Bitter and Blue

City 3 - 2 QPR: Scoring Chance Index

2012-05-17T07:00:18Z

The shot totals from the win over QPR show that City outshot the visitors by a huge margin of 44-3. There is a growing sense however that shot total numbers on their own are of little use and can be very misleading; evidence of this being that only 15 of City's tally of 44 were on target.

One of the areas I have looked at in recent weeks is to devise a Scoring Chance Index (SCI), essentially to define what can be considered as a scoring chance. The background to this with the full definition can be found here.

What the numbers from Sunday showed that was whilst conceding three scoring chances, City (from a total of 44 shots) had 19. Of this total it was interesting to note that 15 came in the second half, with ten over the last 20 minutes and 5 over the last ten minutes.

From an individual perspective, David Silva was the player involved in the most (12), followed by Carlos Tevez (8) and Sergio Aguero (7). With City pushing hard as the game wore on, the contributions of the substitutes was equally telling: Nigel deJong, Edin Dzeko and Mario Balotelli contributing on ten between them (click to enlarge):

And here is the rolling total covering the United, Newcastle and QPR games (click to enlarge):

I'll look forward to expanding this further next season.

Hodgson's Euro 2012 Squad

2012-05-16T16:19:16Z

Newly appointed England manager Roy Hodgson announced his 23-man squad today for the upcoming Euros in Poland & Ukraine. The squad is as follows:

GK: Joe Hart, Robert Green, John Ruddy
DEF: Ashley Cole, Leighton Baines, John Terry, Gary Cahill, Joleon Lescott, Glen Johnson, Phil Jones
MID: Ashley Young, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Theo Walcott, Gareth Barry, Scott Parker, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Stewart Downing
FOR: Jermaine Defoe, Wayne Rooney, Andy Carroll, Danny Welbeck

Obviously it is great to see Hart, Lescott, Milner, and Barry make the squad as they deserve to. However, a number of Hodgson's selections seem puzzling. As far as City goes, Micah Richards and Adam Johnson should probably be there. Stewart Downing has had a nightmare season at Anfield with 0 goals and 0 assists, and yet he's been selected. I have more faith in the Blackburn chicken to patrol the left wing than I do in Downing. 18-year-old Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has also somehow made the team. Others have been calling for Rio Ferdinand, Peter Crouch, and Daniel Sturridge to be included on the list, among others.

England face France, Sweden, and Ukraine in the group stage.
Thoughts? Who do you think doesn't deserve to be on the list, and who do you think got snubbed?
(Do check out the poll after the jump)

Poll

How far do you think England will get at Euro 2012?

Just for Kicks

2012-05-15T22:14:48Z

BosnianBronco's transfer post generated the usual great conversation. It triggered a couple of questions that I hereby put forth to our growing community. I do so 'just for kicks'...

1) Who would you absolutely hate to see leave and why? You can't pick someone like Aguero, Hart, Kompany, Silva or YaYa because barring a tragedy that would make the Greeks wince, those guys aren't going anywhere.

2) Our starting eleven was pretty well established during the last month of the season and by extension, so was our bench. Where does a team of Pantilimon, Kolarov, Kolo Toure, Savic, Richards, Milner, Pizarro, De Jong, Johnson, Balotelli, and Dzeko place in the EPL?

Off Season Activities for City and Co.

2012-05-14T23:43:00Z

The regular season is done and it has been a wonderful season at that with plenty of ups and downs. I think it is time that we look to the off season for potential players during the transfer period. There are a lot of faces that could change this season considering that City will be looking to defend their crown and venture into the European madness.

Our current roster and their value can be found here.

This is going to be a very busy transfer window not just for us but also for our competition in England and Europe respectively.

In England United will be looking to shore up a new and improved squad for title contention next season, they are rumored to be looking to sign the Japanese star from Borrusia Dortmund Shinji Kagawa. Meanwhile expect Berbatov to be unloaded by United to help relieve some of their spending this off season.

Chelsea will be not be retaining Didier Drogba and could potentially lose their defensive rock Ivanovic who they valued roughly £20 million when Madrid came calling. Lackluster Torres has found a late spark with Chelsea as of late and their final against Bayern will determine what other positions they will be going after this off-season. They have been connected to Eden Hazard however it gossip seems to indicate that Eden will be wearing City blue next season.

