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.

>>Sky Sports.

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.

Mancini - 'No problem with Bellamy'

A pleasing aspect of Mancini's post match interview was him denying there being any problem with Craig Bellamy:

“Bellamy is my friend,” said Mancini. “There is no problem. I spoke with him two days ago. He understood when I told him he wasn’t starting.

“We have two games in three days and I need all the players at 100%. Today we played Robinho. It is possible we will play Craig at Wolves on Monday.”

Inevitably, Bellamy - being a Hughes 'loyalist' is one of the aspects the media have focused on in the wake of his sacking, with some suggestions being that he was set to hand in a transfer request as a consequence.

All of that was no doubt overblown, and although Bellamy would understandably be disappointed and upset with Hughes's departure, Hughes was not the only reason he came to the club, namely that we offered him a last shot at a trophy and Champions League football. Regardless of how he is feeling, as a professional, he will not lose sight of that and will he realistically get a better opportunity elsewhere?

I'm sure Bellamy will be back, most likely on Monday, as with Wright-Phillips still struggling with injury, Petrov will certainly continue on the right hand side. With his injury history, there is no way Bellamy can feature in every one of the games over the ten day festive period and I'm sure Mancini looked at Stoke as the most likely one that he can afford him to sit out.

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.

"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."

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.

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 0(6) 93 (28) 12 0(7) 27 (13) 27 0(7) 24 0(7) 00 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):

"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."

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.

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:

• tldorc
• guardian.co.uk
  

Trio of bids rejected

Blackburn have rejected a bid in excess of £12m from Manchester City for striker Roque Santa Cruz.

City manager Mark Hughes said he is still keen to sign the 27-year-old Paraguay international, who signed a new contract at Rovers in August.

"We made a bid in the region of £12m in the summer and it (the new bid) is significantly higher than that."

>>bbc sport.

Blackburn also confirmed this on their site, and in addition it seems that our double bid for Scott Parker and Craig Bellamy was rejected by West Ham:

"It's documented that we made an enquiry about Bellamy as well (as Parker). We made a double bid and that was rejected - we haven't gone back to the table but we may well do."

It's probably not a huge surprise initial bids for these players have been turned down, given that clubs will surely be trying to squeeze as much out of us as possible given our financial position. I have no doubt that should Hughes want these players badly enough, then he will go back with an improved bid (as he confirmed in respect of Santa Cruz).

What is a little concerning though is these transfers are now being played out in public. There was plenty of concern at the lack of impact being made in the transfer market this January, so is it the case that Hughes has issued this statement as a way of quelling the growing frustration?

Either way, it is not good practice to conduct transfers in such a way and they inevitably do become drawn out affairs which indicate it could be towards the latter part of the window that deals are concluded.

Far better to keep all negotiations and progress behind closed doors and only confirm transfers as and when they have been completed.

Previous posts:

• Roque Santa Cruz
• Scott Parker
• Craig Bellamy

Bellamy the leader

There were no punch-ups and no fists flying in Manchester City's dressing room last week. Just good old-fashioned verbals.

Typically, it was a vintage performance by Craig Bellamy, bawling out his team-mates after they tossed away a win. In the line of fire was City's back four - Pablo Zabaleta, Kolo Toure, Joleon Lescott and Wayne Bridge - following their draw with Burnley.

He pointed the finger at all of them during an explosive dressing-room inquest, accusing them of lacking concentration in the final minutes.

>>notw.co.uk

I'm not usually a huge fan of stories that Neil Ashton has written about us, but he makes a very valid observation in this piece regarding the leadership in the side. Despite the huge sums invested which has brought an infusion of quality into the squad there doesn't appear to be a real stand out leader capable of galvanising the side; a focal point of the side such as a Gerrard or a Terry.

Perhaps this is evidenced by how difficult it was to select a candidate as captain to replace Richard Dunne. Kolo Toure, Nigel de Jong, Shay Given, Vincent Kompany, Stephen Ireland and Gareth Barry all appeared to be credible candidates before Toure was named as the permanent captain by Mark Hughes.

