So it’s off the Etihad Stadium where once again my expectations are dragging along the floor somewhere and all I ask for, like last week, is effort, application and commitment. If we manage that then, again like last week, we may find ourselves pleasantly surprised.
I don’t want to delve into recent history too much as I’ll cover that later on but suffice to say it’s been woeful against Manchester City. We can put up fights against Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal yet for some unknown reason we always seem to just roll over for City and with the talent an oil baron can fill a football team with that isn’t a good combination.
But Manuel Pellegrini’s are not proving to be infallible. They started off the season like a dog out the traps but they have hit a rocky patch in recent weeks and haven;t exactly set the house on fire in the Champions League. Not that the Champions League bothers us, or is likely to bother us, anytime soon!
Manchester City:
Yaya Toure, Vincent Kompany, Samir Nasri, Gael Clichy and Fabian Delph are all absent through various injuries for the home side. However it’s not all bad news as Wilfried Bony, Kelechi Iheanacho and Eliaquim Mangala are expected to return to the side following recent spells on the sidelines.
Newcastle:
Jack Colback is nursing a calf injury and may be forced to sit this one out. Cheik Tiote could cover for him after a return to fitness.
Gabriel Obertan, Rolando Aarons and Massadio Haidara are all out so Kevin Mbabu is likely to earn a second Premier League appearance following an impressive debut last weekend. Steven Taylor, Paul Dummett, Emmanuel Riviere and Sylvain Marveaux are also out although the latter is edging closer to a return to fitness after some reserve appearances.
Previously…
You have to go back to February 2001 to locate our last league victory at Manchester City – a 1-0 win courtesy of an Alan Shearer goal – and we’ve failed to even draw since the 2006/2007 season. Having said that we did win in the League Cup there last season but our last three trips to the Etihad have seen us lose 4-0 twice and 5-0 on the other occasion.
There have been 164 matches between the two sides in all competitions and the record is pretty even to be fair with United just edging it with 67 wins compared to 61 for City.
Stats and facts…
Newcastle are the only side in the entire football league not to have scored a goal away from home this season.
United need to win today to avoid our worst ever start to the season in the Premier League era.
Manchester City have lost successive league games, having previously won a club record 11 matches in a row. They last lost three consecutive league matches back in November 2008.
City are unbeaten in 17 league meetings with Newcastle (W15, D2), their longest-ever run without defeat against a single opponent in the Premier League.
Final thought…
Hope is in short supply from me today and I fear the worst. City can tear any team apart on their day let alone a team that is still trying to find out if it has legs let alone finding its feet. I suspect we’ll be discussing another defeat come the full-time whistle, and with an international break to ponder it over following the game the mood looks unlikely to improve.
Team news:
Manchester City: Joe Hart, Pablo Zabaleta, Nicolas Otamendi, Eliaquim Mangala, Aleksandar Kolarov, Fernando, Fernandinho, David Silva, Raheem Sterling, Kevin De Bruyne, Sergio Aguero
Subs: Willy Caballero, Martin Demichelis, Bacary Sagna, Manuel Garcia, Jesus Navas, Wifried Bony, Kelechi Iheanacho
Newcastle: Tim Krul, Daryl Janmaat, Chancel Mbemba, Fabricio Coloccini, Kevin Mbabu, Moussa Sissoko, Yoan Gouffran, Vurnon Anita, Gerginio Wijnaldum, Ayoze Perez, Aleksandar Mitrovic
Subs: Rob Elliot, Jamaal Lascelles, Mike Williamson, Cheik Tiote, Florian Thauvin, Siem de Jong, Papiss Cissé
Stop the world, I want to get off! Gouffran is our back up centre midfield! What a joke!
Stuart79(Quote)
Thankyou Toonsy. I agree, I’m not too full of hope either but like you I just wanna see commitment and a desire to fight for the cause. Still think had Mitro stayed on last week we’d have taken the 3 points, but someone on the blog said he was taken off cause he had cramp which is fair enough. Pity as we were all over them for most of the game.
Palace just got the breakthrough 1 up, Pardews having fun at palace isn’t he.
kimtoon(Quote)
Stu, isn’t that a bit out of position for Goofs? thought he was a more of a forward MF / winger tbh.
kimtoon(Quote)
Glad it’s Perez and Mitro especially as Mitro has just been on Soccer Saturday saying how they understand each other so well.
kimtoon(Quote)
The only good thing about Gouffran is he can run all day. Not expecting anything though.
georgio(Quote)
This is a good watch, and a good PR move by the club – try to shake this thought that Mitrovic is an angry, aggressive young man
http://mobile.newsnow.co.uk/A/795511946?-11058:809
I really like the lad. We’ve had players like that before in Bowyer & Bellaz who were a bit gritty and walked that disciplinary line most games. I can wait to see the reaction from him when he gets his first goal though 😆
Sharpy17(Quote)
The addition of Gouffran will either be a master stroke or will fail miserably. Our midfield looks very light weight against the likes of Toure and Fernandinho – particularly with Tiote on the bench.
