Our Rivals' squads next year - Manchester City (2016/2017)

Cityfaninpeace said:
Ditto mate, it's probably going to be horrible for one of us come May because I reckon the title is coming back to Manchester one way or the other. Despite the rivalry it's great for Manchester than city and United are both gunning for the title.
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I agree. The derbies are gonna be "nervous breakdown" material but fun also. I'm not sure who'll win it but if either of us hit the ground running we'll be hard to stop.
 
Sean_RedDevil said:
City pre-season minutes in full (max.270)
235: Fernandinho
219: Aleks Kolarov
207: Tosin Adarabioyo
170: Gael Clichy
163: Fernando
158: Fabian Delph
135: Willy Caballero & Pablo Maffeo
127: Jesus Navas
126: Angelino
113: Sergio Aguero
112: Kelechi Iheanacho
102: David Silva
100: Aleks Zinchenko
96: Yaya Toure
90: Angus Gunn & Wilfried Bony
86: Raheem Sterling
80: Aleix Garcia
69: Nolito
64: Pablo Zabaleta
45: Joe Hart, Jason Denayer, Nicolas Otamendi & Brandon Barker
35: Bersant Celina
27: Kevin De Bruyne
26: Bacary Sagna
25: Sinan Bytyqi
0: Eliaquim Mangala, Vincent Kompany, Leroy Sane, Ilkay Gundogan, Samir Nasri & Man Utd Garcia

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co...all-news/man-city-pre-season-minutes-11718987
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Couple of questions as I haven't seen much of City's Pre-Season..

- Who is Tosin Adarabioyo and will he play much this coming season?
- Is Mangala injured or out of favour?

For the coming season I have to say the favourites are City and United. Going to be some epic battles, and especially when you throw the Pep \ Jose rivalry in to the mix to.
 
JoaquinJoaquin said:
Couple of questions as I haven't seen much of City's Pre-Season..

- Who is Tosin Adarabioyo and will he play much this coming season? He's a central defender, Mancunian and been part of our academy from a very young age. Very promising player but I imagine he'll only get a handful of games this season.
- Is Mangala injured or out of favour? Both at the moment but he'll be sold or loaned by the end of the transfer window.

For the coming season I have to say the favourites are City and United. Going to be some epic battles, and especially when you throw the Pep \ Jose rivalry in to the mix to.
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Rooney in Paris said:
I keep reading that, but do people really generally believe he's shit? If anything, I think people rate him pretty accurately: ok player, very hard worker, and very reliable.
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Trust me R.i.p, loads of people have said they think he's crap but I guess people who have that opinion shouldn't really be listened to as he does his job on the pitch very well. He's a solid 7-8 out of 10. Pep seems to like him anyway so we'll see.
 
Anybody manage to watch the Pep documentary on Sky last night? Good watch.
 
Think they need another season before they'll be too intimidating. Strong starting 11 but real dips in quality when you go beyond that and the left back position is still unresolved.

Hart/Guardiola probably won't work out either.
 
I'm still intrigued by City to be honest. I think their over-reliance on 'potential' could be their undoing. They've got a manager with zero PL experience (good as he may be) and have bought several players, some for the here and now and some for the future, and a few players falling below standard. Right now, it's pure conjecture as to how everything is going to come together. They could hit the ground running but then again they could experience some Chelsea/Dortmund-like season meltdown (who saw those coming???). Right now, I haven't seen anything yet both with their transfer business and with their pre-season performances to keep me awake at night. They haven't really covered Aguero sufficiently so if he gets crocked they are screwed.

I'm not saying this because I'm biased but I really believe the United squad is in a better position to launch an assault in the Premier League than City....at the moment. If they had bought the players we have, it would have been game over for everyone. If we had bought the players they have, would we be buzzing right now and looking forward to the season with such optimism? I don't think so. But who knows, they may come good and dominate next season but for now, I just have a feeling they're going to be in for a surprise. I would love it if them and Arsenal finish 5th and 6th this season of course.
 
RedPed said:
I'm still intrigued by City to be honest. I think their over-reliance on 'potential' could be their undoing. They've got a manager with zero PL experience (good as he may be) and have bought several players, some for the here and now and some for the future, and a few players falling below standard. Right now, it's pure conjecture as to how everything is going to come together. They could hit the ground running but then again they could experience some Chelsea/Dortmund-like season meltdown (who saw those coming???). Right now, I haven't seen anything yet both with their transfer business and with their pre-season performances to keep me awake at night. They haven't really covered Aguero sufficiently so if he gets crocked they are screwed.

I'm not saying this because I'm biased but I really believe the United squad is in a better position to launch an assault in the Premier League than City....at the moment. If they had bought the players we have, it would have been game over for everyone. If we had bought the players they have, would we be buzzing right now and looking forward to the season with such optimism? I don't think so. But who knows, they may come good and dominate next season but for now, I just have a feeling they're going to be in for a surprise. I would love it if them and Arsenal finish 5th and 6th this season of course.
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I have the same feeling. Not that they'll not finish top 4, but I don't see them as favorites like the media suggest.