Early days into his tenure as skipper of course, but whilst Toure has fitted easily into the side since his move and no doubt has the respect of the squad his demeanour doesn't suggest he is a natural leader, something Ashton notes:

Toure is softly-spoken, the quiet type who is always willing to offer advice but rarely shows an aggressive side to his character. That is precisely what City are crying out for, a player who commands respect and can rally the troops to the cause when times are tough.

Bellamy is just the type, a Mr Motivator who is not afraid to remind Manchester City's players of their objectives. He was doing that in the dressing room last weekend, jogging a few memories after their fifth successive draw in the Premier League.

There were many who scoffed when Bellamy was brought in, and predicted he would be a divisive figure in the dressing room as opposed to one with leadership qualities, a rabble rouser rather than a player with the respect of his peers.

It is no secret Hughes is a big fan of Bellamy, and stuck his neck out somewhat when he brought him to the club given the reputation that he carries around with him.

His name didn't garner any mention when the captaincy debate was in full flow (primarily I guess because he by no means thought of as a regular starter) but given his level of play and how he has conducted himself this season the idea of Bellamy as captain may not be as far fetched as it would one time have been.

Parker and Santa Cruz set to arrive

A couple of reports have emerged this evening suggesting that in the early part of this week we should tie up a further two deals, with Roque Santa Cruz and Scott Parker arriving at the club.

Sky Sports suggests Parker will arrive for a fee of £12 million:

Sky Sports has learnt that Parker has already engaged with City officials over personal terms and will substantially improve his current deal of £70,000 per week should the move be pushed through.

Whilst Roque Santa Cruz will arrive for £18 million plus the out of favour Tal Ben Haim, according to The Guardian, which also suggests rumoured interest in Kolo Toure, Craig Bellamy, Shay Given and Jermain Defoe - but we are unlikely to land all our reported targets:

City are also willing to swell the bank accounts of a number of other players, notably Craig Bellamy of West Ham, Jermain Defoe of Portsmouth, Arsenal's Kolo Touré and the Newcastle United goalkeeper Shay Given. There are, however, complications in each case. City are not entirely confident West Ham will agree to sell them two of their best players at once, so that might rule out Bellamy. If so, that would prompt City to accelerate their interest in Defoe even though it is known he would rather rejoin Tottenham Hotspur. Portsmouth want a fee of around £20m, which would be no problem to City but has created difficulties for Spurs.

After the debacle of Saturday's exit when Hughes was critical of elements of the squad, it was likely that interest in any targets would be swiftly followed up. It is interesting that Ben Haim's name was included in the report of the Santa Cruz signing - particularly as it stated that he was not brought to the club on the say so of Hughes.

Given the form of both Dunne and Richards this season, there has been a great opportunity for him to have won one of the positions at the back, yet when he has figured he has looked equally ill at ease.

One thing it does suggest though is that by sanctioning further deals it seems clear that Hughes is going nowhere and appears very much to have the support of those in charge for the long term.

Derby defeat

No-one could argue that on the balance of play over the course of the game that we deserved a point, but having hauled ourselves back into the game on three seperate occasions, it is galling to say the least to come away empty handed and the sense of frustration will definitely take time to subside.

Much has already been written about the amount of injury time that was played, and yes it did appear excessive, but to play devils advocate a little here, it did also allow ourselves the opportunity to grab a winner. Looking again at the injury time that was played - perhaps due to our relief at equalising on the stroke of ninety minutes - we looked like we were frantically playing out time whilst United went hunting for the win. Serious questions must also be asked as to quite who was supposed to be marking Michael Owen when the ball was played into the box for the winning goal.

Hughes must have preached to the side to keep their concentration and not concede an early goal, yet this is precisely what we did as we fell behind barely two minutes into the game. Despite getting on level terms following a mistake by Ben Foster - defensive lapses being a common theme throughout the game - throughout the first half we more often than not appeared to be on the back foot with us allowing United too much possession and time on the ball (something I warned about).

The second half began little better than the first as we once again fell behind early to a Darren Fletcher header, yet once again hit back through Craig Bellamy (the best Derby strike since Brightwell?).

Following Bellamy's equaliser to make it 2-2, we really were dominated for long spells and realistically could have condeded before Fletcher put United 3-2 ahead - of which there hasn't been much mention of the fact Evra went down very, very easily to win the free kick that the goal resulted from.

