......drop Joe for a bunch of meaningless matches and make your self look ruthless. Can't fault the bloke.
He probably looked at the fixtures and thought OK.
1. C/Cup Newcastle.....Pants would have played anyway.
2. Prem/league Norwich.....Not a massive risk
3. Champs League CSKA.....Well, we beat them away....so not a huge risk.
4. Prem/league Sunderland....We HAVE been rubbish away from home, but really?
So then its the International break.....and guess what?
Miraculously Joe reappears for the Spurs game on 24th Nov.
Presto......Manny looks like a strong man, Pants gets a few games to sharpen him up, and Joe gets a rest from the nonsense.
I'll guarantee.....if Joe stops a couple of short range shots....and tips a couple over the bar for England....the press will be calling Manny for upsetting the dressing room at City....
Quite clever from Pelle......
posted on 4/11/13
The press have been demanding they drop him, now you have given them what they want they will be confused for a little while before they sense weakness/trouble elsewhere and go to tear them down instead.....
Unless something goes badly wrong with Pants then they will demand to now why you dropped England's no. 1 in the first place....
posted on 5/11/13
Shame they aren't as pro active reporting the phone hacking scandal.
posted on 5/11/13
Is it just me who thinks Pants is a very accomplished goalkeeper? Saw him in the cup run last season and looked great.
posted on 5/11/13
Costel hasn't done a thing wrong in his relatively limited game time.
Would probably be first choice in 10 premier teams.
posted on 5/11/13
I agree.
Pants has impressed me from day 1.
We are very lucky to have 2 excellent goalkeepers and, apart from the effect on England which I happen to care about still, I'm not that bothered which of the two plays in any one game.
Both would be No1 in most PL and European top division teams.
It's just the witch-hunting press that picks a target (last season De Gea, Balotelli etc), magnifies every (bad) thing they do and then moves on when they spot an easier target elsewhere.
posted on 5/11/13
I think he actually needed a rest. You see players who get overused start to make mistakes usually as they are not at it. The goalkeeper position seems to have no rotation in the bigger games and hart had played 123 games in a row in the league before the last game.
http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11945/9008670/champions-league-joe-hart-will-be-on-manchester-city-bench-again
"It is very important for him to have a rest. He has played all the matches in the last two and a half years.
............
I find it funny though hart was always going to be dropped and to be honest it will do him good as he can analyse what other goalkeepers are doing when watching the games and come back fresh with a spring in his step.