Eating humble pie through gritted teeth is hard enough, but imagine having to masticate on a stunning master-class performance from a Manchester City team you love to hate!
Stupendous City! Players and fans celebrate KDB’s winner.
As City served up a sumptuous slice of total football delight, palatable to all but the sourest of rivals, it must have tasted oh so bitter to the likes of Lineker, Shearer, Ferdinand, Gerrard, Humphrey, BT, Match of The Day, Sky, Talkshite and the rest of the putrid pundits and mass media.
On the flip side, City fans could savour the win throughout the two-week international break.
Sublime – City inflicted a 1-0 ‘massacre’ on the Premier League champions, with the narrow margin of victory not reflecting City’s superiority.
Difficult to swallow for those who loathe and detest what City have brought to the table in recent years, this was arguably their sweetest and most sublime offering – certainly of the Pep Guardiola era – as they systematically devoured every last morsel of Chelsea’s status as Champions of England.
Missing – Sergio and Sideshow Bob were absent during City’s 1-0 triumph at Stamford Bridge, but Aguero would’ve loved watching his team mates win.
Deprived of Aguero, Kompany and Mendy, City were widely regarded as the underdogs going into the game, but all the pre-match predictions, including a ‘…solid 2-0 home win’ or a damning, ‘…City haven’t been tested so far this season and will buckle under the threat of Hazard,’ were made to sound rather silly.
Even in mid-match commentary Match of The Day’s, Jonathan Pearce – he who knows everything about nothing – came up with an absolute pearler, claiming City’s Kevin De Bruyne was ‘…having a quiet game.’
Apparently match winner De Bruyne had a ‘quiet game’ according to the BBC. Imagine what will happen when KDB pumps up the volume! Bespoke graphic courtesy of Stiz of our BlueRoom sponsors.
What’s Pearce’s idea of loud?
Equally as daft was Antonio Conte’s gem that his players were suffering fatigue after doing their job in Madrid on Wednesday night, taking a two-hour flight in First Class from Spain, and then being asked to do their job again, 72-hours later.
Conte’s words started doing the rounds in the wake of Chelsea’s magnificent 2-1 last minute win over Atletico Madrid. The Italian was obviously keen to get his excuses in early.
Clueless Conte – Chelsea had no answer to Pep Guardiola’s perfectly executed game plan.
Maybe Conte didn’t get the memo about big teams playing every three days or so – it’s easy to overlook the fact when you’ve coasted through a domestic season with no European distractions and very few first team injuries.
Sarcasm and irony apart, this was a stupendous show from City completely deserving of the football cliché that the opposition were ‘murdered 1-0’.
Vanquished – Morata, Conte and Chelsea couldn’t live with City’s brilliance.
From back to front, left to right and everything in between, City dominated with pace, precision and a relentless high pressing, archetypal Pep Guardiola game.
There’s lies, damned lies and statistics but the only number that belied the occasion was City scoring just a solitary goal.
With 62% possession, 17 shots compared to Chelsea’s 4 and De Bruyne’s howitzer of a winner, City’s show of strength must’ve been terrifying for the rest of the Premier League.
Unlucky 13 – Courtois takes the knee as KDB and Danilo celebrate City’s goal.
Remarkably, it was Guardiola’s first win over Chelsea in eight attempts (excluding penalty shootouts) somewhat surprising given his Barcelona and Bayern Munich pedigree.
The Bayern-Chelsea connection has also been evident recently when ex-Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti was sacked by the German champions, having previously been fired from Stamford Bridge.
The Bayern Munich job is supposed to be easy – Pep made it look that way, but try telling Carlo Ancelotti.
Strange that Munich should get rid of a manager, after all aren’t we always told Pep was a fraud in Bavaria, all he had to do was turn up, wear lederhosen, wield a beer stein and he’d win the Bundesliga three times on the trot?
Trophy wise, Guardiola has won diddly-squat in England after managing 45 Premier League games. It’d take a brave/foolish man to bet that situation will remain after the Catalan genius has presided over 76 top flight English matches.
World Class – Pep and KDB.
The straw-clutchers will point to Pep’s 10 game winning start last season and the subsequent downturn in results, but there’s a huge difference. This is now Pep’s team, not the ageing and jaded corps of players he inherited from Manuel Pellegrini.
City’s excellent summer recruitment drive and Guardiola’s innate ability to coach optimum effort and outputs from his players are defining differentiators.
KDB – Pep says De Bruyne is ‘One of the finest players I have ever seen…’
De Bruyne is the man of the moment, a playmaker and goal taker, rightly lauded by Pep as ‘…one of the best players I’ve ever seen.’
