Essjayess

City dont have "strikers" but "forwards", theres a difference and many in this topic have explained that. Alex likes to deploy a lone forward up front who does more than just stand around and poach. Jerome is 100% premiership quality forward. Citys style is to score goals from many different players and long may it continue. Dont care who scores frankly as long as we are getting goals, we are very lucky to have Jerome, Mbokani, Lafferty and also Grabban and Hooper.

Easy to stay up?...of course not, it will be hard effort and team spirit to stay up. But to stay up?..just maybe now, after initially thought before seasons start that our defence would almost inevitably be our downfall. After 7 games its impossible to predict where a team will finish after 38 games. But imo this last week has been very telling. Thing is we ARE still letting in sloppy goals but the fact is we have gotten two solid away draws at grounds where in previous Prem. seasons weve gotten very little. Alex has also instilled a no fear factor, so although yes we will have some off days, i think we can certainly grab some points from teams who in recent memory have wiped the floor with us.In anycase, staying up or going down, the boring negative feeling under Hughton has been blown away these last 8 or 9 months since Alex Neil joined us, that is the greatest thing.

Our defence will always  have its weaknesses, especially with set pieces as again today, but generally cannot go to over the top about that. I was one of the ones who feared that our defence would get us relegated this season and the Southampton match was reminiscent of the Hughton era. But you know, after these away games at Pool and West Ham, even with silly errors, the defence along the whole team are playing their socks off, and Norwich do look genuine Premier quality to me.Alex is starting to make some stonking team selections and seems to have a knack of  getting subs right to. The biggest plus is how he has instilled such a  great team spirit  right thru the whole squad. If we didnt already know it, we have a very very special manager in Alex Neil. As fans, to see City mixing it with the cream of the Premier, and giving their all, picking up points to AND scoring goals, is just a joy. Im a natural pessimist at heart, but match by match Alex and the guys are eroding that. OTBC

This topic should remain closed until at least December 1st. The summer transfer window wore us all down with all the pointless speculation, plus the season is in full swing so lets just enjoy the games.

A good point, City far from their best but certainly not as poor as the Southampton game. Defence still gives me kittens though. Fair dues to Russ Martin, hope he gets a good sleep after his busy and joyful weekend. Liverpool once again were disapointing by their standards, so without doubt City fans will be more happy with 1 point than Pool fans. West Ham next, and dont they look good right now >.>..still, lets enjoy this result today,

I did not say City left it until the last minute, just that they left it late., like in the last 2 or 3 weeks of a 3 or 4 month transfer window. After Wembley we first  signed Dorrans quickly,  then a while after him  we got Yousef. Then that long long saga with Robbie Brady...how many weeks  did that encompass?. Of course none of us know in truth thru the whole period what activity if any City were up to regarding Defensive cover, but for fact Alex flew to Marseille to give a look over on Nkoulou very late in the window. Koulibalys name had been mentioned  in gossip halfway thru the window, but was not until the last week to 10 days of the window that we heard that City were then trying their best to get that guy.Many names such as Collins at West Ham were just gossip, others like that Danish CB only got a mention in the very last few days.

CB is such an important place to fill, and seems the transfer window had a heap of clubs wanting CBs. I said at the time that City were seemingly really trying hard to push the boat out and quite willing to spend big to get in a quality CB. The likes of Koulibaly and Nkoulou were always going to so difficult to capture, and also City seemed to leave it late in the window..well..we going with weve got till at least January, maybe right thru till end of season so..that was the only real disapointment for me, all else went good, and 5 games passed already..enjoying life back in the Prem.

Oh the fun of predicting...this fixture is not as easy to predict this season...previous years we got used to Suarez  enjoying himself against City. I think it could depend on Brendan Rodgers thoughts on his formation..if he finally finds a style where his team actually supply Benteke..then i will say 5-1 Liverpool with Benteke doing a Suarez on us. Just our bad luck that they likely will have all their big guns, like Coutinho and Sturridge in their side to supply Benteke.But if  that doesnt happen, and Alex can get City into a attacking fearless mood, then City could just get a 2-2 or even a 3-2 win. So bleh..i cant give a prediction because its so hard to call.

Yes good win yesterday, midfield and up front we probably have our most promising set up since....i cant remember when. Add in a manager who we are very lucky to have, the world is Citys oyster. Having said all that, our defence were generally solid yesterday, excepting the go to sleep for Cooks goal, but even so, still concerened  they could ship to many goals over the season. It is good to get wins over the likes of Sunderland and Bournemouth, but truth is, we will also need more points against mid table sides, maybe even some against the Liverpools and Arsenals, if not its bottom 3 at Xmas.But then again, the season ends in May not December. Not strengthening the defence is the only stick i could find, and the way Alex Neil is leading the team, i could beat my opinion with that stick come May.

