Manchester City

Manchester City should ditch Edin Dzeko in favour of John Guidetti – June 4th 2012

Few players have had as good a season as John Guidetti; Manchester City’s on-loan Swede has average above a goal every game for Feyenoord in the Eredivisie this year.

Roberto Mancini should start to work him into the first-team from next season onwards.

With Financial Fair Play close, misfiring assets can no longer be tolerated when they have a resale value. In the case of, for example, Edin Dzeko, City could be recouping a fee for the profligate Bosnian and allowing a youngster of Guidetti’s pedigree to be benefitting from his share of the minutes.

Despite his short time in England, it’s already apparent that Dzeko will never transition fully enough to Premier League football to be a credible first-choice for City – and he doesn’t seem to have the mentality required to enter a game from the bench and have a definitive impact. The drop-off from Sergio Aguero to Dzeko is too great.

Guidetti is by no means a finished article – and he’s at present an inferior option to Dzeko, but there comes a point where being involved with the first-team on a regular basis and learning to play alongside stars like Aguero, David Silva, and Yaya Toure may be of more benefit that another loan spell.

City have to start integrating their ‘homegrown’ players a bit more from now on, because there’ll be a stage in the future when the new regulations prohibit them from seeking quick-fixes from elsewhere in the market place.

Bayern Munich are supposedly interested in spending eight figures on Dzeko, so why not accept whatever price they’re willing to pay and at least make a start on the climb back to breaking even – and with no extra expense, Mancini would still have an exciting talent in Guidetti at his disposal. He may be just twenty, but the by has the physique of a player five years older, and the confidence of a veteran – he’s definitely up to it, and his talent ceiling is far higher than Dzeko’s.

Plus of course, there’s always the risk that if he isn’t given a proper chance at City – after having the kind of season he’s just turned in – the club may risk losing a prodigious talent.

Manchester City’s alternatives to Eden Hazard – May 29th 2012

You can’t help feeling that had Chelsea not won the Champions League, then Eden Hazard would be house-hunting in the North of England rather than London this Summer. Given the ego-driven way in which the Belgian has conducted himself over the last few weeks, maybe City and United fans will come to be grateful for the player’s short-termism in time.

With Roberto Mancini still in the market for an offensive player though, what options exist for him around?

Younes Belhanda – Montpellier

With all the talk of Hazard and Lille, it’s almost been forgotten that Montpellier won the Ligue 1 this season – and staved off the challenge from big-spending PSG in the process. Their key duo? Olivier Giroud obviously, but also Younes Belhanda, an exciting, pacey attacking-midfielder who returned 12 goals and 6 assists this season. The Moroccan international was also short-listed for both the Young, and Player of the Season awards this season – losing out to Hazard in both.

Would command roughly half the fee of the Belgian, and may well be a better fit for Roberto Mancini’s ‘team’ ethos.

Franck Ribery – Bayern Munich

Not a cheap alternative, but a very, very good one.

We’re all familiar with what Ribery brings to a team; creativity, goals, set-piece expertise – his 16 goals and 26 assists in the Bundesliga in 11/12 is a decent measure of the influence he’s capable of exerting.

It would cost a King’s Ransom to prise him away from Germany, but since when has that been a problem for City. After five years in Munich, maybe it’s time for the Frenchman to make that move to a top-tier league?

Josip Ilicic – Palermo

Essentially, the 6ft3 Slovenian bears comparison with Luka Modric – neat and tidy on the ball, an eye for a defence-splitting pass, and, in addition, equipped with the physique to thrive in England.

All of that without having to even pick up the phone to Daniel Levy or part with £40m.

Lucas Moura – Sao Paulo

The next Brazilian superstar midfielder, and by all accounts a player highly-regarded by every elite club in Europe. At least, the ones that could afford him.

Chelsea’s acquisition of Hazard has probably ended their interest, but Manchester United supposedly remain very keen.

With the skillset that enables him to operate comfortably in most advanced positions, Lucas would be a terrific addition to what already exists at Eastlands, and one who would improve the attacking dexterity of Mancini’s side.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Manchester City? Not that unlikely – May 17th 2012

Rob Beasley is reporting in The Sun this morning that Roberto Mancini is pursuing AC Milan’s Swedish forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Speculating as to the figures associated with any deal is essentially worthless – it’s Manchester City and Ibrahimovic, they would be extremely large if it happened, that’s really all that’s worth knowing.

