Small Club Mentallity
For decades, there has been nothing particularly outstanding about Manchester City Football Club. They've never won the Premier League (or come close for that matter, and the old Division 1 title doesn't count), they've won 4 FA Cups. the last one coming in 1969, they've won the league cup twice, the last coming in 1976 and they won the old Europeans Cup Winner's cup back in 1970.
MCFC has not won anything noteworthy since 1976.
So for 33 years people have laughed at them, even though their supporters stayed strongly loyal. Over the years they encountered relegation and promotion, they had some good players like Georgiou Kinkladze play for them (I bet you're like Geor....who?). But over the years they have won nothing.
Am I saying players like Kinkladze and Ali Bernabia are not good players? Of course not, those players were brilliant at times. How about Shaun Wright Phillips and Anelka? Of course they were good too. Anelka was the club's leading scorer the year he spent most of the season injured and SWP went to Chelsea for an obscene amout of money.
Then why no suceess? Why nothing for 33 years?
Because they never had a good complete TEAM at any point of time. Because no manager was capable enough and/or given enough time to do that. Because the players I've stated are all good but have never played together. Even though they are good players, all of them except Anelka (who has won Premier League, Champions League and numerous medals overseas) is proven World Class material. They don't have the EXPERIENCE of winning and thus cannot translate it onto the pitch consistently.
MCFC's failure has been especially strongly highlighted due to their neighbours, a certain Manchester United Football Club.
MUFC has won the Premier League ELEVEN TIMES, the old division one SEVEN TIMES, FA Cup ELEVEN TIMES, League cup THREE TIMES, Charity Shield THIRTEEN TIMES, Champion's League THREE TIMES and Intercontinetal and World Club Cup once each.
The two clubs are Geographical neighbours. So why has MUFC achieved the success Man City has not been able to?
1. Willingness to bring in outside talent - The most influential players ever at the club, namely ERIC CANTONA and ROY KEANE were brought in from Leeds and Nottingham Forest respectively. And don't forget Peter Schmeichel, many others I shall not name and Critiano Ronaldo.
2. They have a good youth system. Giggs, Beckham, Butt, the Nevilles, Scholes. That's 6 of 11.
3. Their Manager, Sir Alex Ferguson. When he took over in 1986, the club had won nothing for 20 years. He changed the system of the club and instilled his own training methods which ended Manchester United's title drought. But he took time; 4 years to be exact before the first title came. And after that the trophies never stopped coming.
4. Success breeds success - The more MUFC won. the richer they got. The more sponsors they got, the more fans they got, the more loans they could get, the more their stock prices rose, the more money the club had. The more money they had, they could buy better players. Jaap Stam, Ruud Van Nisterooy et al came expensive. But they won stuff. And thus made the club even more successful and richer.
5. They learnt from mistakes and are not afraid to cut their losses - Veron was brought in at 32 million pounds. Sold him at a loss. Eric Djemba Djemba anyone? Of course SAF is not God and is bound to make mistakes. However, he deals with these mistakes and is uncomprimising in his stance towards things that hinder the greater good ie club interest. Jaap Stam? Gone. RVN? Gone. Why? Because they disrupted his success. On the other hand, Managers like Kevin Keegan were too friendly with their players and as a result, England under him did so poorly. Oh, he got sacked by the way.
6. Players with experience - Why did SAF bring in Teddy Sheringham in the twillight of his career? Why Andy Cole? Why Laurent Blanc when it was clear he lacked pace? Why is Giggs still playing at the ripe old age of 35? And why is it all these players, despite their age, managed to help MUFC win and achieve success? One word EXPERIENCE. Experience of winning at the highest level. This is a consistent requirement in all successful teams. You can have hunch of talented youngsters, but you need a few old warhorses who have been there and done that to guide the younger ones. Skill can be gained by practice but mentality can only be taught.
So let's return to MCFC for a while. Things are starting to change there because a Shiekh Mansour has led a consortium in purchasing the club. Now they are worth about one billion dollars. Last year Man City broke into the top 10 at number 10. This year they are expected to be in the top 4. Why?
1. They are now rich and can buy proven players with the EXPERIENCE to win for eg Tevez, Abedayor and Kolo Toure.
2. They have talented youngsters such as Micah Richards and Nedum Onuha.
3. They have exciting youngish players eager to prove themselves like Robinho and Stephen Ireland.
But one thing Man City doesn't have is history. Should it matter? Not really, since MUFC did not have success for 24 years before and after SAF came on board as well. The only thing which still is undecided is the manager's pedigree, Mark Hughes, interestingly a former MUFC striker who achieved much with the club. If he has half the talent and ability of his mentor, then MCFC should prepare themselves for great things to come.
It is certain SAF's feathers are ruffled by their perennially poor neighbours suddenly becoming a very real threat to their dominance, as if they don't have enough problems from Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool already.
SAF famously said "Man City are a small club with a small mentality" after MCFC unfurled a poster of Carlos Tevez with the words "Welcome to Manchester" printed on it. It only took a poster to rile him because he knows the very real danger MCFC poses. He took 4 years to taste success; I'm pretty sure Mark Hughes will take less unless a spate of unfortunate injuries destroy the team. Nonetheless, there is still next season, and even better players, a better youth system and more coporate sponsors to assure MCFC of their impending greatness.
I half-believe the players who go to MCFC when they say "It's not about the money". I mean, I don't think it's NOT about the money (which is a lot) BUT I also believe winners do not rest on their laurels. They do not say "Ok, I've done enough, I've won something. I'm not going out of my comfort zone now"
Winners do what they do best all the time; WIN.
Not just win the conventional awards and continue a system, they also CREATE a winning culture and BUILD their own legacy. They know when something exciting is on the cusp of materialising. They are enticed by the possibility and challenge of a situation. They view what others see as problems as intriguing possibilities for themselves.
The churches and ministries have much to learn about success.
I find it really amusing that while we are often reminded to look to the future and not dwell on the past, the church chooses to dwell on a most crucial event, that happened 2000+ years, ago all the time.
I find it strange that while we are told that Christ has won the victory, we are allowed to then slacken off and rest on our laurels.
I find it stupid that when Christ came to earth on His divine mission to save humantiy from eternal damnation, He was focused and knew his plan and deadlines, even going so far to tell his disciples when they would betray or deny Him.
Why work on deadlines? Why plan in advance? Let's just all wait and see how.
I find it the funniest when God used Saul (Paul), a jew of jews, Pharisee of pharisees, to exact his plans.
What was God thinking? Surely this guy who comes in fear and trembling cannot do the job! Surely the Spirit he speaks of that convicts him is a lie! He is just a good speaker! He was a leading Christian Hunter after all! How could it be that the New Testament uses so many of his espistles?
Most of all, I find it the most idiotic when Church leaders are so good at detecting nuance but fail totally at seeing the big picture. They are what SAF talks about; A small club with a small club mentality; Never really believing they are going to be anything big.
They use nothing but conventional methods on the youth but expecting the youth to use radical methods in the Missions field.
The road to success has always been the same. It's just a matter of why you are doing it and whether it is going to succeed.
The way I look at it, right now, we fail.
Seth