Stoke v Manchester City open thread
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Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Shades of Makelele from de Jong
In the modern game, the role of the defensive - or holding - midfielder has taken on increasing importance. So much so that the architect of this position, Claude Makele, has even lent his name to the role.
Given the attacking options in our line-up at present, having a dominating player in this position is crucial to our success and what has been evident is that both Gelson and Didi Hamman may not quite be up to the task.
Although question marks were raised over the fee paid for Nigel de Jong, quality at this position is at a premium and given the graphic below from The Guardian, his impressive debut may be an indication that we have found a long term solution for this role.
The chalkboards are a new feature offered up by The Guardian and will hopefully be something that I'll use regularly over the coming months whenever there is something of interest that can be picked out.
Given granted permission to hold talks
Breaking news in that Newcastle's Shay Given has been allowed to speak to ourselves over a possible move.
No mention of any agreed move at this stage but more details to follow shortly no doubt.
Friday transfer round up - a busy morning
A busy day news wise so far, with a further bid for Roque Santa Cruz being rejected by Blackburn. Mark Hughes said of the bid:"Yesterday afternoon we put an improved bid in for Roque
Santa Cruz that was rejected, (the bid) an improvement. “We have to make a
decision on that and the window is open until the second so we’ve got time if we
decide to do that.”
What could be in our favour is that it is being reported that Blackburn are hoping to land either Peter Crouch or El-Hadj Diouf which could signal Santa Cruz's exit from the club.
No further progress on Shay Given, but again, Hughes confirmed their has been a bid lodged:“The situation with Newcastle is that obviously we’ve put in
a bid for Shay Given and we haven’t had an update on that.
“I’ve said
I’m looking to bring in an experienced keeper and he ticks the box in that
respect. Whether or not the deal happens we’ll have to wait and see."
Furthermore to this, it has been reported that Given has failed to show for training this morning at newcastle.
A couple of players linked with oves out of the club with Fulham being turned down with their bid to take Felipe Caicedo on loan for the remainder of the season, whilst out of favour Jo has been linked with a move to surprise Bundesliga outfit Hoffenheim.
Stoke v Manchester City preview
We take our four match unbeaten run down the M6 tomorrow to face a Stoke side who are attempting to arrest a winless streak that has seen them fail to win in nine games, including the last four at home.
Stoke's home form has been their saving grace this season, with their early season helping them stay on the fringes of the drop zone but they are in real danger of getting caught up in a relegation battle if they cannot halt their recent poor run of results.
Team wise, both Shaun Wright-Phillips and Pablo Zabaleta are set to undergo late fitness tests, but should they come through succesfully it is almost certain that Mark Hughes will stick with the side that defeated Newcastle 2-1 in midweek with no new arrivals expected in time for the game.
Stoke (from): Sorensen, Griffin, Shawcross, Abdoulaye Faye, Sonko, Higginbotham, Lawrence, Delap, Amdy Faye, Whelan, Etherington, Beattie, Fuller, Cresswell, Simonsen, Kitson, Pugh, Olofinjana, Tonge.
Man City (from): Hart, Schmeichel, Zabaleta, Ohuoha, Richards, Bridge, Ball, Garrido, Ben Haim, Wright-Phillips, Kompany, Fernandes, De Jong, Elano, Ireland, Robinho, Bellamy, Jo, Vassell, Caicedo.
Much has been of Stoke's approach this season but I do feel Hughes has assembled a solid looking side and graft as well as guile has been evident in our past two victories so I don't see us likely being muscled out of the game.
Although our form has picked up of late, we are still struggling away from home but with our tails up and an eye on seventh position, I'll back our extra quality to ensure we take all three points from this one.
Some game notes:
Our Premier League games have produced 72 goals (41 for, 31 against); only those involving Hull have yielded more (73).
We have now gone 29 games without a no score draw.
Stoke have yet to beat a North-West club in the Premier League after nine attempts; failed to score in the last seven.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Thursday transfer round up - running out of time?
With Sky Sports News deadline ticker edging closer to showing just three full days remaining, our final negotiations will need to be concluded swiftly in order to be completed in time.
Sam Allardyce has already said today that 'time has run out' on our attempt to land Roque Santa Cruz, and given Matt Derbyshire has today joined Olympiacos Blackburn have very little time to land a replacement for Santa Cruz now.
Rumours also linked the striker with a move to Tottenham today, and if Hughes's interest in the player remains, then it looks as though we will have to get close to £20 million as his value will surely increase as we approach the Monday deadline.
Still no concrete news regarding Shay Given, with Joe Kinnear labelling our supposed offer of £5 million an 'insult'. However, Sky Sports News were confident enough to suggest a deal should be complete within the next 24 hours.
These two transfers have remained constant throughout the whole of the window and are still expected to be concluded before Monday's 5pm deadline. With Saturday's game against Stoke fast approaching, it is looking increasingly likely like it will be a busy newsday on Monday.
de Jong named in Holland squad
CITY new boy Nigel de Jong is in the 25-man provisional Holland squad named by national coach Bert van Marwijk for the friendly away to Tunisia on February 11.>>MEN.
Midfielder De Jong, who left Hamburg to sign for Mark Hughes' side earlier this month, will be one of five Premier League players in the squad alongside Liverpool duo Dirk Kuyt and Ryan Babel, Blackburn defender Andre Ooijer and Arsenal forward Robin van Persie.