Forget that we’re currently in transfer rumour silly season for a second, because this isn’t that unlikely. Roberto Mancini signed the Swede for Inter Milan in 2006, and you could see the logic in trying to pair him up with Sergio Aguero. As a combination, that would be genuinely terrifying for any opponent.

A couple of other things to note: Ibrahimovic will always go where the money is, and that obviously plays into City’s hands. Additionally, his agent is well-known to the Manchester club, as Mino Raiola also represents Mario Balotelli – and that’s the same Mino Raiola that never met an agent-fee he didn’t like.

Yes, it’s in The Sun, so you all probably screamed ‘bollocks’ when you read it, but this might have some mileage to it.

He’s a colossal tosser, but he can really play – having him in the Premier League would be to everyone’s enjoyment. Maybe not Manchester United fans, but you get the point…

Yaya Toure’s agent encouraging Manchester City exit – May 16th 2012

This is absurd. And this is also an example of why the agent licensing process needs to be tightened up – players’ representatives are destroying the game with their agitating, attention-seeking, and cash harvesting. There has to be a stricter code of conduct around interaction with the press, because this kind of behaviour is now wildly out of control.

Here’s Yaya Toure’s agent, Dimitri Seluk, being quotes in The Sun this morning:

“He has done all he can do at City and he needs new motivations.

Toure could sign for many big clubs like Chelsea and Bayern Munich. Also, We would like to see Barca join the race.

I have not spoken to Barca but they know the situation. I do not know if Madrid are interested but Jose Mourinho has liked him since he was at Chelsea.”

Sorry, I thought he wanted ‘to take over the world with City’, and that the Champions League might be something a remaining ‘motivation’.

No?

How about this instead, Dimitri: you and your client respect the contract that he signed less than two years ago. Players have got to learn that they can’t just have what they want all the time – this is a two-way process.

Given Yaya Toure’s performances this year, most of us were ready to take back the mercenary accusations that accompanied his move from Barcelona. Not now though – he quite clearly is for sale to the highest bidder.

New challenges? Bollocks – this is about new contracts and new signing-on fees. And Chelsea? Why would anyone want to go to Chelsea now – as of Saturday night they won’t even be playing in the Champions League.

If this is true, and this isn’t another example of an agent acting above his pay-grade, then it’s just very sad – the parade in Manchester has barely finished, and already one of the players is raining on the parade.

The game has no loyalty left in it. It’s embarrassing.

Desperate for something to happen at Manchester City’s training ground – May 10th 2012

There have been many Mario Balotelli-themed stories this season, but this is probably the worst. The papers, understandably, seem to trail the Italian night and day with the hope of him providing some additional content.

The Daily Mail, favourite of the housewives and enemy of real people everywhere, have this morning won the prize worst football story of the year. It’s a remarkable effort.

“Talking tactics or a telling off? Balotelli gets private training ground chat with Mancini”, is the headline, and you can probably guess how pointless the story is going to be from that point on.

‘So what’s he done now then? Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini is busy preparing his side for Sunday’s title decider at home to QPR.

But he had to take time out during Wednesday’s training session at Carrington to pull controversial striker Mario Balotelli to one side.

The pair appeared to hold an animated discussion with Mancini waving his finger at Balotelli, in what looked to be a bit of a grilling.’

Okay, that doesn’t sound unusual for a training session at a football club, does it – so presumably there’s a bit more to this for it to justify its publication?

No, there isn’t.

So, the Mail have printed a story about two Italian men holding a discussion and using their arms to gesticulate at each other. Fu-cking hell; that’s probably never happened before. Is this really what passes as journalism now, or does the search for negative City stories validate everything, no matter how thin.

If the founding fathers of the internet had known that their creation would be used for stories like this, they’d have surely torn up the blueprints.

Staggeringly weak.

Five reasons why Manchester City deserved their win last night – May 1st 2012

Roberto Mancini’s team selection

Picking Carlos Tevez and Sergio Aguero in the same starting eleven was a statement of intent. Even though City needed to win last night, Mancini could have bowed to his defensive instincts and approached the fixture with a safety-first philosophy. That he didn’t showed his increasing understanding for what constitutes a successful formula in English football – attack your opponent, and let them worry about the threat you posses rather than vice versa.