Personally I hope this set up –
——————– Krul ———————-
Janmaat – Mbemba – Colo – Mbabu
—— Sissoko – Gini – Anita ——–
—— Gouffran ———– Perez ——
————— Mitrovic ———————
Sharpy17(Quote)
Any links?
kimtoon(Quote)
http://firstrows.org/soccer/manchester-city-vs-newcastle-united-frs11adeb
georgio(Quote)
Their front 4 look awesome!
georgio(Quote)
http://livefootylive2.blogspot.co.uk/
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Howay the Lads
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
http://premier-league-lives.net/live/manchester-city-live-stream/channel-1/
kimtoon(Quote)
Not one single British player on the pitch for us today
kimtoon(Quote)
Kim, give the “ability” of most of the british lads we have, can’t say I’m too bothered.
Newkie(Quote)
jesus what a mess that was
kimtoon(Quote)
its quite staggering how quickly we manage to turn attack in the final third, into defence in our own box.
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Scum 1.0 up 👿
kimtoon(Quote)
that nearly worked 🙄
kimtoon(Quote)
well done Mbemba
kimtoon(Quote)
You beauty
Newkie(Quote)
Get innnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn
kimtoon(Quote)
Get in lad 😀 😀 😀
Big Dave(Quote)
great goal 😛 😛 😛
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Gini and Mitro have already taken flack from fans this season so nice to see what they can do together, class move.
Great work from Mbabu too.
Newkie(Quote)
How good was mbabu in the build up to that goal, intelligent play
kimtoon(Quote)
good for the fans to have something to sing about for a change
happy days
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Unbelievable!
Stuart79(Quote)
Bloody commentators it’s all about how **** the city cb pair are , no credit for a well crafted Toon goal
Scum 2.0 up 😯
kimtoon(Quote)
Fancy us for a second here 😀
kimtoon(Quote)
We should be a couple of goals up 😯
toonsy(Quote)
****, Janmaat has been one of our best players so far. Typical.
Newkie(Quote)
Toonsy, 3 up I reckon
kimtoon(Quote)
Uh oh.
Shamrock(Quote)
**** off back to between the ppsts Hart you bellend
Newkie(Quote)
Phew. Playing very well so far.
Shamrock(Quote)
least it ain’t a red, makes a pleasant change for us
kimtoon(Quote)
Tiote or Mitro would have been off for that. Can’t see Anita being allowed any niggles now.
Newkie(Quote)
defo need a second, sooner rather than later
kimtoon(Quote)
Mbabu is ace.
Shamrock(Quote)
Ah well, nice while it lasted.
Newkie(Quote)
too easy really and it was coming
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Shocking defending though has to be said
Newkie(Quote)
******.
Have just got in and was just about to ask if we were good for the lead.
Typical
You Yew(Quote)
Bollocks!! Bad time to concede just before half time!!
Sharpy17(Quote)
looked offside at first
kimtoon(Quote)
scum 2.1 now
kimtoon(Quote)
We have to maintain our confidence from this first half though. We’ve done really well IMO. Don’t concede in the first 10mins of the 2nd half, and I reckon we could still come away from this game with something
Sharpy17(Quote)
good first half but we should of capitalised on our chances, could be 3.0 up, need to be much more ruthless.
kimtoon(Quote)
City are very shakey without Kompany, we have to get at them as much as possible.
kimtoon(Quote)
we could and should have been 2 up before they equalised
Must keep working hard for the 2nd half now.
so far we are worthy of something from this match.
Hope they don’t blow it
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Great to see Mitrovic & Perez walking off in deep discussion. They both are playing with a fire in their bellies and have the City defence running scared today – Hart kept us out.
City’s front 4 are world class though so should be an interesting 2nd half. Pleased Mitrovic has that goal out the way now as well.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Great so far. I thought our disallowed goal should’ve stood… If we keep this up in the second half we have a chance
Dubai-Toon(Quote)
Did look a little offside Kim.
I’m guessing it was def not as there’s been no real discussion on it.
Will wait to see a decent replay I guess
You Yew(Quote)
We’ll probably lose but whatever happens I’m impressed – we look a good team. Silva has got to be the best player in the league though.
georgio(Quote)
Yeah even if we do go on to lose I’m heartened by what I’ve seen against Chelsea and so far today. We can cause problems for teams playing with this formation
toonsy(Quote)
Poor goal to concede
kimtoon(Quote)
Sigh
Newkie(Quote)
Mbemba mistake but horrible deflection
georgio(Quote)
And now we collapse and the flood gates opening. Fucking pathetic.
Newkie(Quote)
ffs, falling apart now
kimtoon(Quote)
Wow.
I need a new swear word for that shambles
You Yew(Quote)
ffs
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Game over
georgio(Quote)
where the eff was colo dogshit
game over
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
Bollocks!! Exactly what I didn’t want to happen – concede in the first 10mins of the 2nd half!!
Never say never but a real up hill battle now to get something from this one.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Jesus Christ embarrassing now
kimtoon(Quote)
flood gates opened 👿 👿
Big Dave(Quote)
wtf
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
**** right off!! Concentration of school kids. 👿
Sharpy17(Quote)
Hard to believe
georgio(Quote)
sissoko looking for a way out
no heart that lad
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)
From taking it to them first half to the usual fecking circus second half. I wouldn’t mind but they are **** at the back and we really should of been 2 or 3 up 1st half 👿
kimtoon(Quote)
Tooonsy@56 – aye, can cause problems for ourselves 😆
We just need to attack against the lesser sides because no matter how much we seem to focus on training our defence, we can’t hack it and regularly collapse. We have to go all out to beat the mackems or we are gone before christmas.
Newkie(Quote)
get up
its just a knock ffs
Beardsleys Boots(Quote)