KDB has 12 assists and three goals in his last 17 Premier League games, not forgetting his 20 yard Champions League strike to shatter Shakhtar Donetsk a week ago.
The 26-year old Belgian typifies why top players want to play for Pep – KDB is firmly on track to achieve ‘world class’ status under Guardiola’s tutelage.
Sweet Jesus – Gabriel is destined for world class top billing.
Given time, the same will doubtless be true of Ederson, Leroy Sane, Gabriel Jesus and who knows, maybe even John Stones?
Sane and Jesus, along with Raheem Sterling, formed a triumvirate in SW6, abuzz with speed, movement and touch, but tellingly, always working tirelessly, denying Chelsea time and space.
They’re young and they’re learning to play the right way – Pep’s way.
Big ‘Ed – Ederson is destined to be a truly world class keeper and is already a huge hit with the City fans.
Ederson, at just 24 years, is exactly the same, a great shot stopper, commanding at corners, a sweeper keeper, jet-heeled off his line and comfortable on the ball with pinpoint accuracy of distribution.
He’s already drawing favourable comparisons with one of Pep’s former keepers, Manuel Neuer at Bayern, and justifiably so.
Along with Jesus, Fernandinho and Danilo, Ederson is one of a burgeoning bunch of Brazilians at the Etihad, a quartet ready to welcome an honorary ‘countryman’ from downtown Bradford – a certain Fabianho.
Fabianho – City’s Bradford born ‘Brazilian’ Delph has been a revelation.
The transformation of Fabian Delph in the space of a fortnight has been as delightful just as it’s been nothing short of amazing.
Popular and easy going, Delph has stepped up as the most unlikely of left backs after Mendy’s serious knee injury.
Man of the Match against Shakhtar, the 27-year old combined with fellow Yorkshireman, Kyle Walker, to play as inverted full backs as Guardiola outwitted Conte.
Why would you have Delph and Walker out wide when you can deploy City’s best creative talents, De Bruyne and Silva to exploit both space and opportunity?
Captain Exploiter – Silva and De Bruyne were the beneficiaries of Guardiola’s tactical master class.
Sane and Sterling pushed high and wide pinning Alonso and Azpilicueta back, thereby nullifying Chelsea’s ability to attack down the flanks, but equally preventing the wide defenders getting to De Bruyne and Silva.
Delph and Walker dropped infield to support Fernandinho in the central midfield, rendering Hazard & Co to something less than remotely dangerous.
Revenge is a dish best served cold – Fernandinho was masterful as cheating little bitch Fabregas went missing in midfield.
This was Pep at his tactical best, now armed with higher calibre players, younger, fitter, faster with the intelligence to understand his vision and ability to execute his on-field strategies.
As much as City fans reveled in last season’s headline victories, the 2-1 Manchester derby win, finally getting the better of Barcelona 3-1 and that sensational 5-3 rollercoaster with Monaco, this 1-0 statement of intent at Stamford Bridge is the most significant of the Pep era.
Sterling on the rise – Raheem is fulfilling his rich potential under Pep.
The sheer panache, power and patience integral to this triumph, demonstrated how Guardiola has accelerated evolution into revolution at the Etihad.
True lovers of football will appreciate City’s stylish approach and play, millions of viewers will tune in to soak up the majestic brilliance of the Blue side of Manchester and ‘neutrals’ will like what they see.
Who knows, it could even transform City into the ‘mainstream’ and make the TV companies, radio stations and red top media think twice about alienating a rapidly growing audience of admirers?
Take That – KDB nets his second scorcher of the week after scoring against both Chelsea and Shakhtar.
Guardiola won’t be content with simply sustaining standards, he’ll demand continual improvement, in his quest to set City apart, not just in the Premier League, but also the Champions League.
It’s a mouthwatering prospect for City fans and one for others to chew over in the coming weeks, months and years.
By David Walker
READ BUT NEVER RED COMPETITION…
We have a superb Manchester City framed Mini Kit to give away in an easy to enter competition. All you need to do is tell us when do you think Sergio Aguero will break City’s all-time goal scoring record?
The unique framed City Mini Kit, complete with City badge and Etihad backdrop, could be yours if you can predict when Sergio Aguero will break City’s all time goal scoring record.
So far Sergio has scored 176 times for City, one shy of Eric Brook’s total of 177. He might be back in time for City’s game against Stoke on October 14th, but when will he net his 178th goal? If you can guess the match when he reaches this momentous milestone you’ll have a chance of winning the framed Mini Kit.