The days best City links 01/29/2009
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Manchester City 2 Newcastle 1
An important win given there was a need to refocus on on-field events given much of the focus has been on off-field issues oflate.
The three points wasn't unexpected of course, but although Newcatle were there to be beaten it was still key that we picked up the win. In doing so, we stretch our unbeaten run to four games and move into the top half of the table and only four points from seventh position.
January is a key month in terms of a potential points return and with Stoke to come on Saturday, another three points could really set us up for the remainder of the campaign and hopefully silence those amongst the press who still view us as being involved in relegation battle.
Both Craig Bellamy and Nigel de Jong started in an unsurprising line-up, and both had solid debuts with Bellamy capping off a lively evening with a goal. De Jong's presence in midfield saw Vincent Kompany - captain in Richard Dunne's absence - slot into defence and Pablo Zabaleta, again impressive, continue in his new midfield role.
Looking at the line-up, what was interesting is that it featured a majority of Hughes signings and what is clear is that the January signings have undeniably improved the sqaud and given us a far more solid look.
Decide conceding a late goal to take a little of the gloss of the victory, the performance was good. As Hughes said after the game, some of our movement and inter-play was excellent (Robinho in particular) and a definite improvement on some of what has been on display this season.
Stiffer tests undoubtedly lie ahead, but there are small steps being taken at the moment and if anything, the recent pounding we have taken in the press may just have galvanised the club at a crucial time.
With a couple more reinforcements still expected to arrive before the end of the month, things could be beginning to look up even further.
Shay a Given?
So it would seem:
SHAY Given was not in Newcastle's squad to face City this evening prompting further speculation the goalkeeper is on his way to Eastlands.>>MEN.
Magpies boss Joe Kinnear earlier admitted that he may lose Given, who has been at Newcastle for 11 years.
Given's ommission for tonights game comes on the back of Joe Kinnear's comments this afternoon, which were as much a tacit admission of Given's impending departure as they come:
"He's done 11 years here and I think he wants a new challenge."I left Shay with owner Mike Ashley, club managing director Derek Llambias and Given's lawyer Michael Kennedy, and the talks went on for a few hours.
"It's out of my hands and I am still waiting for the final outcome.
"I would be heartbroken to see him go because he is one of the best keepers in the world. But Man City keep banging on the door to talk to him."
With that I would assume he would be in the ranks in time for the weekends game against Stoke.
Club issue Robinho statement
Following press speculation, and statements from the player’s representative and West Yorkshire police, Manchester City Football Club make the following statement.The Club have been liaising with and assisting both the player in question and the authorities in relation to the West Yorkshire Police investigation. Both parties have been given the full support of the football club. No charges of any nature have been brought against the player and no further statement will be made whilst the investigation is continuing.>>mcfc.co.uk
Robinho arrested
Robinho, the Manchester City footballer, was arrested by police in relation to allegations that an 18-year-old woman was raped in a nightclub.
The 25-year-old Brazilian forward, who is Britain’s most expensive player, was quizzed after a university student told police she had been attacked in the VIP area of the Space club in Leeds in the early hours of January 14.
Chris Nathaniel, Robinho’s spokesman, confirmed that the footballer met the police yesterday “as pre-arranged as part of a criminal investigation”.
Mr Nathaniel told The Sun: “He strenuously denies any allegation of wrong-doing or criminality and is happy to co-operate with the police if required further.”
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Manchester City v Newcastle preview
Reports suggest Shay Given will not play in the game, likely ahead of a transfer that will be announced before the weekend, but this will be interesting to keep an eye on given this report in The Mail which suggets Mike Ashley is preparing a last ditch attempt to keep him at the club. According to the BBC, Given has been named in the Newcastle squad.
There are a couple of old boys on display this evening, with Craig Bellamy set for a debut against (one of) his former side, whilst Joey Barton will likely receive a warm reception on his return to the club.
Bellamy should be joined on debut by Nigel de Jong, whilst the wanderer has returned and should start in what looks to be a strong side also buoyed by the return of Stephen Ireland. I can't match Jack in terms of producing a hi-tech graphic, but I do agree with his speculation as to what the likely line-up will be. However, if Hughes decides on a bolder approach (which he has surprised with on occasion this season) and selects Elano, this would see Zabaleta move to right-back and threaten the position of either Nedum Onouha, or perhaps more interestingly, Micah Richards.
What is evident though, is that our line-up will have a far stronger line-up with the inclusion of our January additions and we should be too strong for a Newcastle side who have been sharing our tag as press whipping-boys of late and look to be very light on depth and quality at the moment.
It is inevitable that the off-field issues that have plagued the club translate onto the pitch, and for all the perception that JFK has steadied the ship somewhat since taking over, results have in the main not been overly impressive and Newcastle do find themselves struggling at the wrong end of the table.
We have put together a 'run' of three games unbeaten, and I don't see this ending tomorrow evening and take us to take all three points - with Robinho grabbing the headlines.
Some game notes:
- We are hoping to record three home league wins in a row for the first time since December 2007; Newcastle are hoping to avoid three successive away league losses.
- We have scored seven times in three meetings with Newcastle, and all seven goals have been scored by different players.