People forget that we finished level on points with them last season. The talk that they under-performed can also be attributed to United.
 
RedPed said:
I'm not saying this because I'm biased but I really believe the United squad is in a better position to launch an assault in the Premier League than City....at the moment. If they had bought the players we have, it would have been game over for everyone. If we had bought the players they have, would we be buzzing right now and looking forward to the season with such optimism? I don't think so. But who knows, they may come good and dominate next season but for now, I just have a feeling they're going to be in for a surprise. I would love it if them and Arsenal finish 5th and 6th this season of course.
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Don't agree with this. Ibrahimovic wouldn't start for City, we have de Bruyne and Silva so no real need for Mkhitaryan, not much to separate Stones and Bailly at this stage and both suit their current manager, Pogba is the real difference but we've got Gundogan who if he stays fit is a class player as well. We've also got Nolito, Sane and Gabriel Jesus on top of those. Yes, United have had a good window but City had different needs, hence the pursuit primarily of younger players, so I do not feel if the clubs 'swapped' signings we would dominate as you suggest, and nor do I think you will dominate with the signings you've made.
 
They're going to win the league. I like Conte, but I can't imagine the players he has be disciplined enough to follow through on his tactics. Arsenal will be in the top 4 and Manchester United are too far to win the title.
 
Still think they will win the league. The fear will drop points against shite teams away from home still lingers. City's attack is full of pace, skill and goals.
 
It's weird, somehow City have managed to spend more than us this summer yet I don't look at their squad and fear it as one would expect for a team who lead the summer spending.
Don't get me wrong, player for player they still have the best squad in the league but the gap hasn't grown as it should have with the amount they've invested.

I still see unplugged gaps, expected an extra more experienced centre half, a left back, expected a defensive midfielder and expected a new keeper.
I'm also shocked Toure hasn't been sold, thought that was nailed on.

Their signings seem more for the future but for positions I didn't expect them to strengthen in.

I can't even guess their team, who's going where? Who's playing alongside Fernandinho? How are they going to fit in Sane, Silva, De Bruyne, Nolito and Sterling.
Great options to have but at the same time why has that area been strengthened and others ignored? They're not still pretending Delph and Fernando are good or that Toure can play in a two man midfield are they?
They've obviously banked on Gundogan staying fit, which is a risk I think.

But yeah for such a huge outlay and for all the "watch who Pep brings in" stuff that came out when he was announced its been very underwhelming.
Like I remember sky sports had a few pundits do potential city teams and players like Thiago, Pogba, Iniesta(ha), Laporte, Aubemeyang were being put in, seems a far cry from that .
 
BobbyManc said:
Don't agree with this. Ibrahimovic wouldn't start for City, we have de Bruyne and Silva so no real need for Mkhitaryan, not much to separate Stones and Bailly at this stage and both suit their current manager, Pogba is the real difference but we've got Gundogan who if he stays fit is a class player as well. We've also got Nolito, Sane and Gabriel Jesus on top of those. Yes, United have had a good window but City had different needs, hence the pursuit primarily of younger players, so I do not feel if the clubs 'swapped' signings we would dominate as you suggest, and nor do I think you will dominate with the signings you've made.
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There's a huge difference between Bailly and Stones. Bailly can defend.
 
TwoSheds said:
There's a huge difference between Bailly and Stones. Bailly can defend.
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If you say so. I'd prefer to put my faith in the willingness of Mourinho to try and sign him last summer and Guardiola to actually sign him this one.
 
Adisa said:
Still think they will win the league. The fear will drop points against shite teams away from home still lingers. City's attack is full of pace, skill and goals.
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Defensively they look a bit unstable and suspect. But yes, if their attack clicks they'll win more than they lose.
 
But Guardiola didn't try to sign him last year and Jose didn't try this year...
 
JoaquinJoaquin said:
Couple of questions as I haven't seen much of City's Pre-Season..

- Who is Tosin Adarabioyo and will he play much this coming season?
- Is Mangala injured or out of favour?

For the coming season I have to say the favourites are City and United. Going to be some epic battles, and especially when you throw the Pep \ Jose rivalry in to the mix to.
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Adarabioyo is City's Tuanzebe.
 
BobbyManc said:
Don't agree with this. Ibrahimovic wouldn't start for City, we have de Bruyne and Silva so no real need for Mkhitaryan, not much to separate Stones and Bailly at this stage and both suit their current manager, Pogba is the real difference but we've got Gundogan who if he stays fit is a class player as well. We've also got Nolito, Sane and Gabriel Jesus on top of those. Yes, United have had a good window but City had different needs, hence the pursuit primarily of younger players, so I do not feel if the clubs 'swapped' signings we would dominate as you suggest, and nor do I think you will dominate with the signings you've made.
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Yeah agreed. Think both teams had basically exactly the type of windows required. United had mostly young, inexperienced players with the need to bring in a few top class players to lead them, especially an experienced guy up top with Rashford and Martial and Lingard as our main front 3 last year. We basically had the perfect window for our needs. City had the few top class players at a good age with Aguero, De Bruyne, and Silva (on the older side), but generally had an older squad so needed an injection of youth throughout. Obviously now Pep needs to get rid of around 5 players I would say so it's not such a bloated squad, but player wise both sides would be delighted with what they brought in I think.

