Safe!

Manchester City passed the magic 40 point safety mark this weekend (some slim compensation for being knocked out of the UEFA Cup by Hamburg). So now the question is: will Mark Hughes be able to add some defensive stability to match the team’s attacking flair for next season?

The purchase of Shay Given in January was an excellent move. With a top-class goalkeeper in place, a couple of international defenders could transform the team.

Another penalty shootout

Manchester City seem to have the knack of winning penalty shootouts – two in the UEFA Cup this season, including last night against Aalborg. But it’s just so like City: 2-0 up, five minutes to go, and they still have to put our nerves through the shredder.

Brain dump

I’ve been away for the weekend, so here’s just a collection of stuff.

• Being Human ended very satisfyingly. More later.
• Dollhouse is really struggling.
• City can’t string two decent results together.
• Cross Country trains really don’t provide enough leg room. I’m only a bit taller than average!
• There’s nothing quite like being disconnected from everything but the woman you love.

Back to work.

The Manchester City way

I’m not a huge football fan – I watch big games and the occasional highlights programme, but I can count the number of times that I’ve been to a real live league match on the fingers of one hand. There may be a reason for that.

I’ve followed Manchester City since their FA Cup win in 1969, and it’s been a frustrating experience. I wasn’t to know it at the time, but City were then at their peak: League Championship in 1968, FA Cup in 1969 and Cup Winner’s Cup in 1970. After that, apart from one League Cup win, it’s been mostly downhill, but with occasional moments of near success (the 1981 FA Cup final being particularly painful). Too much time has been spent in lower divisions, including the awful descent to the third tier, just when the red team were conquering Europe again.

So it’s not good for the health to tie one’s happiness to the sky blue shirt, but it seems that hope might just be justified again. Vast amounts of Saudi Arabian money are available and last night City held their nerve to knock FC Copenhagen out of the UEFA Cup – although even then they had to do it the hard way, scoring two goals late in the game. At least they didn’t defend as ineptly as in the away leg, when every cross seemed to find an unmarked Copenhagen player.

I’ll try not to get too excited. The Manchester City way is too painful otherwise.