One of the more interesting teams to follow will be Arsenal. Having lost Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas, they managed to finish a distant 3rd in the EPL. Arsenal will want to persuade Van Persie to stay and his wife had hinted that they are happy in England, Juventus has however already offered a package for Van Persie, £28 million and a weekly salary of £180,000.

Tottenham Hotspur's will have a fight this off season. In my opinion, bigger then Arsenal. Luka Modric had a 'gentelman's agreement' that he would be allowed to leave this past transfer window. Tottenham could be dumped out of the ECC if Chelsea beat Bayern which would cause unrest among their top two stars in Modric and Bale. Edin Dzeko has already tried to lure Modric away from Hotspur by telling him he would enjoy playing for City and that City would be happy to have him.

Newcastle are the new kids on the block and in the same position Tottenham not too long ago. They have a terrific striker duo in Cisse and Demba Ba. Cisse has already appeared to be on Mourinho's wish list and unless Mourinho's fails to attract any other striker he might extend his reach to a player Newcastle desperately need for next season. I don't expect too many teams to raid Newcastle this off season due to their lack of media exposure, however I would be worried for next season if I was a Newcastle supporter if they top this one.

In Europe it is a similar picture with different teams.

Real Madrid will be looking to use striker Higuain as bait for player Mourinho has on his wishlist. As mentioned earlier Mourinho is looking at Ivanovic on defense, he also has a striker wishlist which include Van Persie, Aguero, Dzeko and Cisse among others. Expect Real Madrid to pose a serious threat as usual considering their squad is young and full of talent. At this point all they are doing is adding quality depth.

Barcelona will be coming for revenge. They ended their season on a low note, getting knocked out of the ECC by a stout Chelsea and losing the league title to Real Madrid. Their success depends on their new coach Tito and his ability to carry over Messi's spectacular form. Their outlook looks to be the same as Real Madrid, they have talent flowing out the ears at every level.

Bayern Munich has an extremely strong and under rated squad. Expect many clubs come knocking on the door for striker Mario Gomez. If Gomez leaves for the charm of Real Madrid, I see them replacing Gomez with Higuain or another striker. Edin Dzeko has been mentioned to be in the sights of Bayern however I only expect this if Gomez leaves Germany. They will have to compete with BD to regain the Bundesliga. A tough task if Shinji Kagawa stays with BD.

Juventus could be the busiest European team outside of England this off season. They look to replace Del Piero who has been linked with Arsenal. They are also looking to add attacking force with their recent links to Edin Dzeko. Juventus are also in need of a youth movement. They will be playing in the ECC and not too long ago they were in the second division of Italian football. They need players across the board, not just for depth but key positions such as a creative midfielder and a tall striker for their long ball play.

Which brings us back to City. We have 24 players, so there is room to bring in players without selling too many however there is a lot of dead weight that I think Mancini should take a careful look at. Kolo Toure, Barry and Tevez should be immediate trades. The age and the minimal action of Barry and Kolo Toure respectively are enough for them to move away from City. In the case of Tevez, I have not gotten over how Tevez acted in Munich, the things he said about the city of Manchester, his lack of the English language, his baby like attitude and his lack of impact the last couple of crucial games against Newcastle, United and QPR.

The players I consider on the fringe are de Jong, Milner and Johnson.

Both have not done much to warrant a first team selection. Johnson has been lackluster finding the net only 6 times, the return of Guidetti does not help his cause and Milner has been bumped to the side due to re-emergence of Samir Nasri. Add in the fact that City will boost the midfield position this summer with the possible acquisition of Eden Hazard, there will be very little room for Milner. Nigel de Jong would see a reduced role as well because of the purchase of Hazard which could see Mancini use only Yaya Toure in situations where a defensive midfielder would be needed, Real Madrid have also been looking at de Jong. Nigel is one my favorites so I hope there will be room for him in the future squad.

Edin Dzeko and Balotelli could end up staying with the team due to their efforts in the QPR struggle. One of the two could be pushed out in the end, the likely of the two being Edin Dzeko considering that Bayern Munich, Juventus, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund are all looking at the striker.

Players City are looking at are Eden Hazard, Younes Belhanda, Robin Van Persie, Paul Pogba, Sime Vrsaljko, Javi Martinez and Nicolas Gaitan.

By no means was this article complete, it is very early in the off-season to have enough news and evidence to back up any of these assumptions so hopefully you will all comment below on players you feel should leave and stay, who should be bought and who should be loaned out.

Remember we do have players that might bring in a bit of cash; Adebayor anyone?