- Newcastle have claimed just two points and scored two goals in their last five visits.
Evans set for exit?
CARDIFF are aiming to beat Celtic to the signature of City youngster Ched Evans.>>MEN.
Bluebirds chief executive Peter Ridsdale claims he is battling it out with the Scottish champions to land Wales striker Evans, 20.
Ridsdale hopes Evans' Welsh heritage will see him snub a move to Scotland in favour of a return home.
Although Evans has featured on occasion this season, in truth he doesn't appear ready to be a regular contributor - if he will ultimately be at all.
That said, if he did depart on a permanent basis it would be disappointing given his young age, and any fee we received would be minimal at best. But equally I'm not convinced a loan would benefit either the player or ourselves given he has proved himself at that level on loan at Norwich last season.
Far preferable to keep him at the club and let him work and develop his game under the guise of Hughes and his staff, plus learning far more from the players at the club than he would out on loan in the Championship.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Sunday transfer round up - Richards to Arsenal?
Biggest 'story' circulating around today concerns Micah Richards, amidst a reported £7 milion bid from Arsenal. This of course following on from reports at the end of last week linking him with both Wigan and Bolton.
I don't see a situation where Mark Hughes sanctions his departure, and certainly not for a fee of just £7 million. Arseblogger summarily dismisses this link too.
One interesting point worth speculating on though with this story is that it doesn't appear as though Richards and Vincent Kompany have forged the best of relationships, and given the acquisition of Nigel de Jong seems to point to Kompany moving back into defence, could this be something Hughes may factor in?
We were discussed quite extensively on Sky Sports 'Sunday Supplement' this morning, amongst other things discussing Richards. Ian McGarry from The Sun was on the programme and struck as being very 'anti-City'. Remarkably, he suggested that Richards needs to leave the club in order "to get more games". During the programme, he also stated it was well known that Mark Hughes would not be in charge next season and that Robinho was "desperate" to leave the club - so much so that he has come back from Brazil early in order to try and engineer a move.
Make of all that what you will.
UPDATE 17:38 - Sky Sports have an article and video up on their site featuring McGarry's comments:
The Shay Given link has surfaced again today, partly because of reports suggesting David James could move to Newcastle as a replacement for the soon to be departed Given. From what I've read of James, he appears settled on the South Coast so I don't see him moving up to the North-East - especially given Newcastle's current plight.
With just a week to go though before the window shuts for the season, I'd imagine there will be avenues being explored right until the deadline a week tomorrow. Strongest links of course remain Shay Given and Roque Santa Cruz, and I would still be surprised if deals were not concluded.
Although we have two games this week (Newcastle on Wednesday and Stoke on Sunday), expect transfer news to dominate the headlines this week as things heat up before the window shuts at 5pm on February 2nd.
The days best City links 01/25/2009
Edghill's haunted by ghost of Bellamy - Manchester City - Football - Sport - Manchester Evening News
Comment: Just fine for Robinho - Manchester City - Football - Sport - Manchester Evening News
Jose Mourinho: I have not been approached about Manchester City job - Telegraph
Good Evans! Samaras urges Celtic to take a punt on City kid Ched | Mail Online
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Friday, January 23, 2009
The days best City links 01/23/2009
West Ham boss Zola fires broadside at 'fortune seeking' Bellamy | Mail Online
Manchester City can do little to stop Brazil striker Robinho from partying | Sport | The Guardian
He's not Kaka, but new recruit De Jong can be Manchester City’s driving force | Mail Online
Hughes hits back over Kaka - Manchester City - Football - Sport - Manchester Evening News
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Backing for Hughes
'You might not like the way I do things, but I guarantee that I'll make you better players at the end of it.'An interesting comment quoting one of Mark Hughes's first words to the squad taken from a piece on Stephen Ireland in todays MEN.
Very much a 'pro-Hughes' piece (as was this one quoting Robinho's backing) and also features quotes from Pablo Zabaleta, praising both the changes Hughes has brought to the club and the direction he is looking to take the club in.
It's a topic that Jack has posted at length on previously, namely Hughes overhaul from the Eriksson way of doing things. Much of the criticism Hughes has received has been for the changes he has made, but whilst this has of course caused dissention with certain elements of the side being alienated, even a cursory glance at our best players this season - Zabaleta, Kompany, Wright-Phillips, Ireland and Robinho are players Hughes has brought to the club, or in Ireland's case one who assumed a greater and more responsible role within the side - surely a positive?
Whilst results, and performances, have been disappointing so far this season, I still very much hold the belief that we are on the right path. Admittedly, a second half of the season is crucial to this progress, but given we have put together a recent unbeaten run in the league (albeit 3 games) coupled with the January additions we should be capable of turning round the negativity that has surrounded us for the most part this season.
Thursday transfer round up - who we didn't get
Pretty much identical pieces in both The Guardian and Independent today, stating that prior to our failed bid for Kaka we went after several high profile players, including Thierry Henry, Gigi Buffon, David Villa and David Silva.
The constant theme with all of our interest appears to be the potential selling clubs hiking up the asking price knowing the limitless funds at our disposal.
