After Rafael Benitez’s very public melt down last season, some people have tried to make the same claims about Sir Alex Ferguson’s sanity following his statement which called City a “small club” with a “small club mentality”.
Ferguson once criticised Benitez for calling Everton a “small club” so comparisons are being made. I just have a few thoughts on this.
1. Everton have spent 107 seasons in the top flight, more than any other club in England.
2. Only United, Liverpool and Arsenal have won more League titles than Everton.
3. Everton have won a total of 24 trophies, City have 12.
4. Everton’s stadium isn’t owned by the council. City’s stadium is.
5. Sheffield Wednesday, Wolves and Huddersfield have won more League titles than City. Sunderland have won twice as many.
6. Everton last won a trophy in 1995. They last played in a final in 2009. City last won a trophy in 1976. They last played in a final in 1981.
7. When Everton bought players from Liverpool they didn’t feel the need to run an advertising campaign with the sole intention of winding Liverpool fans up. They weren’t that arsed what the bigger club in their city thought, they weren’t that obsessed.
Ferguson said City are a “small club with a small club mentality” because that is the truth. He criticised Benitez for calling Everton a “small club” because they’re not. It’s not rocket science.
yeah thanks Norton for your constructive comments yawn.
@Norton – you a bitter blue right? You should read comments more carefully eh? I said it depends on what a persons opinion is of what a big club and what a small club are. But I do stand by my point that IF we are talking silverware and History/renown, then yes Man City are tiny in comparison. It is my opinion, and if you are BLUE and on this Man United blog, what else do you expect to be hearing, that City are massive and have been for years – some hopes LOL!
@Norton, if your a Manc RED & not a Man City blue, but just disagree with the comment I made about small clubs – then apologies mate, for the wrong assumption of which club you support. I am a Manc and yes I do know the history of both clubs, but more about Man United’s of course. Not everybody is going to agree with SAF’s declaration that Man City IN HIS OPINION is a small club etc, but that football fandom, lots of differing ideology and opinions!
@Norton – OOPS, I just checked back through the posts, and I see you were answering Blue Ant who was questioning my comment about City being a tiny club, and you did a good job of answering. My brain is not in gear today lol, I seem to be getting wrong take on things – I apologise Norton!
@the Arsenal gun – City are not in Arsenal’s class either mate, and you lot better NOT let them put your club out of the top 4. I remember people saying last year that Arsenal would be out of the top 4 to Villa etc, and Man Utd would be beaten to the PL trophy by the scousers – and we all know how those prophecies turned out eh?
As a United fan for over 40 years now I do not get that too bothered about other suporters trying to wind me up over who is the biggest, most successful, better supported club etc any more. On a couple of points that have been mentioned on here:
I saw Best play at the end of of his time at Unted (last game v QPR) and he certainly wasn’t in his pomp as Bell was at that time. However, from watching games prior to this when he was at the top of his game, he could turn games and score fantastic individual goals out of nothing (European Cup Final 1968), something that Bell couldn’t (Rodney Marsh however was something else!). Both different type of players but Best was the definately BEST!
AS for the poster campaign. Let it go, it doesn’t matter and I find it quite humourous actually. Especially if they do not do much this season!
As for City going 34 years without winning a trophy, I think that even blueant doesn’t quite know the history of his club. Didn’t they win that MASSIVE trophy in 1999 the 3rd Division play off!!!
City have always had a chip on their shoulder about United. I love how they’ve always tried to take the moral high ground, United are no longer a club, just a merchandising business, and all that shit; well what are they gonna say now, as their club spends 200 million in 12 months all to put a smile on a terrorist’s face? Remember, at least the money we spend has been generated by the club, it’s our own income we’re spending, City are the footballing equivalent of Paris Hilton; trashy, fuck ugly, will do anything to get their face in the papers, and live off someone else’s money.