City 3 - 2 QPR: Player ratings

2012-05-14T19:14:39Z

My take on the game is here and here are your ratings from the day City won the title...

Hart - little chance with either goal and a largely quiet afternoon. 6.5

Zabaleta - got the vital opening goal and always an option out wide. 7

Kompany - a very quiet afternoon but good composure on the ball. 7

Lescott - huge sigh of relief after his error looked to have been so costly. 5

Clichy - a threat in the attacking game but lost Mackie for QPR's second - 5

Barry - restricted role with the injury of Yaya Toure. Sacrificed for attack late on - 6.5

Yaya Toure - afternoon cut short through injury but had a hand in the opening goal - 6.5

Silva - a little wasteful in possession but delivered the important corner for the equaliser - 7

Nasri - worked hard for little reward but an important part of the midfield - 7

Tevez - plenty of effort but struggled to impact in front of goal - 6.5

Aguero - energetic display and capped a fine debut season with that goal - 8

Subs:

de Jong - brought on with Yaya Toure's injury and slotted in well - 7

Dzeko - important header to spark hope for City - 7

Balotelli - played a huge part in Aguero's winner with some persistent play - 7

City 3 - 2 QPR: Champions in dramatic fashion

2012-05-14T19:03:06Z

Perhaps if there was ever a game to encapsulate the forty-four years since the previous League triumph then that was it. All of the emotions, hopes and frustrations, joys and tears captured within ninety (ok, ninety-five) minutes that saw City's fortunes alter as wildly as their fans heart rates.

A game that was gone, clawed back and then won, as dramatically as any, with the crack of Sergio Aguero's right boot reverberating around the Premier League and beyond.

A finale to stand up there with the best of them. An ending that confounded all who saw it. A spectacle that drained every last drop of emotion from the souls of fans who must have believed they had seen it all in following City down the years.

As for the game itself: City, after such dominance at The Etihad all season, were a shadow of the side of late. A combination of the occasion and some disciplined defending from QPR resulted in surely the worst home display of the season. Mindful perhaps of City's struggles at times away from home, Mark Hughes set QPR up to frustrate. Men behind the ball, defending as a unit and restricting space and time for City to create resulted in a nervy start as they failed to settle and couldn't find a way to threaten and news filtered through from the Stadium of Light that Wayne Rooney had scored. Advantage United.

But City had the lead at the break. Yaya Toure (soon to hobble off) and Sergio Aguero exchanged passes and played in Pablo Zabaleta, whose tame shot slipped through the grasp of Paddy Kenny and the ball edged over the line. Advantage City.

We all know how the numbers favour City when both opening the scoring and leading at half time. If there was ever a day for it to not follow the pattern this was not to be it but barely two minutes into the second half an uncharacteristic mistake from Joleon Lescott let in Djibril Cisse to stun the crowd into silence. Advantage United.

Worse was to come though. The Joey Barton sending off hardly benefited City. If anything, facing ten men seemed to heap pressure on to City; as if weighted down even further by expectation. A rare foray forward caught City out and Traore's cross found an unmarked Jamie Mackie to head powerfully home and put the visitors ahead.

City were fast running out ideas. They dominated possession and territory but found no way through, despite getting off an astonishing 44 shots. On came Edin Dzeko and Mario Balotelli to no real avail as City's attack bore an increasingly desperate look, but as the fourth official hoisted the board showing five minutes added time there was one final surge to lift the growing air of dejection. Finally, after so many poor deliveries David Silva found the head of Dzeko. 2-2. False hope or genuine optimism? News filtered through from Sunderland that United had won; another goal was needed.

With QPR defending so deeply with no real outlet there was always likely to be one last, final chance. The fact that it fell to Sergio Aguero was fortunate; the finish was not. A touch to take the ball away from Nedum Onouha and steady himself but the shot, fired with clinical precision to spark celebrations to rival the iconic images of Paul Dickov et al.

Advantage City; this time it would not be lost.

‘Untold damage' was awaited City if they had failed to the final hurdle. The ramifications of that don't bear thinking about but this it was triumph, not failure that was achieved and in the aftermath of the most dramatic of title wins it is now the possibilities that are untold.

Live Stream: Trophy Parade

2012-05-14T18:44:09Z

Live Stream: Trophy Parade

Take a moment or two out of your work day to watch City's Trophy Parade through Manchester live on the MCFC website

Where the League Was Won

2012-05-13T19:33:41Z

Manchester City are Premier League champions for the first time in their history and champions of England for only the third time in history after a dramatic 3-2 victory over Queens Park Rangers at the Etihad today.

