Of course the City players don't care. Nobody cares. Theirs is a hollow, soulless enterprise that, if there is any justice in the world, will largely be scrubbed from the history books in the years to come. Win, lose or draw, nothing City does really means anything, and they know it.
City Player Reaction Yesterday
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik and Imran are here to talk about a frustrating 2 points dropped at Crystal Palace. They then discuss the regeneration of Old Trafford. Finally, Nik is joined by special guest Michael Statham from the Football Oranje podcast - who gives us a more in depth look at our EL opposition FC Twente, and then runs through the (many) Dutch connections currently at United.
He was actively looking for excuses. "We were too happy with our unheralded achievement" would have been better than he offered up if it had happened.
He didn't play a single minute.
Just look at that 'parade' and it all makes sense 
Imagine playing for them and having to pretend that its a great day. It's like trying to be excited about your nephews christening.
Imagine playing for them and having to pretend that its a great day. It's like trying to be excited about your nephews christening.Well yeah. We really wouldn't, beyond the initial embarassment. Annoying, but meh. Got an actual trophy to celebrate. Of course, CdR is not the FA Cup
And yeah, players at a club that is now collecting PL medals like candy are unlikely to particularly care about the FA Cup, doubly so when they didn't even grow up with it
I just think it’s a stretch to suggest that this project is anything like a real team with real qualities. It’s very obvious from the player’s postures and celebrations that it isn’t real.
I noticed this too. Smiles, giving our players high-fives and pats on the back, very weird. Almost like a ‘we’re proud of you’ reaction.
When you’re winning league titles and are amongst the favourites for the CL every year, the FA Cup is a sideshow that only comes into its own as a component of a much larger pursuit. Trebles and the new Holy Grail of a quadruple, is where it becomes as special as it used to be as a standalone trophy; I don’t even think doubles hit like they used to 20-30 years ago.
Unless stripped, they have 4PL in a row and a treble last season; the FA Cup in and of itself is not going to resonate like those feats for them, and if we’re ever back to the summit we were, it’ll be the same for us - something massive as a set, but a secondary trophy otherwise.
Unless stripped, they have 4PL in a row and a treble last season; the FA Cup in and of itself is not going to resonate like those feats for them, and if we’re ever back to the summit we were, it’ll be the same for us - something massive as a set, but a secondary trophy otherwise.
Plus also certain Ander Herrera.
They know they're part of a project and their job is to repay the offshore millions they're giving.
Not one of them grew up dreaming of playing for City.
Not one of them grew up dreaming of playing for City.
When you are consistently challenging for, and often winning, bigger prizes like the Premier League and the Champions League, it would definitely make this cup seem smaller. It just makes a part of the bigger picture, but it smaller than those two. And they also won this last year anyway.
Furthermore, for a lot of these players, the inherited, local rivalry would be weak. Certainly weaker than competitive rivalry. And United are not competitive rivals to City. Not long enough to foster any rival feelings, anyway. I severely doubt losing it to United feels any worse than it would losing it to a team that's not Liverpool or Arsenal.
That whole club feels AI generated.
They know what they are…
Like corporate workers finding out they missed a financial target so they get a slightly reduced bonus pool
5 days before the final?
Sadly I'm quite aware of how hangovers work. Not seeing that playing a major role myself.
It is more just a testament to their mindset. They celebrated like the season was over, not like a team that had a big cup final to play six days later. A team that truly cared about the double would have just been back to business for one more week and saved the celebrations for their parade day.
I'm pretty sure they did nothing of the sort last year when they were chasing the treble.
They went out for a drink a week ago. Pep seems to think that wasn't the reason they lost despite looking for excuses.
What city are and the way they play is like playing against Legendary mode on Fifa. Robotic, boring, difficult to beat but soulless, nobody cares about them.
That could possibly be it, but I find it hard to imagine a team could be as successful as City with that mentality, even if it is just the FA Cup. Still a final against your bitter rivals at the end of the day.Well yeah. We really wouldn't, beyond the initial embarassment. Annoying, but meh. Got an actual trophy to celebrate. Of course, CdR is not the FA Cup
And yeah, players at a club that is now collecting PL medals like candy are unlikely to particularly care about the FA Cup, doubly so when they didn't even grow up with it
But I agree it definitely meant more to United than it would have to City.
They just won 4 titles and treble last year, I doubt they care too much about the FA cup. But saying that I seen a clip of Guardiola on their open top bus parade talking about how they will win the FA cup next year haha
I remember we withdrew from the FA cup after our treble season to play in the FIFA club World Cup.
We were always about the league and Europe back then.
I remember we withdrew from the FA cup after our treble season to play in the FIFA club World Cup.
We were always about the league and Europe back then.