But credit must go to the side for the tenacity and resolve shown to get back into the game on three seperate occasions where sides of the past would have caved in. Of course, this is no consolation or make the defeat easier to swallow but there are clear signs that yet again that this side does have plenty about it.

In the cold light of day though when the emotion from the defeat settles, Hughes will look at the game and be concerned at the way and manner in which we conceded the goals despite the huge investment in that area. After conceding twice at home to Arsenal last week, it does highlight concerns regarding our defensive solidity against the most potent attacking sides.

Hughes though appears to be fostering a siege mentality at present - with his defence of Craig Bellamy further evidence of this in addition to his post match comments - and having tasted defeat for the first time this season, the big test now is how do we respond.

If the defeat can be used to foster a greater resolve and to learn from the mistakes made in this game, then this side could well be a better one for having tasted defeat in the manner experienced today.

In the clear over Bellamy

CITY will not lose Craig Bellamy for Saturday's Premier League opener after they defused a potential row with the Welsh FA.

The Blues failed to notify Wales that the striker - skipper of his national team - had suffered a reaction to a long-standing knee injury during the friendly match with Celtic at the weekend.

The problem meant he was unfit to travel with the rest of the national squad for Wednesday's friendly with Montenegro, but Wales were not informed.

Wales boss John Toshack was said to be privately seething at the error, and the country's FA could have caused City a problem by reporting them to Fifa.

Under the world governing body's regulations, Bellamy (left) could have been forced to sit out a five-day suspension from Wednesday - which would have been the date of his release from international duty - and City could have been fined.

>>MEN.

Good to see the MEN doing a little digging on this 'story' whilst some of the nationals were quick to wade in with the 'Bellamy storm' angle.

That's not to say the club are faultless though, and whilst it may have been a simple error on the clubs part, you do wish they would have been professional enough to ensure something like this doesn't occur.

After all, it wouldn't be too difficult would it?

"Hello, is that the FAW?"

"Yes."

"Ok, it's Manchester City here. Just to let you know Craig can't make it this week. His knee is a bit knacked".

"Ok, thanks for letting us know."

Easy.

Bellamy concern over career

"I know there are not four or five years ahead of me, not with the injuries I've had," revealed Bellamy. "Maybe I've got one or two years at the most. It will be all over before I know it, so I'm just enjoying it."

>>Craig Bellamy

I remember when he signed for us, Bellamy spoke of it being a 'last chance' of sorts for him which could well explain the attitude and form he has shown since arriving. Whatever the reputation that preceeded him, he was renowned for someone who is very demanding of his fellow team mates and that has carried over to his time with us so far.

I don't think Bellamy will know an exact timescale of his remaining career, yet as he says his history does not suggest a career into his late thirties. That said though, motivation has never appeared to be an issue with him and I'm sure that whatever steps are required will be taken in order to prolong his career as long as physically possible.

UEFA Cup squad announced

City can confirm that Nigel de Jong will not be available for selection for the UEFA Cup this season.

UEFA rules stipulate that a club can register a maximum of three new players in the January transfer window, and so it was decided that Craig Bellamy, Shay Given and Wayne Bridge would be the new signings included in the squad list submitted at the end of Sunday, February 1st.

>>mcfc.co.uk

Initially it appeared as though it was a straight choice between de Jong and Wayne Bridge for the one available spot, but as widely stated on various City forums (yet not in the media), deJong was never available because he played for Hamburg in the UEFA Cup. Bridge of course being eligible because although playing for Chelsea in Europe, it was in a different competition.

The correct ruling is as follows:

17.17 For all matches from the start of the round of 32, a club may register a
maximum of three new eligible players for the remaining matches in the
current competition. Such registration must be completed by 1 February
2009 at the latest. This deadline cannot be extended.

17.18 One player from the above quota of three who has played UEFA club
competition matches for another competing club in the current season may
exceptionally be registered provided that the player has not been fielded:

• In the same competition for another club
• For another club that is currently in the same competition

Furthermore, if the player’s new club is playing in the UEFA Cup, his former
club must not have played in the UEFA Cup at any point in the current
season.

What this does indicate is just how late the loan transfer of Jo to Everton was, given he was included in the list (presumably at the expense of the soon to return Valeri Bojinov) which was submitted the day before the transfer window shut.