You have three ways to enter:
- Make your prediction here in the Comments section.
- Tweet @ReadButNeverRed #SergioRecordbreaker and your match prediction.
- Read But Never Red Facebook #SergioRecordbreaker and your match prediction.
You could win a framed Manchester City Mini Kit if you can predict when Sergio Aguero will break City’s goal scoring record. Graphic by Stiz of the BlueRoom.
The winner will be contacted via social media once Sergio has finally put the record to bed, and the framed Mini Kit either posted out or collected in person at the Etihad Stadium on a City match day.
www.readbutneverred.com @ReadButNeverRed @djwskyblu
Gerrard, Ferdinand and Lampard all called a 2-0 Chelsea win, as soon as they all said that I turned to my Brother and said "We'll win this now".
Love it!
Excellent article
Gratitude!
Couldn't agree more . Excellent article
That's what we want to hear ;-) Thankyou.
Excellent article - it's time the media stopped crowing about a shaky defence without Kompany, that has conceded only 2 goals, none without the Big Belgian. A defence that hasn't been tested yet, despite having played Liverpool and Chelsea - conceding none. A team that still needs to bridge a gap up to Utd who have yet to play a team in the top half of the table, and have included 2 of the bottom teams in the games they have played.
As things stand they're always going to try and have a pop at City, but performances like Saturday night leave them with absolutely nowhere to go. Most City fans would accept our defence can improve still further but Pep has bought really well in the market and will undoubtedly go in again for a top quality centre back and, one would imagine another left back, notwithstanding Fabianho's superb displays of late.
I can't understand why any so called 'pundit' would honestly back United over City this season. Yes, they're challenging, but City are much the superior side. Thanks for the feedback.
Great article as usual.
Aguero will break the record against Arsenal on Nov 5th
So you reckon it'll be an Aguero Fireworks display? That's seven games away, so do you think he's going to miss the majority with the rib injury? Thanks for your entry.
Dont forget Guys, poor old Chelski were tired, oh & by the way, I am tired of their bullshit
Conte sounded pathetic didn't he? The media were all quick to empathise and say how much effort Chelsea had put into beating Atletico and that they hadn't had sufficient time to prepare. In agreement with you Guv - total BS.
City, already minus two very influential defenders, then lose their star striker on the Friday morning, but you don't hear Pep whinging.
Just shows how and why Chelsea won the title last season...they weren't 'tired' :-)
Aguero will break record against Burnley David. Love this piece and so proud of team and football we play. Two fingers up to all the haters!
Let's hope Sergio's is a speedy recovery and he's up and running for the Burnley game. The Argentina national team doctor is quoted today as saying Sergio will take 6 weeks to heal, whereas City have previously intimated 2-4 weeks. Either way if Jesus, Sane and Sterling can man the frontline like they did at Chelsea we'll be more than alright. Thanks for your generous comments.
Absolutely great read as always Dave!
Those graphics of yours aren't half bad either. Thanks as ever Stizmeister ;-)
the game = Manchester City 14:15 Arsenal :)
You're the second one predicting Aguero fireworks on November 5th. Thanks for reading and entering the competition..
Excellent read Dave, love your righteous fury! It's just a shame that it's not only still needed, but all the more necessary. Is it me or, even after all this time, is the sneering and disdain is becoming ever more entrenched? It's relentless and the scrabbling for excuses is becoming ever more desperate. We only beat Bournemouth because of iffy referee decisions. We only beat Liverpool because of Mane's sending off. We only beat Chelsea because they were tired. Etc, ad nauseum. Well, suck it up, you bitter bastards. We're not leaving. You can keep your history because the future is ours!
Great sentiments! How on earth anyone can claim Mike Dean assisted City in any way, shape or form at Bournemouth beggars belief - the man's a total tw@t. You're right in that every reference to Liverhampton/Southpool's 5-0 tonking always carries the caveat about 10-man/depleted Scousers (sob sob).As for poor little Chelski being tired - ha ha - words fail me. Thanks for the feedback.
Oh, forgot to say, Super Sergio will crack it against Stoke FJ.
Thanks fella - you must reckon he's a quick healer. Let's hope so.
Great article - as always. Sergio will break the record with a hattrick against Burnley.
Go for it MG - don't do things by halves :-) Duly noted
The Chelsea performance would of had our dear friend droooling from the clouds above!!!! It certainly was a Masterclass in football!
Aguero will become our leading all time goal scorer against one of his favourite victims.... West Brom!
