Guardiola to MCFC

[Apollos]

I'll admit I'm mostly an innocent bystander when it comes to European football, but I try to keep up with news and comings and goings in the Barclays, at a minimum. Ending weeks of speculation today Man City announced that legendary (I think it's ok to call him that already, right? At least hyper successful) manager Pep Guardiola would be joining MCFC to begin the 2016-17 campaign replacing the largely successful Manuel Pelligrini. I know we have one big MC fan among us so I'd be interested to get Nigel's take on this especially given some of the recent rumors that he could end up at Man U (or Chelsea).

[Simon]

I dont like MC and i never really liked Guardiola either, maybe because im Real Madrid fan
For me his Barca was very boring to watch. I liked Bayern only because of Lewandowski

Anyway with virtually infinite amount of money at his disposal, Guardiola probably gonna win there rather sooner than later. Especially with United and Chelsea being in crisis. And im sure Arsenal is never going to win with Wenger at the helm

[Nigel]

The City project moves on ..... Mancini was revered by the fans for his passion, Pelligrini will be forever known for his quiet class and Pep ....?

Having established a squad that regularly enters the business end of the season still in the running for all four trophies it's now up to Pep to weave his magic and turn City into a squad that picks up these trophies.

Mancini started the ball rolling with our first trophy since 1976 and our first title in 44 years but things were always at boiling point typified by Tevez refusing to come on in Munich ( I was there but from the fifth tier where they stuck us we couldn't see the drama) and going awol for several months.

Pelligrini came and delivered calm to the squad and another two trophies in his first season. He has shown his honest quiet class and authority throughout his three years but the knock on him is that he is very rigid in his thinking. His substitutions are often predictable, he has no Plan B if things aren't going well and his tactics are perceived to be exposed in European competition. That said as we enter the final stages of this season we are still in contention for all four trophies and there has been no call for his replacement but when the perceived best manager in the world becomes available you have to be in the market and we have been in contact with him since 2012.

Pep will be expected to smooth off the rough edges, organise the team to be more flexible in tactics and integrate the first graduates from our newly rebuilt academy. All the other teams are now at pains to point out that at his previous two successful spells at Barca & Bayern he inherited successful sides which to some extent has a smidgen of truth.

Chelsea were never really in the running despite the London media trumpeting his fit for them. Abramovich likes to meddle in team affairs far more than Pep would ever continence. He has had running battles this season with the Bayern management over supposed interference prompting him to declare he was off at the end of the season. Utd perhaps had a better chance, they are darlings of the media and the journos did there bit with many a pleading stories but Utd are in a tailspin. The Glaziers are busy racking up their debt in the background by taking money out, vast amounts of money thrown at the team over the last few years hasn't really addressed the main failings of the team and they are slowly sliding backwards. It would take a vast effort to turn them into a European giant again while City are on the up and now require perhaps only more inventive tactics and a few tweaks to realistically turn them into serious Champions League contenders. It certainly will be interesting times going forward.

Simon, I was at the Bernabéu the night City led 2-1 with five minutes left but as with a lot of Mancini's European games we failed to play sensibly at the death and lost 3-2. We were all there at the same height as the big clock at the far end to us willing it to speed up but it wasn't to be

[Borealis]

Looks as good a place as any, but Nigel has to be drinking it up hard in Gay Paris tonight with the nice 2-2 draw at Paris for Man City . Two goals on the road is always golden!

[Nigel]

It was a great few days in Paris, that's me with the Santa Claus beard lol

[Borealis]

Nice...

[Leones]

Nice...

Nice indeed! Beer you can see through though? The horror!

[Nigel]

It is 6.8% Belgian beer Patrick, the French don't really make any decent beer themselves