Our twenty-five man UEFA squad:

1 Joe Hart
13 Richard Martin
16 Kasper Schmeichel
37 Shay Given
45 Gregory Hartley *

4 Nedum Onuoha
15 Javier Garrido
22 Richard Dunne
25 Wayne Bridge
33 Vincent Kompany
36 Berti Glauber
38 Shaleum Logan *
41 Benjamin Mee *
43 Clayton McDonald *
50 Ryan Mc Givern *

2 Micah Richards
5 Pablo Zabaleta
6 Michael Johnson
7 Stephen Ireland
8 Shaun Wright-Phillips
11 Elano Blumer
17 Martin Petrov
19 Gelson Fernandes
20 Felipe Caicedo
29 Kelvin Etuhu
31 Adam Clayton *
40 Vladimir Weiss *
46 Paul Marshall *
49 Donal Mcdermott *

10 Robinho
12 Darius Vassell
14 Jô
24 Chedwyn Evans *
27 Benjani Mwaruwari
36 Daniel Sturridge *
39 Craig Bellamy

Key:
* Player list B

The days best City links 09/27/2009

• The Craig Bellamy enigma | Football | The Observer

  tags: City

• Scunthorpe United | News | Latest News | Latest News | IRON DRAW MAN CITY AWAY

  tags: City

• Craig Bellamy: A petulant pest who can pick a fight in a phone box, but his boss Mark Hughes swears by him...here¿s why | Mail Online

  tags: City

• Quick healer Vincent almost ready - News - Manchester City FC

  tags: City

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Hughes's Bolton reaction

Unsurprisingly given some of the decisions seen today, Mark Hughes was none too favourable with his assesment of Mark Clattenberg - particularly the decision to send off Craig Bellamy:

“The decision to send Craig off was laughable. It is quite clear the guy (Robinson) has taken him out.

“Craig is running at full pelt and has knocked the ball past him. But for some reason Mr Clattenburg thought Craig was looking to deceive him and decided to send him off.

“Paul Robinson has made out he has dived as he doesn’t want to be booked himself. That is quite a natural reaction, that’s what happens.

“Everyone in the stadium seemed to be mystified for quite some time. Apparently he had booked him after the third goal for dissent.

“Craig was frustrated about the throw in for the goal. It wasn’t just him, a number of players questioned that decision at the time.

“He felt he had to book Craig. To give a second yellow for what has happened and send the guy off, a few questions have to be asked.”

Third Bellamy bid rejected

West Ham have rejected a third bid from Manchester City for striker Craig Bellamy, BBC Sport understands.

On Monday West Ham turned down an improved £9m offer for the 29-year-old Welshman with the new bid again higher.

City are keen to bring both Bellamy and team-mate Scott Parker to Eastlands but have so far failed to land either.

>>BBC Sport.

At what point do you draw a line under this and move on?

It seems that they really do not want to sell, or we are going to have to go in with an offer that so in excess of his true value that they cannot turn it down.

Either way, a decision needs to be made before this borders on the farcical.

• Previous Bellamy transfer posts.
  

Bid for Hammers pair?

West Ham United have rejected a £15m bid from Manchester City to sign both Craig Bellamy and Scott Parker. The Premier League club insist that neither player is for sale and have also moved to hold talks with Matthew Upson's representatives to spell out their intention to hold on to the England international who is also attracting intense interest with the transfer window set to open.

>>independent.co.uk

How reliable the story is we don't know, but the name of Bellamy is not a surprise given the speculation that has surrounded him. As one of the comments in the Blackburn thread mentioned, he was also left out of yesterdays victory over Stoke (after returning to goalscoring form the day before). UPDATE - He didn't play due to suspension.

I really don't see how Bellamy improves our line up. If Hughes continues with the 4-2-3-1 line-up I just don't see where he fits in. He cannot operate as a lone striker, but perhaps Hughes is looking at playing him in a wider role?

Something else to bear in mind is the return of Bojinov. Hopefully injury free, playing in a similar role to that of Bellamy, he is a far better option.

Parker is an interesting one. We do need to upgrade that defensive midfield area and Parker is a useful player. He gets the job done and appears to have rebuilt his career somewhat after spells at Chelsea and Newcastle. If we cannot grab Marcos Senna, then he may well be a useful pick up.