From The Guardian:
Backed by their billionaire owners in Abu Dhabi, a delegation from Eastlands went to Valencia in December to make it known they wanted to sign Villa and his Spain team-mate David Silva from the La Liga club. City were willing to pay around £100m but pulled out, as a point of principle, when Valencia asked for £135m. "They wanted us to bankroll their club for the next four seasons," said one of the men involved in the deal.
A City delegation also travelled to Turin to open talks with Juvenus for Buffon, the Italy goalkeeper. Juventus wanted a figure close to £100m and, again, City withdrew from the negotiations, suspecting the Italian club were trying to take advantage of what has become known in football circles as "the Manchester City effect".
And The Independent:
The inflated financial demands that Manchester City have faced in their pursuit of players in this transfer window have forced them to walk away from three deals, with hopes of signing the Valencia duo David Villa and David Silva dashed, along with the pursuit of Lassana Diarra, who left Portsmouth for Real Madrid for £20m.
Regardless of whether we decided 'not to be anybody's fool' as Garry Cook put it, as shown with Kaka, I'm not convinced that we are quite able to pull off player recruitment of this calibre at this stage of our progress. Still, I don't think we deserve the criticism or derision that has come our way for these pursuits, and as Mark Hughes said, we should actually be applauded for aiming high.
Elsewhere, Robinho's recent escapade has brought rumours of his departure back to the forefront, with speculation that we could attempt to move for Didier Drogba (and others) in return. This has been dismissed already by Hughes, and I think this is a non-starter and more likely than not a piece of mischief making.
An interesting rumour that was in todays Mail linked Felipe Caicedo. Not a great amount of detail around the story but interesting that it is something we would consider given he moved up in the pecking order with a recent impressive spell in the line-up. Perhaps though, Hughes thinks he may be dispensable given the other options available to him and could get a decent return.
The days best City links 01/22/2009
vote it up!Wednesday, January 21, 2009
de Jong signing confirmed
Manchester City have completed the signing of Nigel de Jong on a four-and-a-half year contract. The Dutch international had been in talks with City recently after they agreed a fee with Hamburg on Monday for his services. De Jong becomes City's third signing of the winter transfer window following the arrivals of Wayne Bridge and Craig Bellamy. The fee for the 24-year-old former Ajax midfielder, who has won 29 caps for his county, remains undisclosed.
Again, confirmation of news we all expected and a good addition to the side I would say, adding much needed depth in that area and also allowing the option for Vincent Kompany to move back into central defence.
Hamburg manager Martin Jol has likened de Jong to Michael Carrick, and it also possible that both Kompany and de Jong can form a midfield partnership - although a definite 4-5-1 would have to be operated.
One issue regarding the signing though is the report of the £1.5 million release fee which would have come into being this summer. If this is the case, are we crying out so badly for de Jong (or this position) to offer around £15 million more just to secure him for half a season?
UPDATE 20:53 - Some comments from de Jong:
“I feel very good and for me it is the next step in my own career after three years in Germany and I hope to be successful here at Manchester City.“The ideas and the planning behind this Club are very hopeful and it’s a new adventure so I’m delighted to be here right now.”
“The Stadium looks great and I think it can only be better when it’s full of people.
“I’m looking forward to playing here and everybody knows that the Premier League is maybe the biggest competition in the world.”
Milan and Kaka hit back
There was an interesting piece in The Independent, which lifts a lid a little on some of the complexities behind the deal, and perhaps (from our standpoint at least) why the deal failed:
However, not so clear cut according to reports in the Italian press today, via this piece from The Mail:Cook's six-man delegation, including lawyers with expertise in intellectual property rights, had headed to Italy with high hopes. They knew they needed to sell their image rights ideas to Leite before they would manage to meet and convince Kaka himself. But that seemed unlikely from the moment they sat down. Attempting to establish whether Kaka's current deal with Adidas left any room for City to tie up image rights deals of their own and earn a return on their £91m investment, the club met a wall of resistance from Leite.
City told Leite of their ideas for a Kaka Foundation, through which his image would make money for a "humanitarian" cause. There was talk of lucrative digital TV and internet image rights deals. Privately, City were astonished that Kaka's current entire image rights income is believed to be €8m (£7.4m). In Cook's previous role with Nike, he was responsible for the international image rights of the basketball player Michael Jordan. They earn him $12m (£8.6m) a year for his signature alone. Football clubs have not touched the surface of such commercial opportunities.
But Leite would only talk about the player's personal terms. "They didn't want to get to the complexities and the sophistication," Cook said. "They just wanted an offer in cash terms." A brooding presence as the talks foundered was Galliani, in a side room nearby.
Getting nowhere as Monday night drew on, City suggested a period of reflection and shook on a plan to meet again in Milan today. Leite's desperation for a quick deal then led City to agree to bring that date forward 24 hours. A new day, they seem to have figured, offered hope of a change of heart. But after Cook and his delegation had left, the Italians decided they could not wait – and run the risk of City embarrassing them by unilaterally calling talks off. Cook was in the departure lounge of Milan's Linate Airport At 11.03pm, Italian time, when he received a phone call from Alberto Zilani, Leite's translator. "We want a cash offer now," Zilani said. Resigned to the fact that the deal was going nowhere, Cook called it off and both clubs formally announced the fact.
