THERE'S going to be no need for City fans to consult flight schedules during the pre-season as the club has decided to play only domestic pre-season friendlies.
The news will disappoint some die-hards, particularly those who got a taste for European awaydays last season. And it also comes a surprise given City's sponsors are Thomas Cook.
Rather than Hamburg, as in last years pre-season, fans can now look forward to travelling to Hull, who along with four other Nationwide sides form the fulcrum of the pre-season fixture list.
However, the club is planning to cash in on a showpiece home tie at Eastlands on August 7, where they hope to line up a heavyweight European side.
The two best fixtures in the warm-up feature two Blue legends Andy Morrison and Shaun Goater.
The trip to the Seasiders is in aid of Morrision's testimonial, while the August 2 encounter at Reading will go to the foundation that Goater has set up to aid football development in his homeland of Bermuda.
confirmed dates - all away - are:
Bury on July 21 7.30pm,
Blackpool (venue to be confirmed) on July 24 3pm,
Hull July 28, 7.45pm,
Wolves July 30, 7.45pm
Reading August 2, 8pm.
The home game will wrap up public preparation on August 7.
Disappointed by the pre-season line-up? have your say
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Go on then, better cancel yer hols for a night trip to Hull.
We've only just finished the last season. Give us a break. Most City fans are more concerned about what KK is going to do with the squad between now and August than who we are playing in pre-season friendlies. This is clearly a no news day cos the story about SWP is pathetic and the Tiatto story is off the website from Monday!
Is this because the club are so skint? Most Prem clubs even manage the Isle of Man. I'm gutted as was hoping for a major sesh in some European City or another with few people still recovering from their trip to Groclin. Boo!
Probably can,t afford the flights and the hotel at the moment?
Its a bit disappointing that we wont be travelling abroad for some preseason games. We need to make sure we book a world class team to play against at eastlands, the likes of valencia, roma, borussia dortmund, someone like that would do fine.
Look on the bright side you`re preparing yourselfs for the season after next, when all your opponents will be in the nationwide.
lets face it, this is the type of side we'll be facing regularly in 2005/06 season, so we might as well see how we match up to them now and be prepared. Fazackerly OUT ! Keegan OUT!
Big Bird, I'd have thought you'd have more pressing issues like posting your concerns on your own site about Fergie's crumbling empire, rather than taking the wotsit out of little old City.
HEY BIG BIRD,are you sure you are not a closet blue? cos you spend a lot of time on the city board,get a life saddo!
They've let us down already - the Andy Moz tribute game v the Seasiders has been cancelled.
City are now playing Doncaster that day
Absolutly gutted, that the match against Blackpool has been called off. Wanted to say a big thank you to Andy Morrision for his time at Maine rd. Still haven't read about why the game has been called off yet.
I think Keegan really has lost it. Preparation like this will really give him ideas for the season ahead I don't think. You play poor opposition and you usually end up down at their level. If you lose, then you are on a hiding to nothing AND IF YOU WIN, WHAT DOES IT MEAN! He keeps talking about the underperformance of the players and the real class that they really have- well test it agianst the best opposition or does he believe that DF's coaching ability will be tested to the limit by the pre-season line up (probably correct!!)
Oh how wonderful Big Bird. Such originality. I laughed all the way to the kitchen, then I forgot what I was laughing about. So I had to read your comment all over again.
Gutted, i thought they might have come over to play the perth glory. I mean us poms put the average gate up to 12000 over here. Plus when we get to the so called grand final,[3years on the trot] we even manage 40,000, at home that is. Oh well maybe next year.
This is an absolutel disgrace. This is the ONE AND ONLY chance that the club had to give the fans a trip to the continent this coming season.
Not to do so shows a complete disregard for the supporters. They know well how much we enjoy the annual trip and how much it offers to those of us who can scrape together the cash from our miserable existences.
Meanwhile they can continue to bath in champagne and laugh at us cos they can't be bothered to arrange a decent game away.
It's a disgrace. I wouldn'd mind if we hadn't just had to endure such a pathetic season's performances by the overpaid prima donnas. Now we don't even get the chance to get away from it all in the summer.
Typical City behaviour from a selfish outfit who since Bernstein left don't give a toss about the fans once we've shelled out for our season tickets.
Utter waste of a decent opportunity by the most incompetent board ever established at City.
They want or expect people to put money into the club, like has happened to Chelsea, U**ited and Liverpool and yet won't do any preparation work for it, instead they will sit on their backsides and think that somebody is going to come along on a white horse riding through the sunset, saying "I want to plough money into you".
Time for Wardle, Makin, Tueart and all the other dreamers to get a grip with reality, on the field we are in a state (1st team wise), off the field we are light-years behind the likes of Birmingham and other meaningless clubs.
The Blackpool game has been cancelled
Quite right. Why reward an underperforming squad with trips to Rome, Paris, Madrid, etc. Perhaps this may serve as a reminder of where they could have been playing next season. The other side of the coin: Glad that a big club can make the effort to help out financially-struggling sides (Bury, not City!)Not sure how much these smaller clubs earn from each match but sure to be more than a visit from Torquay United. What
are Arsenal, Chelski and manu doing for friendlies? And by the way, friendlies are simply that! Don't get het up about selection or results.