MANCHESTER City closed out their 2008/2009 Premier League season with victory against Bolton at Eastlands.
Felipe Caicedo finished from close range and that early strike proved enough.
The Blues said goodbye to their season of transition with an eleventh home win in 12 attempts and are already busily planning for better things next season.
A half century of points and a place in the top half of the table, albeit 10th, represents a better than average return for a club that has not reached beyond the eighth rung of the ladder in the past 17 seasons.
But it still fell short of where many Blues’ fans had hoped to be following the arrival of more than £65million worth of talent last summer that was topped up with another £40million of spending in January.
Still the supporters could have few complaints about entertainment or value for money – theirs or the owner’s – at Eastlands where this routine picking apart of a plucky but ultimately outclassed Wanderers was the thirteenth home win of the season with not a drawn league game in sight.
Fans
Nevertheless there is a vocal tranche of City fans who are never happy unless there is something to moan about so it was gratifying to note a general feelgood factor about Eastlands in the summer sunshine with most of those in the ground able to look ahead and at the bigger picture and therefore see a bright and successful future looming.
Consequently the lap of appreciation, thankfully minus the self-promotion of Thaksin Shinawatra’s farewell of twelve months ago, at the end of the contest was relaxed and well received.
Game fifty-six of a topsy-turvy campaign had nothing resting on it save pride and possibly a few quid from jumping a place up the table but it was competitive enough with Bolton refusing to be stooges.
Wanderers form tailed off markedly in the final weeks of the season, their last win was posted against Middlesbrough on April 4, but they can be pleased with their toils this term. Their main aim at the start of every campaign is simply to make sure that they remain a Premier League club and on resources dwarfed by City’s and a fan base less than half the size of their Manchester neighbours they managed quite nicely.
Gary Megson has had to put up with some unhelpful and hurtful stick during his tenure in the Reebok hot seat but for the most part they have managed to stay relatively detached from the costly shenanigans at the foot of the table and it is hard to see how they could have fared much better. Next year is likely to be more of the same.
Not so for City and Mark Hughes on whom there is plenty of expectation for the 2009-10 season after spending much of this one assessing the club’s shortcomings in all areas and then doing something about them.
The Blues will spend big again in the summer and as a consequence will be linked with every player from Tottenham to Timbuktu and from Arsenal to Azerbaijan.
A top six place is firmly on the agenda when the Premier League reconvenes in August though if they can reproduce just a decent percentage of their superlative home from on the road next season who knows how high the Blues could fly. They will not have Europe as a distraction and that might even prove a bonus in the long run.
They signed off in familiar style deploying just one striker – Caicedo – but recalling Shaun Wright-Phillips who made the recovery of the Millennium to take the injured Elano’s place on the right.
Chipped
It took City only eight minutes to break the deadlock and they did so in style. Robinho shaped to shoot from a long free kick but instead chipped it to Stevie Ireland who lobbed it forward for Micah Richards to volley into the middle where Caicedo was on hand to score from close range.
It was almost two in the next attack but Lazarus Wright-Phillips’ raking drive was tipped over the top by Jussi Jaaskelainen.
Even so Bolton were well in the game and as the Blues rested dangerously on their laurels looked the more hungry and likely side for a quarter of an hour until that is Robinho rattled one of their uprights after fine work by Caicedo and Ireland.
Richards then showed his worth in both penalty boxes, underlining the faith the coaches have that he can regain his England form. First he rippled the side netting with a turn and shot and then cleared off his own line when Gary Cahill threatened to level the scores in the 34th minute.
Thereafter, however, Bolton were clearly second best with the Blues dominant without being able to add to their tally. Robinho, Ireland, Wright-Phillips, and Kompany failed to find the target and when Robinho did so Jaaskelainen was at his agile best to keep the score down to one.
Still there was plenty to enjoy for the bumper home crowd as Robinho went through the full eye-catching range of his party tricks, Vladimir Weiss became the 27th Academy graduate to see service and Glauber Berti, after being an unused sub on twenty occasions, finally saw service to a standing ovation that completely non-plussed the Wanderers fans.
Full marks to boss Mark Hughes who showed he has a sentimental side!
What is your verdict on the game? Have your say.
Comments
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Thanks a lot for this season!, looking forward to the next!
Good to end the season with a win despite our wastefulness with the number of chances and possession we had.