You're not alone in often thinking about our Blue Brother Phil Entwistle, and how much he would've loved what Pep is now delivering. WBA away - usually a great day and the easiest fixture on the Premier League calendar for RBNR...25 minutes up the road and we don't have to touch the M6. Cheers Tinners.
Brilliant Dave, I think it’s your best yet, you say what we’re all feeling and put bells & whistles on it. I hope you’re right but I have less faith in the scum that is the majority of the British media than you have. We live in hope, anyone with anything of an IQ can see we’re streets ahead of anyone in the country yet I read today that we are narrowing the gap with the rags, who have been behind us for the last 5 years. Unbelievably stupid yet some readers will believe it! Incredible fuckwittery! That’s what we’re up against. Sergio to do it against Arsenal in the 37th minute ????
All good stuff fella! You were a bit vague on the timing of Sergio's record breaking goal - 37 minutes and how many seconds?
I've heard about this 'piece' where we're supposed to be bridging the gap with the Scum - WTF - who wrote it? Never mind the gap, look at the chasm in class and entertainment between City and Manure, shall we call it the Guardiola Gulf?
Maybe not :-)
I'm not saying the media et al are going to go quietly, no siree, but if City maintain this rate of progress under Pep they will look increasingly more stupid as they sink deeper and deeper into
denial. Isn't that a river in Egypt?
Enough already - thanks for the generous comments.
Great piece as always Dave. Had to laugh at conte's post match drivel, he looked like he'd just had his world torn apart. Keep on doing what your doing Dave. Aguero record breaker will be Leicester away.
Thanks Martyn, I take it you think those ribs of Sergio's are going to take time to mend? You're in the mix with Aguero going fox hunting in mid-November.
Had broken ribs myself. It hurts like you wouldn't believe. he won't be doing any form of training for at least 3 weeks. Then for him to come back and score two from the off is a big ask even by his standards. Hope I'm wrong ??.
Strange how medical opinion and diagnosis can differ so much. City seem to think 2-4 weeks but now we have the Argentine doctor saying 6 weeks - only time will tell. I must confess when word went around that he could figure against Stoke it sounded incredibly optimistic. The big concern is missing Napoli in the Champions League, but if City can continue to perform like they did at Chelsea then we can still keep that winning habit.
As for the Sergio competition, I think those suggesting he break the City goal scoring record in November might be better placed.
Brilliant article Dave once again. It's is absolutely brilliant watching us, I've even had a utd & Liverpool fan giving us praise, I had to drag it out of utd fan lol. Couldn't believe my ears when Mr Shearer actually praised us I played it back just to make sure. It's brilliant listening & reading the media actually praising us & dare I say it liking us. Forget Chelsea excuses we destroyed them & hopefully it will carry on for the rest of the season. The great man will do it against Burnley.
It has to be said they all praised us under a certain amount of duress, namely they had nowhere to run and nowhere to hide from Pep's genius and the team's stellar performance. I'm still taking the praise with a liberal helping of salt, but it's a start. Duly noted that 178 goes in against Burnley - thanks Doug.
Great article as always David - love the picture caption 'cheating little bitch Fabregas' - really made me giggle :) As always I concur with your views and find it fascinating how the media are so keen to heap praise on the Rags when they beat Burton Albion and yet find every excuse to downgrade any City performance. Ultimately it all sounds like fear to me - they know this is Peps team and tailored by him, rather than a slightly old and ill fitting hand me down from Pellers. Sergio will break the record against WBA and give Pullis another chance to groan "well when you've spent all that money....' yawn.
Pulis mentioning City's money? Never have I heard such malicious nonsense :-)
It was noticeable how Pep more or less brushed Fabregas aside at the final whistle - you get the feeling he's none to enamoured with his cheating little countryman.
It really has to be actions speaking louder than words for City to be praised, but ultimately do we really care? Their bitterness just makes it all the more sweet for City.
WBA away for goal 178 - noted Mark.
Cheers.
I did comment before and say I thought the media would sell jump on the bandwagon when we started to turn it on. But what's this about the blue half? I hate that Manchester is blue, Trafford is probably red, I don't know I don't care. There is some talk of them moving to Manchester, maybe Chorlton street, doesn't it have a bus station? I thought it would be next season before we really benefitted from Pep's influence and I am wary of the rags, they will park the bus against us, even though they are most attacking team anybody has ever seen, according to the media.
Forgive me fella, I might be a bit thick here, but what exactly is it that you are saying? I'm not being facetious, just seeking clarity. Thanks.