The one worry I had with the fall out from the aborted deal, was how this would affect our ability to sign players of a similar standing to Kaka in the future.'The truth is that in six hours of talks with Manchester City they only asked questions and didn't make an offer for Kaka.
'How on earth did they think they were going to buy him? It's one thing buying a property or a company but completely another when you are trying to charm one of the best players in the world.'
Gazzetta revealed that the negotiations had taken place in the law offices of Milan firm Izzi-Tognazzi and were stop start as City were constantly ''asking for time outs.''
Gazzetta said that Kaka's agent Bosco was getting fed up at the fact that City's Gary Cook and Simon Pierce were just asking questions primarily on the player's image rights.
Gazzetta also claimed that at 10pm on Monday night City, after ''consulting with the shaikh said they would make an offer via email the following day.''
Gazette wrote: ''At that point Bosco and AC Milan vice president Adriano Galliani looked at each other and asked to call off the talks. Cook tried to change direction but it was too late as Galliani had already called Silvio Berlusconi.'
The worry is that Cook's stinging remarks yesterday could turn out to be ill advised, given that surely Milan and Kaka's words are likely to hold more weight in the footballing world than Cook's argument that Milan were 'bottlers'.
Perhaps it would have been far wiser to have bitten his tongue and simply thanked Milan and Kaka for their interest and time during the negotiations, rather than to come across as a slightly inexperienced and naive negotiator with little idea of how to conclude a high profile transfer?
The days best City links 01/21/2009
Robinho could face fine - Manchester City - Football - Sport - Manchester Evening News
Gary Cook resumes search for tasty ingredients | Manchester City - Times Online
Comment: City victims of prejudice - Manchester City - Football - Sport - Manchester Evening News
Video: Steve Daley on why his record Manchester City move went wrong | Football | guardian.co.uk
Sky Sports | Football | Premier League | News | Cook offers Hughes backing
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Kaka - the fall out
The recriminations and mud slinging have begun today amidst the aftermath of end of negotiations to bring to Kaka to the club.
Perhaps borne out of frustration, or simply to get make a pre-emptive strike before the inevitable criticism, Garry Cook laid heavily into both Milan and representatives of Kaka (though not Kaka himself it has to be said) with some stinging comments:
“It’s a mixture of disappointment and some frustration too. I think the intention from AC Milan was clearly to sell their player and Manchester City’s intention was clearly to bring him to the football club.“I think there was some political pressure and definitely media space that they engaged in. To be honest, I think they bottled it, simple as that.”
“It would have been great to have had Kaka at this football club, the Premier League would have benefitted, football would have benefitted and we were willing to make that investment on rational terms. Unfortunately, the behaviour that they showed was not what we had expected nor had we anticipated.”
“We’ve been to Milan four times and the delegation yesterday involved three lawyers that represent the legal counsel for Manchester City football club.
“It also involved a board member who had flown half way around the world from Abu Dhabi, myself and one other senior executive.
“We were confined to a room, with no food or drink, and we asked some questions of the football club and more importantly we asked some questions of the representatives of the player and they simple could not answer the questions.
“What they wanted to talk about was; ‘how much are you going to pay him?’We chose not to get into that and we didn’t make an offer to the player.
“Is he a great footballer? Yes. Does he represent all the values you would want to have as an ambassador of the sport global and were we looking for the opportunity to joint venture in areas that would take this club on to a different platform? Yes, but unfortunately the landscape changed and his representatives wanted to talk about how much we were going to pay him.
“Money was certainly the motive yesterday.”
A widely reported comment from Cook was that Milan 'bottled it', and whilst it made for a great byline, there is a definite truth within this as the fan reaction - whilst not a surprise - was quite vitriolic towards Adriano Galliani and Silvio Berlusconi, and whilst the reputed transfer figure of £100 million was needed by Milan, to effectively force a fan idol out of the club in return for the filthy lucre would have been a disastrous PR move and one that the Milan hierarchy, however costly, could not follow through with.
Kaka himself though believes it was more to do with divine intervention than anything else that led him to remaining in Milan:
'I believe I have made the right choice. To have gone to Manchester City could have been a great project but in the past few days I have prayed a lot to understand what the right team would be and in the end I have decided to remain here.
'I don't want anything else, I just want to be well and be happy in the place where people love me.
'From this story I have understood how people love me at Milan, the fans and my team-mates have helped me make this choice.'
None of us know quite how near or far from signing Kaka may have been, but given representatives of the club (let alone the manager) did not meet him - allied with Cook's comments - suggests it was not as close as we were led to believe by the media as a whole.
One theme that has been raised is the knock on effect this could have in our pursuit of other 'world stars', in that this could damage our aspirations of adding the very top players to the club. I don't necessarily subscribe to that view and would like to think Kaka's decision is very much a one off, in that it was solely motivated by the depth of his feeling for both Milan the football club and Milan the city, and however 'interesting' our 'project' was, a move to ourselves or any other club for that matter was not something he could contemplate at this stage of his life.
The whole issue does not reflect too well on ourselves, something evidenced given the level of feeling we have seen over the past week or so, and it has proved how difficult it is for us to conduct transfer business given the spotlight that has now very much fallen upon us.
Robinho goes AWOL
CITY was a club in turmoil today after star striker Robinho went AWOL and the much heralded world record £100m bid for Kaka collapsed.