Only other bright spot was to finally see Vlad Weiss make his debut (and i guess Berti for trivial reasons). Hopefully Weiss can come on next season but this wont happen unless he is playing regularly at a higher level.
Its a world cup year coming up, his old man is the manager of the Slovakian national side who are on top of their group and world cup qualifiers coming up. This guy is a lot more talented than some of the players at the Swamp that Baconface gave a lot of playing time this season and i'd hope if Hughes doesnt have trust in this gur from the off next season ans someone to breakthrough, then we should really set up a loan for this guy.
Should be an interesting summer of movements.....in and out
Nice to end the season with a win and i would like to say well done to Mark Hughes for bringing on Berti and about time to
pathetic season. awful finish. We just had to get a result against Spuds to make 7th. Couldn't even do that. What do you expect with a rag at the helm ? lowest point in mcfc history; having a rag in charge, that is. disgraceful. Hughes out !
Just arrived home from the game...
Anybody notice how SWP was totally unfit and tired..HUGHES again bringing unfit players back to soon..
I thought Bad Buy Bridge waste of money was a joke first half!
Well done in particular to Ned Dunne Rob Superman...
Did the maniac who ran on the pitch get caught at the top of the stairwell tunning off does anybody know. That was funny!
Well done on 3 points blues, but performance was not good enough!
O dear geordies !
NUFF SAID!!
MH has his work cut out next season to achieve a top six finish but I think he'll pull it off - in which case will Moyes or O'Neill be slated as wasters by the Toffee's/Villian's fairweathers (I doubt it).
Rob was so classy and he lit up the game whenever he was on the ball.
We were so pedestran at times and having De Jong ( yet to prove himself )and Kompany in midfield is so ineffective as they tend to pass square or back throughout the game.
It was great to see Berti come on and the fantastic reception he received was typical of City fans ... none like us or Berti.
There was little in the game to give me any confidence that Hughes will build an outstanding team and,thus, his next investments in players will prove crucial to our new season where nothing less than a sixth place would be acceptable given the incredible sums of money Hughes has been given.No more criticism of Hughes from me unless we lose our first few games next season ..... but then all you Hughes lovers will tell me that could never happen !!
Peter Barnes, Manchester
24/05/2009 at 18:23 Offensive or Inappropriate? Please let us know the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.
Reason: Sending your report, please wait...
Clearly didn't go to the game, and clearly a rag. Do one!
pathetic season. awful finish. We just had to get a result against Spuds to make 7th. Couldn't even do that. What do you expect with a rag at the helm ? lowest point in mcfc history; having a rag in charge, that is. disgraceful. Hughes out !
Peter Barnes, Manchester
All i can Peter Barnes, if this is lowest point in MCFC history, you obviously were not there in May 1983 and May 1998. Lets keep a proper perspective on things!
nice to see berti at last, but he didnt exactly shine did he????? that vladimir weiess as a bit good though
Many thanks lads and MH for the season. To all our wonderful supporters, you are the BEST! Next season is going to be better, and now looking forward to a successful 2009-2010. Time to go on holidays, knowing our CITY are the pride of Manchester.
Riikjaard out
Well done on bringing on Weiss and Berti.
Anybody notice how SWP was totally unfit and tired..HUGHES again bringing unfit players back to soon..
BLUE BOY!! MANCHESTER NOT LONDON!!, Manchester
24/05/2009 at 18:46 Offensive or Inappropriate?
so how come he was man of match according to skysports news then?????
think someone had his anti hughes glasses on again, i reckon if sparky came off the bench an d nodded in the winner against scum youl'd still bloody moan!! get a life man and grow up!!
A season of transition, lots of plus's, certainly more than the other. MH knows its top 6 or out, bad luck, excuses wont do, he will have the money and thats that, of course 10th and a cup would do!
Looking at final Prem table we finished 12 points off the top 6, i.e. 4 wins, given the team is very strong at home, will be strengthened to the tune of many millions in the sunmer, we should be able to find those four wins and we wont have the distraction of the UEFA,
Like I said lots to be positive about, the "council house" was full yet again (47, 202) for an end of season kick about, I can see us adding a third tier either end of the stadium to take us to 60,000 in the next couple of years.
Keep the faith because getting to be the best club in the world "the owners stated goal" will take time.
Finally, I can understand why VK was subbed, with the South Stand keep snaffling the balls and VK's shooting boots at home we may have had to abandon the game if he had stayed on.