I think it was back in 2003 (I might be wrong, I have just woke up) and Noel Gallagher was on Soccer AM, we had won the league but they’d taken 4 points off us, and that stupid fuckwit was trying to be smug with Lovejoy, constantly bringing up the 4 points. It was all he cared about, that they’d beaten and drew with us, he had a smile on his butt ugly face all show, what a sad cunt! WE’D WON THE FUCKING LEAGUE AND HE WAS HAPPY!! Could you EVER imagine United fans seeing United finish mid table, and City win the title, but we hadn’t lost to them, walking around happy and smiling? Celebrating the fact that our city rivals were champions and we were nothing but they hadn’t beat us?! What a sad, pathetic existence.
Isaidso – Oh dear you are getting in a mess. Upsetting everyone today!!
Only joking mate, are you pissed?
Dazjoe – The Gallagher brothers are a pair of bitter cunts. Ian Brown> Gallaghers.
we acheive ther dreams, end off
Scott you are a genius! Couldn’t agree more with you! But remember City are a “MASSIVE” club! uuuh… scary…
Blue Ant said: “yeah thanks Norton for your constructive comments yawn.”
You’re very welcome. And I see it’s past your bedtime.
Isaidso: Re your posts in reply to I.
No problems, matey. My bit was A Tale of Two Cities, no less. He’s good, Blue Ant, ain’t he? Oh, yessum.
@King Eric, no mate funnily enough I’m not pissed lol, I tend to leave that until weekends! I have a bad habit of not reading back thru posts, but I think I learnt my lesson this time – haha!. Well until next time that is!
Fully agree! Benitez too arrogant!
You can see when they lead, benitez was start bull shit….It is good to see liverpool down….
MU is the best.
man city IS A MASSIVE CLUB….
it’s just our trophy cabinet is “MORE MASSIVE”.
@blueant: fuck off u bitter, miserable cunt!! have u changed ur name from bluenose? u sound just as retarded as that prick!! ur just propper pissed off ur club dosnt give u the overwhelming feeling of PRIDE and JOY wen u put their strip on…. regardless of where u wear it. im sure his friends getting married would have considered him wearing a united shirt to their wedding, my friends are fully aware id be likley to turn up in any of my many united shirts to their wedding/funeral/birthday/etc etc. u see cunt, WE’RE PROUD OF OUR CLUB, im proud of my family and its mancunian heratage, so wen i pull on that red shirt i feel my ancestors and the history they share with our illustrius and SUCCESSFUL club.
i can only immagine how u dont get any of those feelings wen u pull ur shitty skue blue city kit on, NO LOVE, NO PRIDE, NO JOY, NO TRADITION, NO HOME, NO SUCCESS. FUCK OFF!!!
I think Scott, you missed a very big point on why Everton is not a small club. They are the only club in recent years to crack the big 4. Only when UEFA got their arm twisted that Liverpool were allowed back into the CL to defend the trophy that Gerrard got them the previous year with a superb 10/10 dive
@ isaidso, no-body was making comparisons!!! the statement was “city are a small club” is this so hard??? In the grand scale of things they are obviously not!! lol You lot are hard work. But at least you give a effort at making a constructive post.
@ redevil1878 obviously you’re another classless juvenile! People who get “proud and joy” from wearing football shirts at weddings are beyong contempt. Back to the gutter scum!
and finally @ billabongbob, good post mate, and yeah i am not too bothered about WUM’s from other clubs otherwise i would not be here taking abuse from inbreds. And i do agree with you Best/Bell, and i do remember the playoff final as i was there. Wearing my shirt with Pride, but in the right place at the right time.
Dazjoe Said: City are the footballing equivalent of Paris Hilton; trashy, fuck ugly, will do anything to get their face in the papers, and live off someone else’s money.
LMAO
In the grand scale of things,BlueAnt,City are small.
blueant
i disagree wid everyone.city are the biggest club in the world nw.
its not that kaka,etoo rejected city,city rejected them bcoz cuntevez,santacruz,bridge are anyday better than kaka,etoo or terry.
mark hughes wants to reinvent attacking football.dats why he is signing so many strikers so that he can play the 1-1-8.whatever it is formation.i dnt knw.