Roberto Mancini successfully guided the blue half of Manchester to their first English top flight crown since 1968 and here are some of the key moments during the 2011/12 that lead them on their way:

Key Wins:

Manchester City 3-2 Queens Park Rangers – 13 May 2012

The final whistle had been blown at the Stadium of Light with Manchester City trailing Queens Park Rangers 2-1. Many United fans were celebrating what they thought would be a 13th Premier League crown. With the game in stoppage time at the Etihad, the league was set for its most dramatic ending.

Edin Dzeko headed home Manchester City's equaliser in the second minute of stoppage time. An additional 5 minutes were added on; some of that contributed by Joey Barton was his sending off and delay leaving the pitch. And in the fourth minute of that, a grounded Mario Balotelli managed to poke the ball through to Sergio Aguero to create history. The Argentine smashed home the goal that will go down in Manchester City folklore and that caused an eruption at the Etihad.

Manchester City 1-0 Arsenal – 18 December 2011

Arsenal came into this game winning 7 of their last 8 Premier League games after a dreadful start to the season. Arsene Wenger's side were moving up the table and now on the edge of a Champions League place; 5 points behind their bitter rivals Tottenham.

In what was a close game, David Silva scored the deciding goal in this game early into the second half afterWojciech Szczesny failed to hold onto Mario Balotelli's shot. Samir Nasri caused his former side problems in midfield, whilst Joe Hart was forced into half a dozen saves to keep 1 of his 17 clean sheets of the season as Manchester City maintained a 2 point lead over Manchester United a week before Christmas.

Manchester City 3-2 Tottenham Hotspur – 22 January 2012

Tottenham Hotspur had lost 1 of their last 19 Premier League games heading into this clash at the Etihad, winning 14 games during this spell. Some pundits were taking Harry Redknapp's side as a genuine title contender; 5 points behind leaders City prior to this game.

Manchester City had won all 10 home Premier League games up to this point, and 15 in a row since drawing 1-1 at home to Fulham last season. After a goalless first half, Samir Nasri and Joleon Lescott put the home side 2-0 up before the hour. From nowhere, Jermain Defoe and Gareth Bale had pegged back the league leaders. In stoppage time Gareth Bale pulled away down the left wing with an opportunity to square the ball to an unmarked Jermain Defoe in the 6 yard box. The England forward narrowly failed to make full contact at the back post and City survived. Then, Mario Balotelli was hauled down inside the penalty area by Ledley King as the striker attempted to latch onto a hopeful long ball. The controversial Italian stepped up to convert the penalty and ensure a valuable 3 points for the Citizens.

Manchester City 2-1 Chelsea – 21 March 2012

Manchester United had a 4-point lead at the top of the Premier League prior to the Wednesday night game. Chelsea were experiencing new life under caretaker manager Roberto Di Matteo, winning all 4 of his games in charge leading up to this game.

After a dull first half, Gary Cahill made the breakthrough on the hour with a deflected effort. Roberto Mancini made the brave decision to bring on Carlos Tevez for Nigel de Jong midway through the second half, still trailing 1-0. Sergio Aguero equalised from the penalty spot with 12 minutes remaining following Pablo Zabaleta's shot that struck the hand of Michael Essien. With 5 minutes remaining, Carlos Tevez produced a moment of magic to flick Samir Nasri in on goal who coolly finished to narrow United's lead to a 1 point lead with 9 games remaining.

Newcastle United 0-2 Manchester City – 6 May 2012

Roberto Mancini had been insisting for weeks that the title race was over for Manchester City, even heading into the final two games of the season, topping the league with a significant lead in the goal difference column. Newcastle United overachieved this season and a victory on Sunday would have put them into the top 4 and the potential of a Champions League appearance next season heading into the final game.

Instead, Manchester City would go on to win and all-but-seal the Premier League title for the first time in their history. Stalemate on the hour, Roberto Mancini made the first substitution of the game, bringing on the defensive Nigel de Jong for the attacking Samir Nasri. The change allowed Yaya Toure to push forward. Manchester City fans can now embrace it as the title-winning substitution as the Ivorian scored both goals on their way to 3 points.