Today was one of those days when the positivity of our midfield and forward line far outweighed the lackings our defence display. Bournemouth are a bit naive defensively. but a day like today when Wes shines like he does, quite a few defences  can suffer. When the little maestro eventually hangs his boots up. surely he will be regarded as one of Citys all time greats. Good seeing Cam putting the ball away, Jarvis having as good a debut as anyone could have, a first taster of Mbokani, he looks good.Was just awaiting Citys defence to do their inevitable "lets all stand here and watch the opposition score" moment and sure enough it came. But overall, defence were ok today, Wisdom got a bit better as the match progressed, Russell had a solid game, thought Seb was turned by Wilson 1 or 2 times, but Wilson looks class. Most importantly, City were back to positive attacking. When theyre going forward like that and everything clicks, its an absolute joy to watch.

Ive said it elsewhere but no game is a "must win" unless 3 points are needed for a final mathetical certainty needed to stay up. What a Prem season brings is 38 games that are all important to win.Im just looking for City to get back the no fear attacking style that vanished in the last match. I can see us being ripped to shreds by Bournemouth if we get sloppy at the back, but can just as likely seeing us win at Liverpool. While still a good home team, in the last year to 18 months we have lost Carrow Road hone fortress to some extent, but our away form has improved. That quirky trait also seems to have spread generally in the Prem. so far this season to most clubs, will be interesting to see if it continues long into the season.If we lose saturday, the manner of defeat will be important as to how much we as moan and groan, but meltdown is such a strong term that no scenario would justify such a thing.

Whatever happened that  day at Rotherham is really of no interest. As a footy fan all that mattered was Lewis missed a match when Alex had him in the squad. Lewis has apologised, Alex sorted the issue as he said he would, now Lewis can let his football do the talking.

The only true "must win" game is the scenario where 3 points is the only option to gaurantee PL survival. But all 38 games are important to win. Maybe Jarvis was talking on a personal level and hes not quite yet attuned into Alexs matchday style of playing, im sure he will adapt. I hope as im sure LDC does, that Alex continues his no fear attacking style of playing. Somehow the team completely lost that in the last game, im sure we will see a more aggressive stance this time.Regarding defending, im afraid im of the opinion that our defence lets in sloppy goals regardless of our play style, and West Ham were very sloppy against Bournemouth and they got punished. With Wilson up front and now the addition of Murray, they could potentially have a very powerful front line. There is the potential to suffer a very big home defeat, so City will need to be at their best to get anything from this game. I dont know why, but i fancy our chances more away to Liverpool, especially minus Saurez lol.

I think GB has about covered it, for an Android box 3 or 4 meg is supposedly around the minimum, so anything 10 meg or above (i have well over 10 meg)  is more than adequate. Its all the other variables GB mentioned that we  cannot control that can cause the buffering. But overall, technology forever improves things, i love my lil Android box. Just a side note, i can remember back in 2001, when Broadband was still a bit in the future, i was one of the people who ventured online with the first ever online gaming console, Sega Dreamcast. I regularly played a certain game with peoples from all over the globe, on a dial up telephone system that racked me up hundreds of pounds each quarter. The amazing thing is, the Dreamcast had a modem of 33k! Thats 33/1000 of 1 meg!. How times have changed, now i take for granted the things my Android box does for me...wonderful.

I guess Bor the goals he scored against Hungary, Greece and Finland dont count either?

Streaming legal or illegal content for an end user is legal. That is a law passed last year by the EUs highest court. If you want to view the final judgement from the court go to Nano TV of Sunderland site and check their privacy link, the EU Court judgement is there, albeit its typically in legalistic form so takes awhile to get into an average persons brain cells.I use my PC a lot for gaming, so an Android box for me is personally great. I can game on my PC but have sport or movies on my Android box hooked up to my main TV. The Kodi guys themselves go to great lengths to ensure all the apps and add ons on their site are legal. Google have given them their seal of approval to. Isengard 15.0 is the latest standard set up but Jarvis 16.0 version is already in Alpha stage.You pays your money and takes your choice. You can of course sub your 20 or 30 pounds a month to the Skys and BTs  or pay 35-80 pound for an Android and rely on internet streaming variability. I find, as a rough rule of thumb guide. the higher the quality graphically the more prone it can be to buffering. So watching a sport stream in 1080p may give you more buffer probs  than say 720 or lower. But its variable. I find NBCSN from America are great, they nearly always are better  for me and in HD to. But yes the stream can be up to a minute behind.I find the 3 best sport add ons are UK Turk, SportsDevil, and to a lesser degree, Phoenix. Many boxes will come with UK Turk and Phoenix already  added in. You may need to search online  for SportsDevil but should not be to hard to find. Android boxes can very easily fill its memory so be prudent with the amount of add ons you install. Just uninstall any you no longer watch etc.Anyone with a basic knowledge of PCs should  be able to get their boxes up n working, but for sure do need a bit of patience for a few days. Many useful Kodi set up guides on youtube.