@blueant, u probably r an inbred oldboy. im not sure of too many gutters other than maine road and i nor my family come from there. the only other i can think of is anfield and they certainly do not come from there. as a 33 year old “juvenile” i ask u, how do u not know my friends are also MANCHESTER UNITED supporters and would definatly not frown upon wearing a man united shirt wether it be a kit top or collard shirt? u really are a bitter ballbag arnt u? 34 tick tock tick tock….
@redevil1878,
Obviously your friends are all pondlife scum also then, just remember you can’t polish a turd fuckwit.
most of my family are blue… although i like to point out that the last final they were in was in 81, the year is was born..
Obviously city fans are retarded. Was on their blog sometime back and they were saying that they are the biggest coz they hold the highest attendance record. Can’t fill up council house now! Pity
Blue Ant:
Of course City are a big club in English football terms. It’s not about that, just the notion you and others have of becoming bigger, of overtaking United, Arsenal, and Liverpool all of whom are bigger clubs than yours and always will be. You might be able to level up to Chelsea, a club in my opinion possessing comparable past status to yours.
The spread of mass media in the late 50s and throughout the 60s – along with that era’s seismic culture changes – allowed ordinary folk access to a football knowledge not seen before.
These eras are the times when, primarily, true legendary status was awarded nationwide, European-wide and to a degree worldwide to certain clubs. This effect is unchangeable in the lifetimes of you and I, for example. It evolved from a mixture of success highlighted in this mass media, the individuality expressed by certain players along with the style of football played. There are other reasons like how this seeped elsewhere demographically.
But the bottom line is that no matter who is the richest and/or whether they can dominate for the next ten years, say, the status of the club’s I name will not change.
If any of these can be accused of losing their “soul” the point is, in being awarded high status (someone HAS to be the biggest as it’s human nature to give rank) back then, the cocktail of reasons for it included “soul” at least in some sense. You’ll not see this again. Because these factors were unique, it is indelible.
No-one other than City fans and their convenient adherents at this time from other clubs, will accept City becoming bigger because they will simply see any future success as bought, in toto. Outright.
You can win everything in the next ten years but your status relevant to (at least) United, Arsenal and Liverpool will not alter.
@ Norton, finally a good sensible, well structured post, i agree with most of it, apart from the ending, to some (example comments in this article) say the size of the club is based on success. so as long as the history books say “City win everything in the next ten years” then it does not matter what fans say, does it? You raise some good interesting points, but about City becoming bigger in all areas, i doubt i’ll live to see it, but all you can do is strive to become better and stay high as long as possible.
Blue Ant:
I’m afraid it does matter. There will always be a tale behind those facts in a book. And it will always be asked about.
On your “at last a sensible post” remark? You just stick to the compliments.
lol so you think the book will say “City have won the league over the past ten years but do not deserve it as they bought it!”, “whereas United won it without spending a penny” I will stick to compliments if you stick to unblinkered reason.
maybe afterall you still have the “arrogant untouchable ” attitude my first post was about.
“but do not deserve it as they bought it!”,”
Don’t be silly. It wouldn’t say that even if it should. And it wouldn’t need to be said as folk would know it anyway.
United earned their spending power, City didn’t. This is an important difference. It isn’t bias just fact.
“maybe afterall you still have the “arrogant untouchable ” attitude my first post was about.”
Hm. It took you 3 minutes to think that up?
you all sound like a spoilt child, if you win i’m taking my ball home boo hoo
well this article is now on page 2 so i’ll end it by wishing you luck for equalling liverpools record…. am i being genuine? who knows?
and finally i was away those 3 minutes giving birth to a new man U fan…
“you all sound like a spoilt child, if you win i’m taking my ball home boo hoo
well this article is now on page 2 so i’ll end it by wishing you luck for equalling liverpools record…. am i being genuine? who knows?”
Ah, the nominalist’s spoilt child. Though I’m sure you didn’t mean it that way.
“and finally i was away those 3 minutes giving birth to a new man U fan…”
A sperm donor, eh. Page 3? And 2 minutes longer than usual.