Executive chairman Garry Cook was in urgent contact with manager Mark Hughes at the squad's Tenerife training camp desperately trying to find out the whereabouts of the £32.5m Brazilian international.
Cook said he has no idea why Robinho has walked out.
City officials are refusing to say whether Robinho stormed out, or that he has returned home to South America.
Full details are a little sketchy at the moment as to exactly what has happened and why, but it does (thankfully) not seem to be linked to the failed pursuit of Kaka.
Closer to the truth is probably the report that he was unhappy at not being allowed to return to Brazil this week (when we don't have a game).
Brazilians going AWOL is not a new development in football, with countless episodes littering football history and the hope here is that it is no more than a storm in a teacup and matters return to normal rather than take a turn for the worse.
UPDATE 13:45 - The BBC are quoting Robinho, who says the club were fully aware all along:
I'm not sure it fully answers the questions though, but it's a start at least."I had made Manchester City aware that I needed to return to Brazil because of a family matter," Robinho said.
"I will return to the club and hope to sort out this matter as soon as possible," added the 24-year-old."
Just what is it with Craig Bellamy?
I'm sure that this ilicited many a response already - most of which I imagine are not positive.
Putting 'character issues' aside for one moment (and there have been plenty) which have seen him bounce around from over the past ten years, but what is it that Bellamy has that has made a number of top managers shell out approximately £30 million for him during his career?
Mark Hughes was particularly effusive today following his signing, saying:
"I am delighted to be working with Craig once more.All of this is no doubt true, given that it is coming from a manager who probably knows him best and there is no doubt that our current style of play will afford him the chance to score plenty of goals, and it is his pace that I imagine Hughes will be most looking to utilise when he gets him in the line-up."He is an outstanding player who provides us with qualities that we are slightly lacking.
"He has blistering pace, has bags of of enthusiasm and has a superb attitude to training. He will be a great addition to the squad."
A cursory look at his record suggests he will return a decent goals to game ratio at the very least:
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1996–2000 2000–2001 2001–2005 2005 2005–2006 2006–2007 2007–2009 2009– | Norwich City Coventry City Newcastle United → Celtic (loan) Blackburn Rovers Liverpool West Ham United Manchester City | 84 (32) 34 (6) 93 (28) 12 (7) 27 (13) 27 (7) 24 (7) 0 (0) |
It is a decent enough record given that he has tended to play on the fringes of a strike partnership with him being most productive under Hughes at Blackburn.
Bellamy himself appears to be happy with the move (although there are echoes of previous statements I have seen from him):
I still find it difficult to see quite how he fits into our formation - something I will follow with interest, as I don't believe he has ever had much success as a lone striker and surely we would benefit far greater from a striker with a real presence to lead the line."They (Hughes and his coaching team) know me better than anybody-else in the football game, and they are people I completely trust in.
"They have progressed me massively, and I owe them a lot. The added bonus is that it's Manchester City and the way it is going at the moment with possibly one or two more players coming in over the top of me.
"I'm fortunate that this opportunity has come along, and I am grateful. I feel I am at my peak and I hope over the next few years to perform really well here."
Bellamy does have qualities, his record proves that. However it is his less than stellar qualities - which overshadow certain positives and tend to precursor anything that he does and it will no doubt take a great deal of work (and goals of course) for him to overcome the cloud that follows him around.
More on Bellamy:
The days best City links 01/20/2009
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Monday, January 19, 2009
de Jong bid accepted
Hamburg have agreed to sell their Dutch international midfielder Nigel de Jong to Manchester City and have said that the decision now rests with the player agreeing personal terms with City.
"The two clubs have reached agreement," the Hamburg spokesman Jörn Wolf said today. "Now de Jong has to agree with Manchester City."
Wolf would not disclose any further details but the German media have speculated that Manchester City may be willing to pay as much as €20m (£18.15m) for the 24-year-old player.
What is interesting regarding any bid we have made is that the BBC are reporting that he has a clause in his contract that allows him to move from the club this summer for a fee of just £1.5 million.
Although the amount we are paying is in a sense no longer relevant, if it is true we are paying around £15 million extra just to secure him in January is maybe a sign that Hughes feels he really does need a strong second half of the season, and de Jong will be integral to that.
Bellamy move confirmed
Striker Craig Bellamy has completed his transfer from West Ham to Manchester City for an undisclosed fee.
The Wales international, 29, underwent a medical earlier on Monday ahead of joining the eighth club of his career on a four-year contract.
Following this mornings news regarding the agreement between the two clubs, this news is merely rubber stamping what was expected.
An interesting signing to say the least, with plenty posted already here which suggests he will have a job winning over the crowd.
I'll have more on Bellamy tomorrow.
Kaka move called off
Manchester City has terminated its discussions with AC Milan over the possible transfer of the player Kaka.>>mcfc.co.ukFollowing a meeting in Milan today, the Club felt that it was unlikely that the two parties could reach common ground for an agreement.
The discussions reached only a preliminary stage and the player was not involved at any time. No commercial terms were framed.
Commenting on the situation, Garry Cook stated: "Whilst Manchester City Football Club has an obvious interest in world class players of the quality of Kaka, we owe it to our fans that such a transfer must work on every level; commercially, financially, in terms of results on the field and within Manchester City's broader community."
