Friday 19 February 2010

The Mancini/Bellamy spat

The main story around the club this morning is an alleged 'bust-up' between Roberto Mancini and Craig Bellamy over the latter's training schedule. It broke overnight in the form of a Neil Custis article in Friday's Sun, describing it as an 'astonishing bust-up.' It came down to the issue of the extent of Mancini's regulation of Bellamy's training, which differs from the rest of the squad due to his long standing knee injuries:

A stunned insider said: "The manager was yelling 'Why are you always questioning me? Why won't you do as you are told? Why are you always questioning everything at training and in games?'.

"Bellamy argued back that he only wanted what was best for the club.

"But Mancini snapped 'I want you to leave now. And do not come back for three months'."

Unsurprisingly this was brought up in today's press conference. Mancini said of it:

“These things (an argument) can happen in a job. I don’t have problems with Craig.

“I spoke with him in the office and read that I shouted at him. But I didn’t. We just spoke face-to-face.

“He is having treatment at the training ground and if the knee is okay, he will be available for Sunday.”

Which seems to put a lid on it. It should not be much of a shock that a disagreement would take place between Mancini and Bellamy over training. Bellamy was reportedly given real flexibility by Mark Hughes and Mark Bowen to train as best accorded with his fitness, but it is entirely understandable that a new manager would want to keep individual's training schedules under his own watch, if not his control.

And it is no surprise that any argument between the two should become heated, either. I love Craig Bellamy, and I think he has matured since coming to City, but it is still true to say that he is no stranger to frank exchanges of differing opinions. The good news is that the 'three month exile' claim seems to have nothing to it, and we could well see him running at Jamie Carragher on Sunday. Which could be fairly entertaining.

8 comments:

Inside Manchester City said...

spot-on post, the manager has to manage. much as i love bellamy, indiscipline is unforgivable at this stage of the season.

The Kippax Street Kid said...

Bellamy is always going to be difficult to manage - perhaps the key phrase here is man-management. The club must have a set of rules that everyone must abide by, but the players - along with every other member of staff must be treated as individuals. Getting the balance right is what the best managers do.

StanMCFC said...

Even the late great Bobby Robson (surely one of the best man managers ever) described Bellamy, in his autobiography, as a "nightmare" to manage.

Hughes seemed to encourage this character trait by allowing Bellamy to "self regulate" the dressing room, by the sounds of it bawl out anyone who wasn't playing well.

Much as I rate Bellamy as a player, and his willingness to give everything to the cause, Mancini needs to weigh up the overall impact on team spirit, not to mention respect for management team.

At the end of the day, no player is bigger than the club or manager. Really glad we bought Johnson. Looking like vital signing now that Petrov is out for a month and the Bellamy/Mancini relationship risks further deterioration.

thomas said...

another storm in a tea cup...if you read bluemoon this morning, mancini was going to be burnt at the stake!

Nicholine said...

I am having serious doubts about Manchini but nonetheless, players have to respect the manager. I think people are starting to lose sight of the bigger picture and personal agendas are not important. What's important is that City beat Liverpool on Sunday -- end of story!

satis said...

Whatever truth there is in this story, Mancini cares only for getting the greatest number of points and will play the side most likely to achieve that. If he needs Bellamy, Bellamy will play.

And making the story even less significant, Bellamy is one of the rare players who will put in maximum effort regardless of whether the manager is his mate.

wizzballs said...

mancini has been there and done it before. craig will be ok. he's old enough to realise that, even if he does only want the best for us, the manager is the one to ultimately decide what that is.

thomas said...

"Craig Bellamy, who was at the centre of a story a couple of days ago, what has he won in his career? I'll tell you what he's won - he's won a Scottish Cup medal and a Community Shield medal, if those count as medals.

"And what has Roberto Mancini won? As a manager he's won three titles in Italy, as a player he won a couple. He's won about 10 Coppa Italias - do these guys want to win trophies or are they just there for the big pay cheque?

"When they join the club they always say 'well actually I'm not here for the money I'm here for the project - to win things, to get in the Champions League.'

"Well, hang on a minute, this guy has got a proven track record already - he's one of the brightest young managers in Europe - give him a chance, this guy might help you win those things.

"I just find it astonishing but, having said that, with the kind of characters involved it's not exactly a surprise."


Actually agree with a notw journo, i think a lack of reality and respect amongst fans and a few select players is utterly shameful.