What a blast! Now let’s blow Wigan away…

For large parts of the (wonderful) Derby last Sunday we were awesome. Ignore the disrespectful ‘…but how much of it was down to Manyoo being awful’ lines; we put them to the sword in true style.

Need to follow it up…

Any long-serving Manchester City supporter will tell you that there are two words synonymous with our wonderful football Club. Not such wonderful words, however, which are Inconsistent and Typical. The I.T. crowd have groaned and bemoaned how we have shot ourselves in the foot many times down the years; ruining what started all-too-briefly to look like we were about to turn a corner or, even better, dared to gather pace and put something of a run together.

Indeed following our last Manager’s summer departure and some indifferent form under our new boss this season so far; it has been suggested by some that we have annoyingly rediscovered our inconsistent tag.

So I say with no regret of exaggeration that I am desperate for us to follow-up our Derby win with another against Wigan tonight in the League Cup, followed by a solid and clinical display at Villa Park on Saturday; leading us to another 3 points.

Had we have been given a favourable choice of evenings to play in this round of the cup (Manyoo being given the Wednesday slot) following a tiring game against them just 48-hours earlier, I recon that Mr “wanting to win all 4 competitions” Pellegrini may well have gone for a stronger line-up. He may well DECIDE to include a few from last Sunday’s game…but I’m guessing not many.

In fact, as I stated on 13th September, I’d be quite excited to see how we’d fair with a team full of so-called ‘second stringers’…despite what I said about the need for consistency and getting through to the next round of the League Cup.

With some slight re-adjustments to my last line-up on the 13th - not least due to Kompany coming back to us earlier than expected with a Superman display last Sunday (and assuming that we’ve been secretly getting Guidetti fit to start this one – I can hope…) - I wouldn’t mind the following line-up tonight:

v Wigan Athletic:

4-4-2:

________________Guidetti__________

 

_________Jovetic__________________

 

Lopes______________________Milner

 

________Garcia____Rodwell________
 

Kolarov___Lescott__Boyata___Richards

 

____________Pantilimon____________

 

Subs: Wright, Zabaleta, Kompany, Nasri, Navas, Negredo, Dzeko

No disrespect to Wigan, but I would hope (unfamiliar as they might be in playing together) this starting 11 would be enough to get past them at home. There would be a strong bench as back-up if needed but the starting 11 still has SO much talent!

But I suspect not, as I say; surely Dzeko would get a start and I think I’m being more than optimist to hope that the rehabilitating Guidetti will even make the bench. With Rekik out on loan to PSV and Clichy still (probably) recovering from a knock, it looks like Kolarov will have to put another shift in (he too did very well on Sunday going forward – he had little to do defence-wise).

Interested

I hope Lopes gets a start (or at least a run-out at some stage) and perhaps another EDS player that I’ve not mentioned too. I’m also really looking forward to Rodwell doing a good shift and really want a good look at Jovetic. Tonight’s game could be an enthralling one. Can’t wait.

Then it’s onto Villa away. A team that, compared to last season, is having a really good start to this campaign. And with Benteke fighting to be fit for the 3:00pm, Saturday showdown (remember those?) we need to take advantage of the big man’s possible absence.

Regardless of whether he’s fit or not, most of our stars, I’m sure, will get a rest tonight and will enjoy a buoyant-mood training week. So rather than digging up horrible traits of the past; perhaps they’ll begin a new (another new) era and blow Villa away rather than us-having to use either the “I” or the “T” words.

But it starts with Wigan Athletic tonight…