Breaking news of sorts as although talks were being held in Milan, there was no further announcement expected during the early part of this week.
It is a strange statement from the club, not giving much away in terms of why the pursuit has been terminated, and not much from Milan either, with the exception of Silvio Berlusconi himself commenting:
"It was my intervention but also his," Berlusconi said. "When I heard he preferred to stay, that he hadn't thought about losing a chance for a higher salary and that he put the values of the club, friendship and fans affection above all else, I said, 'Come on,' and we hugged."Perhaps last weekends piece in The Observer wasn't so far fetched after all.
I'm sure there will be much more to come from this story over the next twenty four hours or so.
Bellamy set for talks
Sky Sports sources understands West Ham have given Craig Bellamy permission to speak to Manchester City. Bellamy's future at Upton Park has been the subject of intense speculation over the last few days after West Ham rejected bids from City and Tottenham for the Welsh striker. The former Liverpool and Newcastle star had asked the club to allow him to talk to City and Spurs after turning down the offer of a new deal at Upton Park. Credit to Sky Sports, who have generally been ahead of the game in breaking transfer news so far this January. The possibility of us signing Bellamy was firmly back on the agenda this morning after plenty of false dawns over the past couple of weeks. It is safe to say his West Ham career is over following his refusal to play this weekend (and he got a rough ride from fans during todays victory over Fulham), and although it appeared initially that he would be headed for Tottenham it would be a big surprise if he was not unveiled over the next couple of days, particularly given Harry Redknapp's pessimistic comments after todays draw against Portsmouth. UPDATE: A couple of stories today firming up last nights Sky Sports story. BBC Sport report a fee of £12 million (with £10 million up front) agreed, with Mark Bowen speaking highly of our impending signing:
"Of course we're interested in Craig Bellamy, he is a player we very much admire and we are hopeful we can bring him to Manchester City.
"We've known Craig for many years, and had him at Blackburn Rovers, and we know what he brings to any team he plays for.
"It does make me smile as I think he is one of those players who you either love or hate. But fans of teams that he has played for love him and know what he gave for their team."
Whilst The Mail has a report (and picture) from Bellamy's meeting with Paul Aldridge.
The days best City links 01/19/2009
How Manchester City can make Kaka deal pay for itself - mirror.co.uk
£15m Nigel de Jong is geared up for Eastlands experience | Mail Online
Kaká: A footballer of faith and fable | Football | The Observer
It may be silly money, but Kaka is a worthwhile target - Telegraph
Kaka's Manchester City deal to spark AC Milan raid on Premier League - Telegraph
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Kaka transfer round up
As we all know, Kaka was in Milan's line up last night for their 1-0 victory over Fiorentina, playing the full game.
At the end of the game, there were embraces for team mates amidst scenes of unrest in the crowd, with the Milan fans venting their anger of Adriano Galliani and Silvio Berlusconi:
It is hard to read too much into last nights events, as if he was pulled out of the line-up it would have been apparant a deal was almost concluded. His appearance last night - whilst emotional - could not be totally construed as a tearful farewell.
Mark Hughes's post match comments following the Wigan game poured a little cold water on the progress, describing the move as 'complex':
The Daily Mail suggests Kaka is in 'turmoil' over whether to agree to the move:"But it is not a simple transfer. It is not just a case of talking to the club and talking to the boy and getting the deal done within 24-48 hours. The deal, if it is to be concluded, is very complex as there are so many elements to it.
"It is not going to be an easy process and won't be concluded quickly. I am sure we will give it the amount of time it deserves. We find ourselves in a special situation. We are interested in one of the top players in the world."
Kaka, the 26-year-old, God-fearing superstar at the centre of what would be the biggest football transfer in history, has been reduced to tears as the enormity of the £100million deal that will see him exchange Milan's world-famous San Siro for the rather more prosaic City of Manchester Stadium sinks in.Whilst it is also suggested that Real Madrid could be set to match any offer, although given their off field instability with Ramon Calderon resigning this week this is highly unlikely.
Perhaps most of interest today is a piece in The Observer:
The adviser to Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, City's billionaire owner, told Observer Sport from Abu Dhabi last night that media coverage of City's offer for the Milan player, plus reported £500,000-a-week wages, was wildly unrealistic – giving credence to growing rumours in Italy that the story has been hyped up by Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi, in an attempt to earn good publicity when no move materialises and Kaká stays at the San Siro. First reports of the "£100m" bid appeared on a website owned by Berlusconi.An interesting suggestion and one which flies in the face of everything that has been reported both here in the UK and Italy this week. I'd be amazed if the whole of the press (and rest of the country) had in fact been hoodwinked.
Far more likely is that Hughes's comments in relation to the complexity of the deal is more accurate, and this is backed up to a degree by comments from Kaka's agent. Diog Kotschco:
"We have to see a good project, a winning project, for any club to be eligible to have a player like Kaká. We have to be convinced that Manchester City can turn themselves – in the short term – into one of the best eight teams in the world."It doesn't appear likely that any deal will likely be concluded by early part of this week, but expect this story to continue to dominate the headlines.
Manchester City 1 Wigan 0
>>Mark Hughes.