Onwards and upwards.
Thank you.
Interesting analysis from Chris Baily.
Interesting in the fact he begins by focusing on our home record but makes no mention of the away results. As a journalist it’s rather telling that he makes a case but emits certain FACTS in his reports. In case anyone wants to know it’s about 2 away wins, if our home form can be described as ‘superlative’ our away form is ‘pathetic/rubbish/not good enough’ lol.
When he makes the point £45 + £65 million spent (£110 million in total – debatable total) since Hughes took over last summer he describes a lower league finish this year as a ‘better than average return’. But again omits last years league finish (9th) and teams who have scored more points who sit above us and have spent less. But how is finishing lower a ‘good return’ after investment is made £125 million?
So he moves onto the the game itself and in truth was a non event none of the teams having anything to play for, maybe Hughes in front of the owners, but the result finishes with city winning by one goal, a win. And introduces a new fact about our home form. No counter balance with a fact about away form, not even a mention about it.
It then moves to an interesting rant about ‘some fans never being happy’. Yet as I pointed out Chris Baily has hardly presented facts in his description so far, or at least he has ‘omitted facts’.
Then he gives the manager full marks. Must be a 10 of 10 for Hughes from Chris Baily. Clearly sparky has a fan!
I have made the point I am looking forward to next year and seeing how Chris Baily’s comments Nigel De Jong, Kompany, and Bridge will all come good next year and that Mark Hughes just needs time as well and things will improve next year. I wonder if he is confident his predictions will prove correct; and that he is correct in highlighting certain fans who voice their opinion and rather arogantly states when the time is to judge a manager. And dismisses those views when next year they may prove correct and his comments incorrect.
Well Done The Blues. The door closes on another season and already I can't wait to see the mighty blues run out for the next one.
Well done Everyone at the club, especially Mark Hughes for all the stick he has had to take on this site.
come on City!
Let the clearout begin.
If Dunne hadn't scored his own goals we would be fifth.
Let's get rid of the lazy wannabee bling merchanst too.
Sturridge has started 3 games and wants £75k a week! Who the dickens is advising him. 'Yeah Danny, City Like yaeh, they got lots of monet so we will take 'em for as muh as we can yeah'.
Get rid of him. He has proved zilch, is with a club with a bright future so should knuckle down and try and secure a place in the side but no.
Get rid NOW.
What a lovely end to the season. The sun shining on the righteous and City fans in jovial mood and voice. Great to see Vladimir Weiss get his first chance (more in the close season tour and pre-season I hope). Also the invisible man - Glauber Berti. He has become a bit of a cult hero and seemed to thoroughly enjoy the thunderous ovation he got whilst coming on as sub. Great things ahead for the blue boys and the best fans in the world......
Nice to sign off with a win.
Anyone think Bojinov not starting was due to MH making a point after hinting he fancied a move to Italy??? Disappointing considering how little we have seen of him since joining.
A mad summer of tabloid nonsense awaits us all.
Enjoy.
Great day, lots of fun in the Lower East Stand re: the pigeon and then the introduction of Berti all good end of season fun.
Yes we can all moan and groan about what might of been, abysmal domestic cups etc but why bother. It's all water under the bridge and it's only about 25 days till the fixtures are out. I hate this time of year (surely I can't be the only one?) It's been a few seasons since the last game of the season was as relaxed especially remembering the Boro fiasco last season.
So thanks for season that at home at least was enjoyable, great football, great goals and most of all thanks for being able to leave the stadium with a smile more times than not.
No doubt there will be lots to talk about in the coming weeks but thank goodness it won't be about another manager.
And at 5.00pm next Saturday remember where you were 10 years ago, and think about where we have come to. We've got Robinho!!!!!!!! he was sublime today.
CTID and beyond
A decent end of season performance,glad to see berti come on good luck to that man!! weiss for me should have been used a lot more than this brief outing this season but definetly one for next year.
Also well done to nedum onuoha on his great run in the team,I really hope his bad luck with injuries is behind him now
why spend 100 million on messi when we can sign up the pidgeon on a free....
Lets face it we were 22 Points behind 4th Place Arsenal & only 16 points above relegated Newcastle. Hardly ground breaking stuff for a team thats spent £millions more than the competition. Agent Hughes you are on borrowed time . The owners will spend very little next season until they line up the Manager they want.