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Manchester City: A European Catastrophe

By Jimmy Lee

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I don’t know what else to say about Manchester City that I have not said a million times already.

As a City supporter, this team has been beyond frustrating to watch.  And trust me, I know frustrating.  I am a Cleveland Browns fan after all.

Two weeks ago City drew in embarrassing fashion to CSKA Moscow in the Champions League.  But that match was in Russia.  Wednesday the fixture was repeated, but this time in Manchester.

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If two weeks ago was embarrassing, Wednesday’s match was humiliating, mortifying and completely troublesome.

Two minutes into the match, Manchester City was already behind the champions of Russia off a header from Seydou Doumbia.  Maybe I was a biased fan, but I knew that City would get their act together and get back into the match.

And surely enough they did.  In the 8th minute Yaya Toure sent a free kick from the top of the box into the upper left corner of the net. The match was all square with over 80 minutes to go.

But the 8th minute of the match was the high point of the day for the Cityzens.  Seydou Doumbia would put CSKA Moscow back on top in the 34th minute and that’s where the scoring would end.  City once again failed to perform on the Champions League stage losing 2-1.

The second half was a total catastrophe.  To sum it all up, CSKA Moscow was the better team.  City looked slow, lazy and disillusioned.  As time was winding down, City’s frustration led to two idiotic fouls by Fernandinho and Yaya Toure landing each of them red cards and expulsion from the match.

As Yaya Toure walked off the field and City was left with nine men and a one goal deficit, Manchester City’s hope of getting out of the group left the field alongside Toure.

The frustration and desperation were never more apparent than when Sergio Aguero threw himself down in the box begging to get a penalty.  But referee Anasthasios Sidiropoulos wasn’t buying anything Aguero was selling.  Kun earned himself a yellow card for simulation.

Manchester City was a complete joke, an absolute disaster.  Four matches into what was supposed to be their best Champions League campaign yet, City is still looking for their first win.  And it only gets harder from hear.  City next host Bayern Munich and then finish group play traveling to Roma.

For Manchester City, their UCL hopes are now postponed for yet another season.

Here are the top five takeaways from City’s performance on Wednesday:

  1. City hasn’t figured out how to play in Europe
  2. CSKA Moscow completely outplayed City and deserved the win
  3. City sucked on Wednesday
  4. The two red cards were both unnecessary and fully due to frustration
  5. City really suck against CKSA Moscow

And there you have it.  Good luck next season Manchester City.

Next: UEFA Champions League: 3 Thoughts on Manchester City vs. CSKA Moscow

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