As for one side dominating the league this year.... Not going to happen with Mou at United, Pep at City, Wenger at Arsenal, Conte at Chelsea, Klopp at liverpool and then Poch and Ranieri both trying to maintain last seasons level. Honestly can see all of the main teams improving a ton (apart from Arsenal, they'll probably maintain their standard level unless they do something in the transfer window). I know everyone always says there's always one team that flops or whatever, but I genuinely think that Liverpool, United, City and Chelsea have all done very good business so far with both managers and signings and got exactly what they needed. So we'll see.
 
BobbyManc said:
Don't agree with this. Ibrahimovic wouldn't start for City, we have de Bruyne and Silva so no real need for Mkhitaryan, not much to separate Stones and Bailly at this stage and both suit their current manager, Pogba is the real difference but we've got Gundogan who if he stays fit is a class player as well. We've also got Nolito, Sane and Gabriel Jesus on top of those. Yes, United have had a good window but City had different needs, hence the pursuit primarily of younger players, so I do not feel if the clubs 'swapped' signings we would dominate as you suggest, and nor do I think you will dominate with the signings you've made.
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Question for me is how long the young signings take to be "up to speed" and how long the team takes to play the way Pep wants them too. If he manages to bring the best out of the attacking players, they are favorites, but that also requires the top players to stay fit as they lack a bit depth imo
 
BobbyManc said:
If you say so. I'd prefer to put my faith in the willingness of Mourinho to try and sign him last summer and Guardiola to actually sign him this one.
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Or you could just watch Stones for Everton, see the fact that he got dropped for England for...Cahill? Dier? And you could realise that at this stage of his career he's a poor defender. Only one reason you signed him and that's that he's home grown.
 
Leroy The Red said:
It's weird, somehow City have managed to spend more than us this summer yet I don't look at their squad and fear it as one would expect for a team who lead the summer spending.
Don't get me wrong, player for player they still have the best squad in the league but the gap hasn't grown as it should have with the amount they've invested.
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Helluva couple summers in the English northwest

manchester-city-manchester-united-dominan-sin-oposicion-mercado-fichajes-1470744556029.jpg
 
TwoSheds said:
Or you could just watch Stones for Everton, see the fact that he got dropped for England for...Cahill? Dier? And you could realise that at this stage of his career he's a poor defender. Only one reason you signed him and that's that he's home grown.
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Got dropped for Everton too for a run of games. This is what Everton fans thought about it:

http://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/e...f-john-stones-was-dropped-v-newcastle-tweets/

Hardly endorses a 50m transfer fee eh?
 
Regulus Arcturus Black said:
What about the fact that Mourinho had zero interest THIS summer after the boy had a horrific season?

To be ignored @BobbyManc
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Logic is sound though, both coaches pursued the player - says something about his potential any way you slice it. Everton as a whole looked dire and on fumes with Martinez, strange turn of events there really
 
FCBarca said:
Logic is sound though, both coaches pursued the player - says something about his potential any way you slice it. Everton as a whole looked dire and on fumes with Martinez, strange turn of events there really
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Agreed, boy has potential for sure.

Blaming Martinez for a guy making basic mistake after basic mistake is a right load of bollcks though.
 
Well according to Bailly's interview, even Guardiola was interested in him this season and having looked at his style, it's not hard to imagine why. He's pretty good on the ball.
 
Regulus Arcturus Black said:
What's clear? That Stones basic defensive feck ups were a team fault? Phil wasn't fecking up week in week out.
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The entire squad has had a precipitous drop in quality over the past 2 seasons, they are a shadow of the team in Martinez' first season - some of it down to bad luck with injuries but when you see that sort of rapid decline, it's not a question of a player losing their ability to play but a coach unable to get the most out of their players. So, yes, absolutely clear that Martinez shoulders considerable blame, hence his exit. Koeman will inject a different sort of mentality and will not tolerate a lack of effort/focus, a real task master
 
KM said:
Well according to Bailly's interview, even Guardiola was interested in him this season and having looked at his style, it's not hard to imagine why. He's pretty good on the ball.
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Even was linked to Barcelona too
 
Kentonio said:
Am I the only one shitting it a bit over this new City team? Everyone seems very calm.. :nervous:
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Shitting it? Over which player exactly?

Stones, Sicknote or Nolito? None are an upgrade on what they already have

City have a very good squad, but the same can be said for a few teams in the Premier League this season.

The special players they have are the same ones that landed them on the same points as us last season.
 
Kentonio said:
Am I the only one shitting it a bit over this new City team? Everyone seems very calm.. :nervous:
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One of the few, probably. Not overly impressed by their options in midfield and defense. The attack is brilliant with a fit Aguero.

With the additions of Sane, Jesus, Stones, a currently injured Gundogan, Zinchenko, and Pep's style of play - it feels like a team that I'll be wary of in 2017-2018, not the coming season.
 
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