 from Valencia

Fee: £24m

Debut: 14 August 2010 against Tottenham







This is the signing whose ability to adapt was questioned the most by almost every sports journalist and pundit after he joined City in the summer of 2010. "He's too small" "He wont be strong enough" and "the Premier League will be too quick and too physical for him to adapt to" were the kind of things being levelled at Silva before he'd even kicked a ball in anger for City.

Mancini on the other hand (along with the vast majority of Blues) knew otherwise as he said to give him a couple of months to adjust to the new team and new league. Consecutive Player of the Month awards from October to December proved who was right.

Last season Silva was quite simply sensational, his passing and movement combined with his ability to work his way out of trouble was simply awesome. The only thing that let him down was his goals tally which could have been much higher. He notched up only 4 Premier League goals last season, preferring to pass the ball rather than take the shot on himself on a number of occasions.

He did get 13 assists in all competitions though, and given the standard of the team this season I wouldn't be surprised if that increased this season. In the first 4 games he's already bagged 2 goals and 2 assists.

He's been getting all the plaudits so far this week after a simply breath taking performance against Wigan. He was untouchable, and his part in the 3rd goal was like watching someone play fifa as he skipped past 3 players who had quickly surrounded him, leaving two on the floor behind him before slotting a defense splitting inch perfect pass through to Aguero.

If you looked at his highlights videos on youtube you'd be forgiven for thinking they were just like most other videos where they just pick the best few bits from a good season, I mean even Jo and Samaras looked good on youtube. But if you did think that, you'd be wrong, very wrong. He's like that almost every game he plays in, even when he doesn't have a good game he's still one of the best on the pitch. There's a reason his teammates call him Merlin. Take a look at the video further down the page to see what he's been like so far this season.

Mancini is spot on when he said that if Silva was playing for Barca he'd have already been considered one of the very best in the world. His ability says he is, but only now is he starting to get that recognition, partly down to City's increased global appeal. It's an unfortunate way it works, he was stunning last season but because City weren't playing in the Champions League etc he was overlooked by the majority of the world's sports media.

There have been questions asked between Blues recently as to who is/was the better player Silva or Kinkladze. Personally I don't think there is any competition. Kinkladze was a very good player in a poor team, Silva is an exceptional player and still stands out in a very good team.

I honestly have not witnessed a player quite like him in a City shirt in my lifetime. There have been players similar in style but none who I think can actually match his ability. I know this my go against the grain of a lot of older City fans but I think we shouldn't be comparing Silva's influence and ability to Kinkladze or Benarbia, we should be putting him right up there with Colin Bell.  Without a shadow of a doubt as long as David sticks around for a while we could be looking at the greatest ever player to play for City.