That should read "I hate that, Manchester is blue"
Again, could you clarify? Thanks.
There's only one team in Manchester, or to paraphrase Mike Doyle two, City and City reserves and I don't remember anybody arguing with him - ever.
I think the rags just might beat us by parking the bus, I hope I am wrong and will be happy to be wrong.
Apart from that I enjoyed the piece as usual.
By the way Aguero - against West Ham.
Crystal clear - thanks for getting back to clarify matters. Now, as for the Aguero competition, do you really mean West Ham on December 2nd or did you mean West Brom on October 28th? Just trying to be fair as we both support the only football team to come from Manchester.
West Ham December. He could be out for a while broken ribs are no joke. Also meant to say what about this goalkeeper we were told was another mistake and waste of money after one game, and that a friendly.
West Ham it is, and yes, you get the feeling the rib injury may have been somewhat understated.
As for Ederson, I am of the belief he'll be the best keeper in the world within three years.
Really enjoyable read an spot on! Always refreshing. Sergios gonna make history all over again home against wolves, off the bench!
That's a first for the Sergio competition - Aguero being needed in the League Cup against WW. Thanks for entering and for your comments.
Saturday night i read somewhere utd had played 5 out of the bottom 6 , i do not know but that night city had played 3 of the top 6 and they all had a loss to their name , the media still ran with ` it was Conte`s fault` , and how good utd were beating CP by 4 goals even though it did not match city and had Dann Loftus-Cheek and Benteke missing
The mass media have so much invested in their audience comprising United, Liverpool and Arsenal fans that they're scared of alienating them if they praise City. The difference will only come if, as and when, those media outlets can see a rising demographic of City support. Only then will it be in their commercial interests to be more generous in thought and deed to City.
In the meantime City just need to keep playing the Pep way, winning games and to begin accumulating silverware.
Ultimately we, as City fans, are quite happy for our team to develop and become the best we possibly can...and the hell with everybody else!
Excellent read David, that was one of the best displays I've seen from a city side, just a shame we didn't score more.
I'd have taken 1-0 any day of the week, but hindsight is a wonderful thing - it could easily have been 3-0 couldn't it? Bloody brilliant whichever way you look at it. Thanks Neil hope to catch up on a MCFC Away Day sometime this season.
Aguero will equal the record against Wolves
So that takes care of goal 177, but what about the record breaker?
Leicester will be when Aguero scores next
The news that Sergio could be out for up to 6 weeks with his rib injury would suggest a return next month, so goal 178 away to Leicester on November 18 might well be a good shout. Thanks for entering.
What sort of journalism is this Mr Walker? You have not once mentioned our mega rich Arab owners, the billion + investment, our £200 million bench; and not a jot about our £50 million fullback or ho-ho-ho the ridiculous amount wasted on six-goals-already Raheem! Focusing on Pep's genius and the utter brilliance of our players - it just doesn't 'hack' it mate; Fat Sam and his crimson cronies at the Daily Snail can rest easy. Finally all this fuss regarding Sergio - don't you know Pep despises him and would secretly swap him for Zlat-I'm So-Up My-Own-Arse-Imabumandbitch's left sock? ( Kun to knock in a hat trick v the Terriers.) To sum up; what you have written here is joyous and refreshing to our blue ears - thank you!
My profuse apologies sir! I must make immediate redress and say what a MAHUSSIVE fan I am of Tony Pulis who has a very good point about Sheikh Mansour having a few of the soon to be defunct round pounds down the back of his petro-chemical purchased sofa, and what a disgrace it is that he chooses to spend them in M11 3FF. Pep Fraudiola's services should be dispensed with immediately and Fat Sam should be hired forthwith with the brief to save us from relegation, on the last day of the season on alphabetical grounds as we see Watford, West Brom and West Ham go down.
I feel terrible for letting you down in the first instance and can but hope this goes some way to appeasing your quite understandably ruffled brow.
The Argentine fella for the hat-trick at Huddersfield duly noted.
Cheers fella :-)
I believe Sergio will break the record in his second game back, whichever one that is.
Now that's called hedging your bets, but we'll go with that!
Away at Huddersfield on November 25th for Sergio to take the record...
Sergio to pop over the Pennines and grab himself a goal scoring record. Thanks for entering Dave.
I think that is one of the best articles i have read about the positive attitude that City have and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it instead of all the crap that comes out of some so called pundits mouths WELL DONE.
Thank you - much appreciated.
76th minute
In which game sir - I believe you've stated the Stoke match on Facebook?