Yaya Toure’s performance

If you could pick one player in the Premier League to base an entire team around, a fair proportion of managers would take the monolithic Ivorian midfielder. On arriving in England, most of us assumed that he’d be designated a destroyer’s role in front of the defence – few people can claim to have had an appreciation for how complete a player he really was. Is there anything he didn’t do well last night? His tackling, his distribution, and his energy levels and commitment were all without compare – and he was involved in everything that City did well on both sides of the ball.

The nullification of Wayne Rooney

Rarely will you see the England forward reduced to such a peripheral figure in a game. As a rule, the deeper you see Rooney play, the better the defense he’s facing is performing. And how frequently did he drop back last night?

Vincent Kompany and Joleon Lescott clearly deserve the majority of the praise for wrapping Rooney up, but the entire City side showed an understanding of how to negate his attacking threat – which is a real compliment when you consider quite how multi-dimensional the United forward can be. No joy centrally, no influence in wide postions, and starved of possession when he came to try and collect it.

A masterclass in how to remove his influence.

The selection of Pablo Zabaleta

Is there a more undervalued player in the league than Pablo Zabaleta?

Micah Richards may be the more watchable right-back, but Zabaleta is the more reliable – and probably better – one. Gary Neville did a good job analysing this before kick-off; through his tendency to go forward, Richards leaves gaps in behind him – which is perilous given the lack of midfield-defensive support offered by City’s system.

Zabaleta’s selection blocked up an area of the pitch where United usually enjoy success, while also providing offensive support when his side went forward. If English full-backs could understand the importance of that balance – or even come close to achieving it – we’d all be looking forward to Euro 2012 a little bit more.

Their treatment of Manchester United

City see Manchester United as what they are: an average side propped-up by their reputation. It’s amazing how many teams facing United are still essentially beaten in the tunnel, but not City. Mancini’s players went after the neighbours last night, and showed them the required lack of respect that’s needed to conquer them. There really is nothing to fear from this version of Manchester United, yet City are the only team in the league that seem to believe that.

Four ways in which Manchester City can win tonight – April 30th 2012

Play with intensity

Manchester United won’t be phased by the occasion this evening, they’ve been in this situation too many times – they know how to close out a title. From the first whistle, everything City do has to be geared towards unsettling their opponents and giving them a reason to doubt themselves.

This is not a good Manchester United side, City have every reason to believe that they can hurt them – which is contrary to how most sides in the league have played this fixture over the season. They’re just another team, there’s nothing to fear other than self-doubt.

Play Carlos Tevez

Yes, partly because of the ‘tempting fate’ quality that goes with the Argentine’s inclusion, but also because Jonny Evans will likely miss the game tonight and Chris Smalling will have to deputise. Smalling has not played a lot of football this year, and so United want to keep as much pressure on him, and that frail United defence as possible – Sergio Aguero(f/g) obviously provides a threat by himself, but coupling him with Tevez(f/g) gives United’s fledgling backline something extra to think about.

Plus, of course, why disrupt a system that seems to be working so well – momentum is king in any game.

Take their chances

Another obvious point, but one that’s hugely important. When you have Manchester United under pressure, you must score goals against them. Think back to last month, and United’s visit to White Hart Lane – hammered for over an hour, they somehow escaped with a 3-1 win and all the points. City cannot afford to be profligate in front of goal tonight, because no team in Premier League history has been better than Sir Alex Ferguson’s side at punishing sides who let them off the hook.

A sub-point here is the first goal. If City concede it, all of those doubts and nerves that became synonymous with their football through March and early April will come flooding back – yes, they have to win tonight, but Mancini can still afford a sensible approach. No panic necessary.

Leave out Mario Balotelli

What’s been the deciding factor in the last two games between these two sides? A red card. As talented as Balotelli undeniably is, he just can’t be trusted in a game of this magnitude – he hasn’t yet demonstrated that he has the temperament for this kind of occasion. Too much of a risk, keep him sat down unless absolutely necessary.

Five reasons why Manchester City deserve to win the title – April 30th 2012

They have played the best football.