Bellamy set to miss remainder of the season

CRAIG BELLAMY is almost certainly out for the rest of the season in a major blow to Mark Hughes' plans for a final push to snatch seventh place and a Europa League spot in the Premier League finale.

Striker Bellamy, who made an immediate impact after arriving from West Ham in the January transfer window, has missed the last three matches after a knee injury recurred in the 3-1 UEFA Cup first-leg defeat at Hamburg.

Manager Hughes is virtually resigned to writing his 29-year-old hit man out of the script until next season. He said: "Craig has got to have complete rest for two weeks then he comes back for strength work. Hopefully he might get the last couple of games, but the probability is that he won't."

>>mcfc.co.uk

Second Bellamy bid rejected

WEST Ham have turned down an improved Manchester City bid for striker Craig Bellamy.

The Hammers are believed to have spurned a £9million deal for the Wales international, after refusing the Blues' initial bid last week - when they also would not entertain an attempt to sign midfielder Scott Parker.

Hammers' chief exexcutive Scott Duxbury has reaffirmed that the club does not have to sell its best players, and backed his words by turning down City's latest attempt to reinforce their squad ahead of the January 31 transfer deadline.

>>MEN.

The bid was believed to be £9 million, and we now see ourselves faced with the same dilemna as we do for Roque Santa Cruz.

West Ham offloaded some fringe players at the back end of last week, presumably in a bid to avoid having to sell the likes of Bellamy and Scott Parker.

It is a difficult decision we now face with certain negotiations. What looks apparant is that clubs are attempting to continue negotiations as far down the transfer window as possible, in the hope that we will be forced to pay way over the odds.

What is clear to me though is that in some respects, we are dealing from a position of strength given that there appears to be no other clubs with a genuine interest in either player. With that in mind, are we best standing firm as if the clubs do want (need) to sell they themselves will run out of time if they want to complete a deal by the end of January?

Bellamy blow

CITY striker Craig Bellamy is set for at least three weeks on the sidelines with a knee injury sustained against West Ham.

Welsh international striker Bellamy, who has been in a rich vein of scoring form since his January move to Eastlands, has suffered a new knee injury - not a recurrence of an old problem - but is having more scans.

>>MEN.

A definite blow given the very impressive start he has made to his City career.

With Robinho likely ruled out for the Villa game it does leave us very light up front. Despite his return on Sunday though, you hope that sense prevails and that Valeri Bojinov is not rushed back into the starting line up ahead of schedule.

Bellamy and Weiss hit by swine flu

Manchester City have become the latest Premier League club to have been affected by the swine flu outbreak.

Craig Bellamy and Vladimir Weiss are understood to have been affected by the illness, while several members of staff have also reported flu-like symptoms. Weiss, the highly rated 20-year-old Slovakia winger, was the first to contract the H1N1 virus last week and was ordered to remain at home for Saturday's Premier League victory over Chelsea. City have subsequently confirmed that Bellamy has reported similar symptoms.

>>timesonline.

January window recap

A relief in some respects now that the January window has been and gone.

During the month (and leading up to it I guess) we were very much the hot topic in the media, with plenty of negativity (jealousy?) surrounding us and our attempts at reinforcing the side. So much has been written and speculated that trying to keep up with everything going on was a tough task.

We arrived at the opening of the window in a state of flux, criticism of Hughes from fans and media alike growing and were soon dumped out of the FA Cup with a dismal performance at home to Nottingham Forest.

Despite some bumps along the way, what is clear is that we are in a far stronger position as bid adieu to January than we were at the beginning of 2009. The quartet who have been signed are of a similar disposition - solid internationals, experience at the top level but still with good years ahead of them.

In addition to the new arrivals, we also have three of our long term injured players in Michael Johnson, Valeri Bojinov and Martin Petrov on the way back, players we have clearly missed over the first half of the season and should provide a real strength in depth to the squad.

Who arrived?

Wayne Bridge, Nigel de Jong, Craig Bellamy and Shay Given arrived during January, and all four strengthen not only the squad, but the first choice eleven. Bridge, although culpable for two goals so far, is a better option than Javier Garrido, and most definitely an upgrade on Michael Ball. Nigel de Jong's impact will be two fold. Both as an impressive holding/defensive midfielder in his own right, but also in allowing Vincent Kompany to drop back and improve the central defensive area.