Redeemed his match?,,he did not need to redeem himself by scoring that late goal, he had about no training through his knee injury, but his manager played him in 2 games in space of a few days,,,by virtue of just being on the pitch and loitering around up front he always keeps defenders occupied with his prescence. Understandably he was dead on his feet and Michael ONeill was ready to take him off when Hungary scored , so had to keep him on. The fact he scored to rescue a point for NI could be a huge important point for them in the long run.Laffs will never play like a graceful gazelle, he can sometimes appear a mite clumsy, but, like a stubborn mule, he never gives up, and more important he is scoring goals.  We had topic after topic  regarding RVW  and the pros and cons of his scoring record. But Laffs has 7 in 8 games for his country, and the latest goals when hes had no much training and zero time for his club. Bor compared Faroe Islands to Gorleston, that is just plain absurd, they may not be a Germany but these days they are a pretty good team, much above the likes of Gibraltar and San Marino. Besides you can only score whats in front of you.If Laffs stays around, not going out on loan, it gives Alex another option up front, and on his current form, a pretty good option.

A striker who had a knee injury all through pre season, so had zero minutes for his club, just managed a few short days training before his international manager calls him into the squad AND plays him in two matches in 3  days, and he scores in both!..no matter what striker you are or what  country you  play for that is just more than deserving respect. All kudos to Kyle Lafferty, he looked  nearly dead on his feet toward  end of tonights game, but once again even in the last minute he was in the right place to slam the ball home. Fantastic, just fantastic.

A straw poll  after 4 games in?...ok  as its just for fun. Recent years for City to finish  18th with 33 points. Why break with tradition, lets go with that.

Interesting, had not thought of this before, but i was looking at the ages of our defenders. Its not just the lack of cover or the fact that our defence lets in sloppy goals in the majority of our Prem games. Our defence is aging together also, they maybe ok age wise right now but time flies and so do football seasons. Russ Martin will be 30 in a few months, Steven Whittaker is already 31, Seb  Bassong is 29..yes can say in their prime but sooner or later its not just a question of adding 1 quality CB, we should be thinking ahead about many more additions imo.If the powers that be at the club know theyve done "poorly" as regards strngthening, then often the buck has to stop somewhere. Head of Recruitment would be a obvious candidate i suppose. But its a conundrum, in 2 of the 3 areas i dont think theyve done badly at all, up front and especially midfield City look good. But our defence.....i fear Alex repeating himself often after many games this season..."we let in sloppy goals".

Ya the word forgive in the header gives the impression Lewis has done something wrong personally to each and every one of us, so its a bit of a misnomer. Anyway, Lewis is contracted as a City player, and i always hope every City player will give their 100%. Alex is the guv''nor and he said he would quickly fix Mr. Grabbans issue. So lets leave it to Alex to do just that. Que Sera Sera.

Mazuch, 6ft. 2in, played for Fiorentina, Anderlecht, Dnipro. 26 yrs old, about the only free CB in EU under 30. Begs the question why is he a free. maybe given up on football or just plain useless?

He is Mbokani, no need to compare him to anyone else. He has the potential to be a great favourite at Carrow Road. Just looking at him, his locks and mutton chops and big big wide smile he could well be loved as a character. More importantly his goals and his general play style seem to be exciting to watch. If he can adopt the Alex  way, hardworking and team player, he may well become very useful for us. Finally remember he is African, players from Africa often seem to have one or two erratic moments (our Seb bless him is no different) so if  this happens not to frequently try to embrace it as part of his makeup. Looking forward to seeing him as part of our club!

As of now, no. It depends, sadly because we failed to to buy a single defender, we will need defence adds in January, as by Xmas i see City in the bottom 3. Even if we do add, we may to a Leicester City from last season or something similar, not a scenario i would look forward to.We have a good attack, good midfield, the best manager, but our defence will likely leak so many goals it will over ride all these other positives. Heart yearns yes, head leans to no.

A pretty ridiculous subject header for a topic. Here we go again back to the famous 7-1 defeat in League 1. Since that time of  despair the Board have done an amazing job of turning around the health of the football club, all the more so considering nearly every other Prem club and many outside  it even have richer backers than us. Thats not to devalue the times when Delia herself has put in her finances to keep the club alive, in fact the opposite.In the last few weeks City have showed that they do have the money to buy players and were prepared to, such as bidding 10 mill for Afobe and 11 mill for Koulibaly, if the rumours are true maybe 15 mill for Nkoulou. So to me is not about money issue, i just think they simply left it way to late to get in there and add players...especially the defence. Liverpool did the right thing, they signed who they wanted  long before the circus of the last week or two of transfer period  came along. Its a lesson City must learn, i fear it will cost us  at the end of this season.Even so, over the seasons this board has worked wonders getting City on a solid financial footing, any talk of a board resigning is total nonsense.