On several occasions this season, and notably against some of the league’s leading teams, Manchester City have been magnificent. They eviscerated Spurs 5-1 at White Hart Lane, and utterly humiliated Manchester United 6-1 at Old Trafford. Swansea and Norwich have also been similarly dispatched in the course of this season. When Manchester City are at their most effervescent, there are few teams in Europe that can live with them.

Mancini has shown excellent man-management.

Roberto Mancini is used to dealing with big egos in football – indeed, as a player, he was hardly less than forthcoming – but even he cannot have imagined the difficulties that he has faced this year. Mario Balotelli’s fine contribution with crucial goals was always going to be offset by his erratic decision-making both on and off the pitch, but there’s a strong argument that Mancini has got as much out of the mercurial Italian as anyone could be expected to. And let’s not forget the supreme pragmatism that Mancini has shown in welcoming Carlos Tevez back into the fold, after an autumn during which he could scarcely have shown more contempt for his employers.

Mancini has handled the media superbly.

Mancini knows that the media battle is an essential one in the Premier League war. On many occasions, he has fought it masterfully: most notably when his side lost 1-0 to Everton at Goodison, a result that many in the press began to interpret as Manchester City’s faltering nerve. But Mancini smartly changed the media narrative, by blaming himself for failing to take Everton seriously; it was he, and not his players, who was at fault. With this red herring – or blue herring? – he drew attention away from his anxious squad, allowing them to regroup and ultimately to regain their confidence.

They have mounted a title challenge not like newcomers, but like old hands.

Very few of the players in the Manchester City squad have won a league title before. And they are going up against Manchester United, two of whose players (Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes) have won the Premier League twenty-two times between them. Despite that deficit in experience, they – quite remarkably – have kept the contest close until now. It is that perseverance which should see them rightly rewarded with the league trophy come May.

They have given Sergio Aguero the platform to fulfil his potential.

By the start of this season, every football fan in the country knew of the genius of David Silva. Sergio Aguero, although he had a £38million price tag, arrived in England as seemingly something of a gamble. After all, a sceptical public had seen big-money foreign strikers flop before, Andrey Shevchenko being the most obvious example. Those in the know, or simply those with any sympathies at all to Manchester United, shuddered at the thought. By the age of 22 Aguero had scored over a hundred goals for Atletico Madrid in five seasons, during which time he had thoroughly and memorably outplayed Leo Messi in a 4-2 win over Barcelona. It can be argued that his arrival at Manchester City was the final catalyst for their success: more than being merely spectacular, he has scored – often prodigiously – and has fitted perfectly into the team from the beginning. The Premier League is lucky to have him, and Manchester City deserve the highest honours going to allow his talent truly to flourish.

Follow Musa on Twitter…

Manchester City fans rallying around Roberto Mancini – April 11th 2012

This is something I agree with.

A group of Manchester City fans have started an online petition in support of Roberto Mancini’s management of their club. Obviously certain members of the press have started to speculate about the Italian’s future now that it looks as if City will fall short in the title race.

The fear, understandably, is that rich owners have minimal patience, and that Sheik Mansour will get an itchy trigger finger over the Summer in his pursuit of Premier League success.

I think if that happened, it would be a grave error. Any time an extremely affluent club makes a managerial change, it’s likely that a large turnover in personnel will follow. Of course, a new boss want his new people. The trade-off with that is clearly a potential disruption to a side’s progress though, and that’s the risk City would be taking. And Progress? Yes, City have been on an upward curve ever since Mancini arrived (5th to 3rd to probable 2nd).

For an example of what happens if you don’t show faith in a manager, you don’t have to look any further than the circus Roman Abramovich has created at Stamford Bridge. Vague objectives, ego management, lack of transfer control – the odds are stacked against any new manager who comes into Chelsea before he’s even started.

City don’t want to create that.

And plus of course, is there a more proven ingredient to success than continuity? Chopping and changing never won anybody anything.

Anyway, you can follow these guys – @respectmancini – on Twitter if you’re so inclined…

Five players whom Manchester City should dump in the Summer – April 10th 2012

Edin Dzeko

At the risk of repeating myself regarding Dzeko, it’s not that he’s a bad player, merely that he’s not capable of contributing consistently as a bit-part. His price tag will always work against him, and in a sense that’s hugely-unfair, because he’s a victim of circumstance and City’s volume of choice.

