Why Man City

When I mention that I'm a fan of Manchester City Football Club the typical reaction I receive is akin to if I had just declared that I suffer from syphilis. Why, of all the football clubs in England, would an American (who I might add has never been to Manchester) choose to support such an uninspiring team. For the entire time that Man City have been in the premiership, they have been mid-table battlers -- actually, more like perennial relegation contenders. Although they once enjoyed considerable success in the 50s and 60s, since then the team has either suffered through incompetent management or been so saddled with debt that every good player left once the price tag reached above $2 million.

I can't really explain my attraction to the club. It might be that Claudio Reyna became a City player several years ago, and being a rabid Reyna fan I thought that any club that would spring for his services would be worth my adoration. However, if it's Americans I want to see every Saturday my first choice should be Fulham at this point, not City. Instead, I scan the Fox Soccer Channel listings for any sign of a Man City game during the week and religiously tune in to see what must be the most uninspiring football in the league at this point. Yet, despite a five-man midfield and a hapless Italian striker, I still love to watch Man City play.

At this point, I could go on about the seductive joy of throwing the essence of one's being into a football team's every performance, but I can't be nearly as exciting to read as Nick Hornby, so we'll just assume that my infatuation with Man City is a little like Hornby's love of Arsenal, without the eloquence. My hope for this blog is really that it will give me an opportunity to write about something that for at least the last three years I've been unable to express. Like most blogs, I consider this an exercise in narcissism, and frankly, I don't mind.