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Manchester City: Caballero in goal a gamble

By Stephen Little

LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 21 : A dejected looking Wilfredo Caballero of Manchester City during the Emirates FA Cup match between Chelsea and Manchester City at Stamford Bridge on February 21, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 21 : A dejected looking Wilfredo Caballero of Manchester City during the Emirates FA Cup match between Chelsea and Manchester City at Stamford Bridge on February 21, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images) /
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Manchester City play Liverpool today in the Capital One Cup final, but will their choice of Willy Caballero for keeper come back to haunt them?

Golden rule of writing something and posting it on the internet – never make a sweeping generalisation about something that hasn’t happened yet. Oh sure, you can always scurry back to the scene of the crime and delete the evidence once you’re inevitably proven wrong, but the internet never forgets, or forgives.

Even so, and you’ll oblige me, I’m going to go ahead and say it now – Manuel Pellegrini’s decision to stick with Willy Caballero, over number 1 goalkeeper Joe Hart, in the Capital One Cup final today against Liverpool is a mistake. It may well turn out to be a mistake from which Manchester City recover, or that may not even blow up in their faces in the first place, but an error of judgement it remains.

Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, Caballero, ostensibly thrown to the lions to explain Pellegrini’s head-scratcher for him, attempted to both justify his inclusion in the squad and moot fears simultaneously:

"“It is my desire to play in this final and I am ready,” he said. “It is up to the boss what he does with his starting XI. All the other players are waiting too.“I think it’s a question for Manuel. I have to accept whatever decision he makes. But I’ve played every game in this cup. His decision will be correct.“Do I deserve to play? It could be but I have been thinking about this game for a long time since we won against Everton. We’ve been training very hard for this game and I am ready for it.I am confident because the pressure is the same as it always is for me. I am training really hard. You train hard. But when you don’t play every week the pressure is even more when you are called up. It’s not difficult for me though.”"

Now, it’s tough to blame Caballero here. He’s a second goalie who is being asked to step up to the plate over his perfectly capable peer for a cup final, arguably the biggest game of his career thus far. So obviously Caballero isn’t going to have much shame in accepting despite the more plausible claims of Hart, having one of his best seasons yet, to the starting lineup.

No, instead, Pellegrini must take the fall for this one and one only hopes that he doesn’t take Manchester City down with him. You see, Pellegrini committed to having Caballero be the cup keeper this year back when the Capital One Cup was the Mickey Mouse trophy that was firmly set on his, and City’s, backburner. Since then, City have been dumped out of the FA Cup, are flailing in the league and face an uncertain future in the Champions League. Any hope for silverware that seemed almost assured early in the season seems now to be shrouded by considerable doubt and the Capital One Cup may well represent its totality. Oh how the mighty have fallen.

Certainly I’m looking at things from a fans’ perspective. For Manchester City ownership, the situation is a touch different. The Capital One Cup isn’t fit to serve as Sheikh Mansour’s spittoon, but a semi-final finish in Europe is a red letter season worthy of celebration. For you and me, well, success in football is tangible and a trophy is the ultimate expression of it. Another year with nothing serves only to aggravate, even if strides are being made across the board. Not to mention what it does for Pellegrini’s legacy.

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As for Pellegrini, well, he’s stubbornly sticking by his commitment to Caballero despite the differing circumstances and the real, genuine risk that he may be vastly underestimating a hungry Liverpool side with nothing to lose. Such a mistake was found in part against Chelsea in the FA Cup, playing 6 of 11 from the EDS which both undervalued the competition and essentially waved a white flag from the visitors’ dugout at Stamford Bridge.

Regardless, the fact is that Caballero is the keeper and that’s actually not all that surprising in the end. He’s not our first choice, not by a country mile, but he’s not a grave robber in a crematorium either. Caballero can put in some good performances. He can also put in some shaky ones too, of course. Citizens have to hope it’s more the former than the latter, as the glass cannon Liverpool lineup are always good for a goal or two (in either end).

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Let’s get behind the lads today all the same and hope for the best. This Manchester City side is still understrength even beyond lacking Hart in front of the net, and, the season may yet not hinge only on the Capital One Cup, but regardless the supporters have to turn up and do their job and hope the team does the same. If both happen as they should, then  I can look forward to you coming back here and showing how I was proven wrong in the end.

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