I wasn't overly enthused with the prospect of Bellamy the footballer arriving (let alone Bellamy the person), wondering how he would fit into the line-up, but having seen him in two games so far he does offer something different than the other forwards we have on the books. My misgivings about Shay Given have been well documented, but he is a good goalkeeper. Quite how good he is, and how much of an upgrade over Joe Hart he will be is something I will be keen to see, but if Hughes was intent on bringing in a 'keeper then unless we were going to splash £100 million on Gigi Buffon then Given is clearly the best option that we had.

Who didn't arrive?

Two big names - Kaka and Roque Santa Cruz, both of which ended frustratingly. The pursuit of Kaka was well documented with some of what was written about our attempt to sign him bordered on the disgraceful.

Perhaps we did make our approach for him too early in our 'project', but when you have an opportunity to sign arguably the best player in the world you cannot pass that up. Yes, it was always going to be a long shot, but one that was surely worth exploring.

Today's Roque Santa Cruz news was a microcosm of the whole pursuit of the player. The signing being off, then on, before falling through at the last. The reported fee of £25 million was way in excess of what his value is, but we are not operating in a normal market. We do need the player, and without an alternative being brought in run the risk of lacking the presence Hughes so desperately wants over the course of the season.

Seeing some of the deals that have been concluded, you do wonder though why both ourselves and Santa Cruz (given his desire to sign for us) weren't more forceful in pushing the signing through.

If Hughes is still keen on landing Santa Cruz in the summer though, Sam Allardyce and Blackburn could rue turning down the reported £20 million as I don't see them getting an offer anywhere near that figure in the future.

Without question though, this is now very much Hughes's side. The team is now made up of players he has either brought to the club or his type of player. His future is still unsettled though as the season so far has been a disappointment overall.

Heading into February, we are sat in mid-table and despite the talk of relegation for me that is not an issue. Looking up, we are five points off 7th position at present with FC Copenhagen in the UEFA Cup in a couple of weeks time.

The owners have shown a patient approach so far since taking over the club, and the January signings do point to being Hughes's ones as opposed to the marquee signings believed to be favoured by ownership.

Clearly questions remain at this point, and Hughes has a job on his hands to win over the many doubters amongst the fan base, and with no off-field distraction now the window has closed, focus will firmly be on what happens on the pitch.

Putting a positive spin on our current position though we do have an opportunity to ensure that the 2008/09 season ends up being a relatively succesful one.

For Hughes's long term future prospects, it may need to be.

City 2 FC Copenhagen 1

[guardian.co.uk report, telegraph.co.uk report, MEN report]

An impressive victory for me. Despite the overall lack of quality from our opponents, I thought we showed the patience and savvy required to ensure progression was achieved and it provided further evidence of the recent good progress being made.

Whilst the scoreline was at 0-0 there was always the threat of being caught cold, but in the first half we controlled the game well, dominated possession and created a number of chances that on another day could have seen us go in at half time with a two or three goal lead.

One criticism from the first half was the over reliance on long diagonal balls to both Bellamy and Robinho - thankfully rained in during the second half, where there was far more quick, short passing moves that provided some wonderful football as we pressed for the goal that would settle nerves.

Robinho was guilty of a couple of bad misses before Craig Bellamy eased us into the next round with a well timed brace, capping what was a fantastic performance from him. Full of industry and enterprise, he has also added goals (one thing I was sceptical of when he signed) and he truly has looked a fantastic addition to the side.

Putting aside reports of spats with Robinho, I thought the front pair linked together well, with Robinho perhaps too wide on occasion, but their attacking presence aligned with Ireland and Wright-Phillips was there to see. It is worth noting Robinho's contribution, marrying both 'graft' and the quality touches and decisions which were a joy to see.

Defensively I thought we were sound and stuck to our task well. The concentration levels were there (injury time excepted) and I was impressed with Shay Given's command of the back four. Like Bellamy, an impressive addition.

Through to the last sixteen now - something not achieved for some time - and whilst Aalborg will be a step up in quality from the Danish opponents we have faced this season, there is a definite sense that some momentum is building in our season which will auger well as we bid to to win the competition.