Notable Manchester United Losses

Manchester United 2-3 Blackburn Rovers – 31 December 2011

A goalless draw at West Brom on Boxing Day for City allowed Manchester United to head into 2012 top of the Premier League by picking up at least 1 point at home to bottom of the league Blackburn Rovers. A formality, right?

Yakubu's penalty was the only goal of the first half, but the Nigerian striker doubled Rovers' shock lead at Old Trafford early into the second half. After a brace from Dimitar Berbatov to bring United level on 62 minutes, we were all expecting the standard home victory in the final half hour. Sir Alex Ferguson's side failed to break down a battling Blackburn side who then had the cheek to take all 3 points home with them when Grant Hanley nodded home a winner from close range in the final 10 minutes following another gaff from David de Gea.

Newcastle United 3-0 Manchester United – 4 January 2012

Following their defeat on New Year's Eve to Blackburn, Manchester United were expected to hit back on their trip to Newcastle. At this stage Newcastle were a top half side, although below Liverpool and not taken seriously for a Champions League position.

Pundits started taking note of Alan Pardew's side when they hammered Manchester United to start 2012. Demba Ba scored a goal of the month candidate to give the Magpies a 1-0 half time lead. Minutes in the second half, Yohan Cabaye excellently dispatched a long range free kick to double Newcastle's lead. In the final minute, a blunder fromPhil Jones made it 3, leaving City with a 3-point lead over their rivals to start the new year.

Wigan Athletic 1-0 Manchester United – 11 April 2012

Following Mikel Arteta's late strike at the Emirates to down City, Manchester United went into a Wednesday night trip to the DW Stadium with an 8 point lead with just 6 games to go. The Premier League leaders had won 8 in a row coming into this midweek fixture. The hosts themselves had started to see a turn in form, picking up 7 points in the 4 games prior to this.

Manchester United never got out the blocks and were fortunate not to be behind when Victor Moses header was harshly ruled out. Wigan did get the breakthrough early in the second half when Shaun Maloney collected the ball on the edge of United's penalty area from a corner before masterly curling the ball into David de Gea's far corner. Danny Welbeck's feeble effort in the second half was the only save Ali Al-Habsi was forced to make all game.

Manchester United 4-4 Everton – 22 April 2012

Manchester United's last game before their trip to the Etihad. A 5-point lead over City going into the weekend, facing a side they had beaten in 15 of their last 18 Premier League meetings at Old Trafford.

Having fallen behind to Nikica Jelavic's goal, Manchester United came back to lead 3-1 and 4-2 and on course for their eighth successive Premier League game at Old Trafford in 2012. That was until Everton pulled off a surprise comeback in the final 7 minutes, aided by some poor Manchester United defending. Rio Ferdinand was caught ball-watching as Nikica Jelavic scored his second of the game before Steven Pienaar's dramatic equaliser. Ferdinand had a thumping left-footed drive tipped over the bar late on, ultimately failing to restore United's lead.

Head-to-Head

Manchester United 1-6 Manchester City – 23 October 2011

Manchester City came to Old Trafford with a 2 point lead and a goal difference better by 2 over their local neighbours ahead of Sunday's game. Two months earlier City had blown a 2-goal lead to lose the Community Shield 3-2 at Wembley. If there was any doubts over Roberto Mancini's side's credentials for Premier League champions, this match made everyone take note.

Mario Balotelli opened the scoring midway through the first half, revealing his infamous shirt in celebration. The Italian was then on the end of a last ditch challenge from Jonny Evans at the start of the second half that would see the Northern Irish centre back dismissed. Balotelli went on to add a second and Sergio Aguero a third before Darren Fletcher's consolation. As Manchester United pushed forward in the dying moments of the game, City added 3 more from the 90th minute onwards; a brace from Edin Dzeko either side of a strike from David Silva.

Manchester City 1-0 Manchester United – 30 April 2012

Following Manchester United's draw at home to Everton the week before, this setup the biggest Manchester derby of all time. The pre-season league favourites came to the Etihad with a 3-point lead but an inferior goal difference.

Manchester United played a negative formation for their Monday night trip. In-form Antonio Valencia was left out whilst both Park Ji-Sung and Chris Smalling made their first starts in months. The result: Manchester United failed to force a single save out of Joe Hart and Vincent Kompany's goal in first half stoppage time, helped by Carlos Tevez shielding David de Gea sent the Citizens to the top of the Premier League with 2 games remaining. A fortnight later and Manchester City are now the Premier League champions for the first time in history.

Written by Barrie from PremiershipTips.com