We wanted to find a way to compete for the Cup but, as usual, the FA were obstructive in a way they haven't been for others since
Yeah that’s a strange comparison to make. We’ve come 2nd behind City a few times over the years, and won a fair few trophies since 2013. City were in and out of the PL and rubbish even when they were in, back then.
I get City players not being devastated - they have won a lot of late. That doesn’t mean they didn’t try their best - they did but just weren’t good enough. We were just better than them on the day.
They were quite fortunate to win both finals last year against United and Inter, we had the same number of shots and shots on target in last year's final too, and that was during a treble year.
We beat them fair and square, and they were two Gundogan wonder goals from losing last year too.
We beat them fair and square, and they were two Gundogan wonder goals from losing last year too.
I *have* been saying they're fake. Including their rivalries, the club has essentially done away with them, they have too few fans locally, so the players don't actually feel any particularly strong rivalry - with anyone.
That's part of my point. I don't believe Manchester City as a club have any real rivalry, let alone bitter. The fans sure, but the club, and thus the players? They don't care.
They've got the big money salary plus the big money from winning PL (presumably). They're there for money so losing FA cup means nothing. All the people working for City are there for the money, not saying that it doesnt happen to other club but money is the sole reason why their manager was even there to begin with (money to spend on players). From top to bottom they're all money oriented like only fans content creators. Of course Jonathan from Bluemoon who started supporting City since 2015 would force you to believe otherwise calling it 'passiun' and 'laf for the game'. But when you ask him who is James Milner he'd only reply 'saw him on FIFA playing for Liverpool'.
Local rivalries can be transmitted, if they are felt across the club or city. And I don't think these guys think of Liverpool as rivals anymore either, because they're not. Not anymore, not really.
Hell, they played Liverpool in the SF two years ago when they neck and neck for the league and both chasing the treble and Guardiola played their backups. You could see after the game they still didn't really care either
Sheepish grins because they know they were expected to win isn’t not caring. We finished 8th this season, we had two half fit CBs, McT and Amrabat starting and the only goal they scored was a keeper error. Also they were going spare at each other first half so it’s more they didn’t know how to react after the whistle than they didn’t care.
If they aren't playing for trophies and trophies are not motivation enough, they shouldn't be playing. Pep is the glue that holds this lot together with a whip. Kind of reminds me end SAF days.
That club has no emotion so its natural for the players to exhibit the same.
They dont really care. They know how the world looks at them at the end of the day.
They dont really care. They know how the world looks at them at the end of the day.
Their whole club is like that. Joyless, soulless, robotic, artificial.
It's a matter of perspective, and believe me, I have posts talking about when thr FA Cup was a really, really special trophy to win.
Playing for it in and of itself isn't going to be for everyone. I don't believe it's a matter of nationality, but rather how long you've been dialled into English football and whether the significance of what it [the cup] used to stand for, and I'll reiterate that if you're on for a treble or more, it's still regarded as it used to be.
A lot of those players now have a sizeable trophy haul plus a CL, motivation for the FA Cup isn't going to be the driver it once was. If that was the CL final we'd just beat them in, there'd be zero laughing and smiling, that's for sure.
The two major objectives at the start of the season as standalone entities are the league and the CL, and if not the CL, then a sort of regard for the EL, which raises exponentially with progression. The domestic cups register, but not on the same scale as the PL or CL (unless you're on for all 3, or even 4) and it's been that way for an age now, not just for City.
And with regards to direct rivalry, that's like when Fergie suddenly stsrted praising Wenger openly, which officially marked Wenger as washed, but in reverse - when we're a genuine threat to them again in the core objectives of a season (as above), it'll not be the same as it is now.
Exactly. Whereas nowadays they are in the Premier League giving away tickets to their matches for free because they couldn't sell them.
I understand that perspective. We're way below where Arsenal were when Fergie-Wenger rivalry thawed. However, against Liverpoool, any defeat, at whatever level they were at (and they were far worse than Arsenal), hurt us badly. In our glory days, I just cannot imagine our players getting away being casual after a defeat to Liverpool in any game, particularly a cup final, however unimportant that game may be. There were a lot of butt-hurt Liverpool fans after they lost 4-0 to us in pre-season last year. I'd imagine we are to City what Liverpool are to us. Maybe I imagine wrong.
The were mentally burnt out after the 4th in a row, the FA cup was just an afterthought and Utd took advantage, with a much greater desire to win. Only that small Onana mistake which didn't matter finally... The first goal City gave up was school boy level and I don't think they conceded like that once in the rest of the season.
Saw some clips of their "parade" yesterday. Get second hand embarrassment from watching everyone involved trying to make it happen and care. So cringe they have to play the music really loud to get any noise.
You mean the shot in the arm that Kyle Walker takes every week?
I think the OP is reading too much into this.
Think the season before they were super focused with the treble, and this game I suspect the players might have had an attitude of it's only United and we just need to turn up to win.