Unfortunately, Dzeko is a one-man case study into what happens to certain types of players when they don’t start every week. His instinct, awareness and finishing attributes have all diminished since his Wolfsburg days, and with every outing his place in the City squad looks less and less warranted.

He’ll never be a first-choice while Sergio Aguero is at the club, so Roberto Mancini would do well to find an interested club in Germany – where his value remains undiminished – try to minimise the loss on the Bosnian, and bring in a forward who’s more comfortable with a supporting role.

Adam Johnson

Another good player, but one that Roberto Mancini doesn’t seem to have any trust for – hence calling into question his worth to the club. There’s also a suggestion that his ‘cut-inside’ style of wing play is a little too predictable to be impactful against top-class opposition. What is it about narrow wingers and the Middlesborough academy?

Irritatingly also seems to believe himself to be slightly better than he really is. Never good.

Kolo Toure

There’s a potential risk with moving him on, because Mancini would run the risk of upsetting Kolo’s younger brother – which would be a disaster.

Here’s the problem with the older Toure: he can’t defend. When either Jolean Lescott or Vincent Kompany is injured, City have a Sophie’s Choice over whether to replace them with Toure or Stefan Savic.

Ouch.

Carlos Tevez

The obvious one.

A fully-focused and contented Tevez is an enormous asset, but it’s clear that the relationship between player and manager will never be the same again. With the title moving out out of reach at Arsenal on Sunday, the game was crying out for Tevez’s work-rate up front, but Mancini still wouldn’t put him on until far too late.

If the rift is permanent, then City have to cash-in.

Mario Balotelli

The Premier League would be less entertaining without him, but his personality just makes him too much of a liability.

His on-pitch contribution is either abject or priceless, with very little middle ground – the problem with that? Title-winning sides don’t tend to contain players like that.

From Roberto Mancini’s perspective, his loyalty in his fellow Italian both calls into question his judgement, and runs the risk of harming his relationship with the rest of his squad.

Chop him out for the greater good.

Reasons for and against…Manchester City keeping Mario Balotelli – April 9th 2012

If you read the papers this morning without having watched any of the season to date, you could be forgiven for thinking that Mario Balotelli had done a one-man hatchet job on Manchester City’s season. It’s all his fault seemingly, and the level of controversy that now surrounds the Italian predicates a serious discussion over the Summer regarding his future at the club.

So, for and against…

For

– Personality defect or not, City still have one of the brightest talents in Europe in Balotelli. Yes, he clearly comes with a lot of baggage, but he’s also a high-octane performer with a set of attributes undeniably useful to any side chasing a title.

– Defenders clearly struggle to deal with him. Watch Balotelli for ninety minutes and count the number of fouls he attracts and useful free-kicks he wins in dangerous areas. He’s big, he’s powerful, and he’s quick; that will always be a troubling combination for opponents.

– Scraping the barrel a little bit, but he also takes an impeccable penalty. As much as that sounds like filler for the ‘pro’ section, it’s a valid point – crucial spot-kicks against Sunderland and Tottenham should attest to that.

– Balotelli’s disciplinary record has been exaggerated to be more of an issue than it really is. From twenty-two appearances this season, he has accumulated two red cards and eight yellow – it’s not terrific, but far from the ‘he never completes games’ problem that it’s been turned into.

Against

– How much control can a manager ever have over somebody that is so determinedly individual? Compare Balotelli with some of the players whom Sir Alex Ferguson has at his disposal – squad members who take instruction and perform specific functions depending on Manchester United’s situation. Balotelli is a force that can be unleashed, rather than an asset to be deployed, and that obviously comes with it’s own set of pluses and minuses.

– He needs to be treated separately from the rest of the squad. Whether this is an issue at City or not, we don’t know, but there must be players at Eastlands who wonder why Balotelli’s extra-curricular activities are tolerated to the extent that they are. The negative effects of this are dependent on the personality of the rest of the squad, but at the very least, it’s not exactly helpful. Imagine if you were Edin Dzeko, how would you handle being left out of the team in favour of someone who brazenly flaunts all forms of club discipline?

