Man City.... Are you worried?

[olgitgooner]

Man City are the new Chelsea.

Throw ridiculous, obscene amounts of money at a B list club. That club will become A list. And will purchase silverware.

The Chelsea project didn't produce results overnight. I don't think the Man City project will produce immediate results, either.

They have a few major obstacles to overcome.

The current manager is probably not good enough at a technical level.

They have players who are there purely for financial gain. Motivation may be a problem.

They have Adebayor. Lazy *word censored*. Disruptive influence. Already mouthing off and saying what he thinks his manager should do. And forever running into offside positions, if he can be arsed to run at all.

On the plus side, they have some extremely talented players. And they have a powerhouse by the name of Tevez.

Give them two or three years. They will be a real force.

[Number 5]

I would rather have Clichy and Arshavin!

I wouldn't. AA is wasted out there. Clichy and Rosicky would kill it. AA has to move central to have his biggest impact.

You wouldnt rather have Clichy and Arshavin aheasd of Bridge and Petrov? thats silly talk!

I do tend to agree that Rosicky should be used on left side if possible and arshavin off the forward but given the choice of clichy and arshavin or bridge and petrov...there is only one winner!

No I didn't mean that. All civilised I'm going to put it down to lost in translation. I meant AA and GC isn't what I'd like us to see line up with. Albeit, that combo would kill most right backs. TR and GC would fuck them all up. AA spots a pass that is wasted on the wing. I've been trying to point it out to my boy every Saturday. He's getting there.

But still, that guy Petrov. He's a dream team steal this year if injury free. Quality, quality player

[Bergkamp-Genius]

There has been a lot of talk on here recently about Man City and how they will be the main threat to our top four spot in the coming season...just want to see who is actually worried about them overtaking us?

Personally i'm not worried in the slightest, yes they have bought a few 'superstars' and splashed a lot of money around but...

I'm not too sure they know what they are doing?

They have got so many striking options that it will be impossible to keep them all happy, especially when you have characters as large as Adebayor, Robinho, Bellamy and Tevez amongst them, how will they react to a few games out of the side?

Everyone is raving about Barry, i am not so sure he is as good as everyone makes out, i put him in the over rated category with Downing.

There manager doesn't have the capabilities to handle a team with all these players, i really dont think he will get them playing or find a formation to suit them, the way he has flooded the squad with forwards and no defenders is a sign he doesnt know what he is doing!

anyway, im not worried about them, and i dont think they will reach the top four, a few early season bad results and watch it all explode between players, owners and management! Especially When we Razz them early on!!

Come on you Gunners!!

I'm not worried about them i'm worried about us, our biggest danger is not other teams it's ourselves, we are commiting a slow suicide through bad decisions and lack of investment where it matters, on the pitch.

If you look at Citehs squad it's just as strong as ours if not stronger and no doubt there is still more to come this summer and then again in January, our only saving grace will be the fact that Hughes won't be able to get the best of them on a regular basis, but even if by some miracle he is still with them after Xmas i wouldn't bet against them finishing above us.

I don't see anyone raving about Barry, he's a good player and many have said so, but we are comparing him to what we have and compared to what we have he is quality.

Your last paragraph applies to us aswell, if there is no real investment in the team in the next few weeks and we start badly i wouldn't like to be in Wengers shoes or the players, because the backlash from the fans will be of Newcastle like proportions and it will have a knock on effect on the confidence of our already fragile players and expose the underlying lack of unity within our squad.

[mrgnu1958]

City?
No way jose.

[donaldo]

The team i am worried about is Arsenal.We are 3 weeks away from the start of the season and we have made one signing.The DM we have lacked since Flamini left has not been signed.We are told by the manager that Eduardo and Rosicknote are like "new signings".

If we go into the season with the squad we have now with no additions we may finish 4th but thats all.We are still 3 players short of being contenders.For some reason i thought stubborn Wenger would learn the lessons from last season but the signs so far have not been good.
Why havent we signd Huntelaar yet???

[TeeCee]

a bunch of players who have basically jumped ship to Man City for a massive pay rise?

Unlike the bunch of youngsters who have joined Arsenal for massive wages compared to other clubs??


Let's be honest, City are a threat, they have to be with the players they now have, look at their 1st team -

Given
Onuoha Richards Dunne (or Kolo or Terry) Bridge

Wright Phillips De Jong Ireland Petrov

Robinho Anyone of 5 others

On paper that's a pretty decent team, even more so if they get Kolo or Terry. They do suffer from little cover except up front, but if most of them stay fit, they will be a threat (as we could be if all our players stayed fit)

I think people are rating our chances way too highly. We do not have a consistent high scoring striker - RVP could be if he stays fit all season but it's a pretty big 'if'. We have a weak midfield from a 'defensive' point of view and our defense itself is extremely suspect against big players/balls into the box! Yeah it looks bright for this season don't it
I thought we'd struggle for 4th last season but I can see us not qualifying for the CL this year UNLESS he buys quality quickly - that means Huntelaar and a good DM.

[LeftfootlegendGooner]

Quick question Swale.

Forget the team name.

We're playing, in a one off game a side the has, Robinho, Santa Cruz, Barry, De Jong, Given, Bridge, Petrov

To a lesser level, Ireland and Richards.

That team deserves respect don't it? That team cannot be under estimated.

lesser level? wasn't he their player of the season, i rate ireland and would like to see him at arsenal although he does tell a few porkies

[Boringsidewayspassing]

I voted no. Hughes did a great job with Wales but i don't think he's got it in his locker to take them past us this term. Johnson coming back from injury is a big plus for City though, he's a better player than Denilson and Song, and he's more effective than Diaby. Ditto Stephen Ireland.

Arsenal will probably maintain their place in the top four this season although we are under serious threat, due in a large part because the board [b]choose[/b] to under-invest in the squad. If Arshavin gets injured for any length of time then we will be in huge trouble.

[Ted B]

Anyone know where to find odds on City not making the top four this season?

I found 1/6 on them winning fuck all says it all.

[Kevinho]

Of course you have to be worried about City, especially if they get quality defenders to go with their new strikers.

We still have not bought the tough, ball-winning CM we desperately need and if we go into this season without him, we will have to seriously look at City.

[Magic Hat]

If they strengthen the defense to an adequate standard (ie not Toure and Lescott), could be a threat. At the moment, no due to poor defense and just wonder if Mark Hughes has the quality to break the top four even with huge funds.

[g88ner]

I think we SHOULD be worried about Citeh.

I don't really think they'll finish in the top four this season, but they've probably not finished spending yet, and as Magic Hat said... if they improve their defence, they could be a threat.

Anyway, regardless of what Swale and co. say, I bet we all keep an eye on Citeh's results in the early weeks of the season, just to size them up and see what they may, or may not, be capable of!

[REB]

of course we have to be worried, do people not remember chelsea

not that long ago they were a middle of the table team but for the last 6-7 seasons have been top 3 with money backing them up

man city will be the same

[Lost_Gooner]

of course we have to be worried, do people not remember chelsea

not that long ago they were a middle of the table team but for the last 6-7 seasons have been top 3 with money backing them up

man city will be the same

nail on the head.

[DB10GOONER]

And this fucking rubbish that Rosicky will be like a new signing is pissing me off. Rosicky hasn't played a COMPETITIVE game in nearly 2 years. He is going to pick up knock after knock and a good few of those bastardhole "niggling" injuries throughout this coming season as his body readjusts to the rigours the top flight. That is only natural.

Anyone that is getting excited about Rosicky's return and the possibility of him having a huge impact on this season is going to be sorely disappointed.