“We had to try and focus on the game which was difficult because of the interest that has surrounded events earlier in the week, I thought we really stuck to our test. We showed great qualities for the circumstances we find ourselves in.”
Some thoughts:
Not much praise for our victory yesterday, but a battling 1-0 victory has been a rarity in recent times for us, given our wins this season have all been by comfortable margins.
It was an important three points for us, and whilst the media continue to peddle talk of relegation, we are now only six points off Wigan in seventh place and start the 2009 campaign in good heart.
Once again. Hughes sprung a surprise with his line-up, moving Micah Richards to right back, Pablo Zabaleta into midfield and Nedum Onouha at centre half. On current form, Richards is a better option at right back than centre half, and it is clear that Onouha is more comfortable in the middle. A tricky decision for Hughes in who to leave out of that trio was rendered irrelevant in the short term given Richard Dunne's red card.
He now has the unwanted title of the most red carderd player in Premier League history and of course faces a three game suspension, effectively up to the end of the transfer window. If certain players are brought into the club over the next couple of weeks, could Dunne remain on the sidelines?
Good to see Vladimir Weiss on the bench yesterday. From the limited action I have seen him in, he looks a real talent and proof that Hughes is willing to continue to give opportunities.
Newcastle and Stoke up next to round out the month (with no game next Saturday of course). Six points are really there for the taking given the current form of both those sides. Coupled with some new faces it could be a good month indeed.
Bellamy set to arrive after all?
The Welsh international striker walked out on his club on Friday when they refused him permission to talk to Tottenham, who were also prepared to pay the asking price. He said he would never play for West Ham again. Harry Redknapp, the Tottenham manager, said that he undestood Bellamy wanted to play for him and that Daniel Levy, the chairman at White Hart Lane, was negotiating his transfer. Last night, however, West Ham insisted that they would not do business with their principal London rivals and agreed terms with City.>>times online.
It seems that although Bellamy stormed out of the club on Friday after being told he wouldn't get his move to Tottenham, there is little chance West Ham will relent and grant him a transfer to White Hart Lane.
Not surprising given they have lost a number of players to Tottenham previously, and this of course could play into our hands as it leaves West Ham with a player who no longer has a working relationship with them with ourselves as the only option available as a way out.
Talk in todays press suggests a bid of £14 million will secure the move. Far too much for my liking, but again, relative in terms of the resources we have available.
As mentioned time and again here, he could offer certain qualities, but - added to the impending return of Bojinov - I fail to see exactly where Bellamy fits in to our line up and formation and far better to concentrate on out and out goalscorer.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
All eyes on the San Siro
On Saturday night at the San Siro, where he will start for Ancelotti alongside David Beckham against Fiorentina, support for the Rossoneri’s golden child will be tangible and premeditated.
Protests at his proposed sale are planned and some are predicting violence.
It is set to be a lively weekend in Milan where the Rossoneri faithful will no doubt be out to try and convince Kaka his future lies at the San Siro.
There was some thought that Kaka may not be in the line up for tomorrow's game when Milan host Fiorentina in a crucial clash in Serie A, but all indications are that he will start as negotiations are not as advanced as some in the press are leading us to believe.
Kaka's depth of feeling for Milan should not be underestimated as we all consider whether he is likely to indicate he will join us or not, but the piece in The Mail does suggest that he is said to be deeply disappointed that the club have signalled their intent to accept the bid and 'push him into a corner' as he contemplates his future.
I guess we'll just have to sit tight.
Manchester City v Wigan preview
Back to reality for the time being as we return to on field action after a week off due to the Portsmouth postponement last weekend.
Looking back, it probably came at a good time for us as although Stephen Ireland will miss the Wigan game, the extra week has allowed Robinho to return to fitness (and possibly Shaun Wright-Phillips) and afforded the squad time to rest after a busy Christmas period of fixtures - a mini winter break if you will.
Wigan in contrast, have played twice this week already and saw their win streak ended at United on Wednesday night but have been impressive of late after a sticky start and they now sit in 7th place in the table, nine points ahead of us. I have been impressed with the job Steve Bruce has done at Wigan and he has assembled a decent looking squad with plenty of talent, although Wilson Palacios may be at Tottenham by the time we kick off.
It is difficult to predict exactly how the events of this week will translate on to the pitch, but if there is a 'feelgood' factor in the crowd this will likely reduce the possibility of any tension if we don't get off to a fast start.
Midfield will be the key area for the game and Wigan look lively and combative in this area so (given the injuries) I imagine Hughes may opt for both Kompany and Gelson to try and match Wigan's workrate and try ensure we dictate the pace of the game.
The worlds eyes will of course be focused upon us this weekend, and whilst I doubt one result would have any bearing on Kaka's final decision an emphatic win would at least generate some positive headlines and create some momentum heading into what is still an important month for us.
Game notes:
- Wigan have picked up more points (17), gained more victories (five) and scored more goals (13) against us than against any other club in the Premier League.
- We have not managed to score one home Premier League goal against Wigan in any of the three previous attempts.
- Winless in 10 Premier League games against fellow North-West clubs, losing seven of them; only picked up three points from such games since beating Manchester United 1-2 at Old Trafford on 10 February 2008.
- We have scored only two goals in the last five North-West league derbies at the City of Manchester Stadium; those from an odd goal in five loss to Liverpool.
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