– With Financial Fair Play on the horizon, are City not better off trying to recoup some of the transfer fee they paid for him while he still retains a decent market value. As Roberto Mancini mentioned in his press-conference yesterday, a player’s personality can very effectively derail a promising career, and it’s only so long before suitor clubs see that part of the Balotelli package as too vivid a red flag to ignore.

– Maybe England is just too volatile a league for him? The fast-paced, all action, everybody needing to constantly contribute nature of the game here exposes all the worst sides of him. A fiery and uncontrollable temper mixed with a physical style of football? It’s probably not going to go well…

The press creating some ‘Manchester City Punch-up’ stories – April 9th 2012

If you believe everything you read in the papers, Manchester City’s players have had a full-scale dressing room ruck after each of their last three fixtures.

The Daily Mail reports this morning that a City spokesman denied that any physical confrontation had taken place in the aftermath of the defeat to Arsenal.

This is actually a very sly way of creating a story.

Stage one – Paper asks club if a fight has occurred between their players.

Stage two – Club denies it.

Stage three – Paper prints the denial in a suggestive enough way for the original allegation to seem true despite it never having any foundation.

It’s just such a lazy bit of journalism – ‘millionaire players can’t handle defeat so respond by hitting each other’. Utter balls. And because of the perverse rules of our media, denying something almost certainly means that it happened.

The Daily Mail thinks its so far above papers like the Star, and The Sun, and The Mirror, but while it still prints stories like this – not forgetting its pages of bilious hate – it’s real just another example of woefully below-par British journalism.

Go and hack some phones…

Why signing Luka Modric wouldn’t make much sense for Manchester City – March 31st 2012

Tottenham fans will doubtless be concerned by Harry Redknapp’s comments regarding Luka Modric this week, with the England manager-elect describing Spurs as being ‘powerless’ to prevent the Croatian leaving if Manchester City were to come a-bidding.

He’s not wrong; every club in the world is vulnerable to City’s affluence, and all of their players are at a risk of having, to use a Redknappism, ‘their heads turned’.

But does a move for Luka Modric actually make sense for Roberto Mancini?

The player himself is obviously extravagantly talented, but he has no natural place in the City team. He’s doesn’t provide the consistent offensive threat of David Silva, he’s too defensively frail to replace Gareth Barry, and leaving Yaya Toure out of that side is inconceivable.

Couple that with the dawn of Financial Fair Play, and does a probable £40m outlay on a player that doesn’t really improve the side seem worthwhile?

Modric, for all his merits, is not a difference maker – he’s a player that sets a side’s temperament. This is something that often gets disguised by his labelling as an ‘attacking midfielder’ – he’s actually not that much of an offensive asset. In Tottenham’s side, he’s the King of the ‘ice hockey assist’ – he provides the pass that leads to the assist. It’s a role he can thrive in at Tottenham because of the extravagant pace that exists outside him in Gareth Bale and Aaron Lennon. To facilitate him and extract the most from him at the Etihad, Mancini would not only have to reshape his team, but he’d also need to repopulate it with pitch-stretching wingers – would it be worth tinkering with a successful formula for the sake of one player?

No, I don’t see it. The only reason that would merit a pursuit of Modric, is if City wanted to take a key player away from a rival club. Chelsea did this right at the beginning of Roman Abramovich’s tenure, not necessarily with rival clubs, but with a talent stock-piling mentality. City is a different project though, especially under Mancini. Whereas Abramovich was signing cheques for Scott Parker and Shaun Wright-Phillips, there’s a rhyme and a reason to the allocation of Sheik Mansour’s millions.

Modric? No, the money’s better off spent elsewhere.

Georgi Kinkladze: Best Manchester City moments – 20 April 2012

Actually, in our post-Leo Messi/Cristiano Ronaldo world, this all looks quite dated. But still, it’s Georgi Kinkladze, and he was one of the most watchable players in England in the mid-to-late 1990s.

If you’re young enough not have seen him play first time round, imagine a British footballing landscape still filled with cloggers, bad wedge haircuts, and a drinking culture. The little Georgian was a rarity, and made even more precious by the substandard team around him.

Magical, magical player…later to be found crashing cars at Ajax and getting fat at Derby.