Barclays Premier League 2011/12 Preview - Manchester City

Manchester City

Manager: Roberto Mancini

Captain: Vincent Kompany

Last Season: 3rd

In:

Kun Aguero – Athletico Madrid – £39.6 million
Stefan Savic – Partizan Belgrade – £10.5 million
Gael Clichy – Arsenal – £6.9 million

Out:

Jerome Boateng – Bayern Munich – £11.9 million
Shay Given – Aston Villa - £3.3 million
Felipe Caicedo – Levante – £880,000
Michael Johnson – Leicester – Loan
Jo – Internacional – Free



This Season:

Well, where to start, the oil rich blue side of Manchester have brought in one of the best forwards in the world in Sergio Aguero to replace the frustrated Carlos Tevez. As I write this, Tevez is still on the books at Man City, and he’s going to have to sit it out until January at least.

Roberto Mancini achieved his objectives from last season, winning the FA Cup, ascertaining third place in the Premiership, and subsequently gaining Champions League qualification. Now it’s time for them to kick on and mount a serious challenge for the title. They have the most money in the league, they have arguably the best squad in the league, but this is my major sticking point, I do not believe they have the best team in the league, and this could hinder their progress. Unhappy, tantrum throwing players and in fighting could all damage Man City’s shot of winning their first Premiership title. Carlos Tevez pretty much hates Manchester, Adam Johnson isn’t happy warming the bench, Jerome Boateng wanted out and subsequently got his wish, and Mancini has shown this preseason that he still hasn’t tamed the enigmatic and wild Mario Balotelli. Last season saw fights in training, off the field drug bans and all sorts of madness, yet City still managed to achieve their objectives!

Anyhow, should Tevez should, there is a big hole up front. Considering a team with so much quality, he and Yaya Toure carried the City team at times last season. David Silva was brilliant in spells, while Vincent Kompany’s fantastic consistency and excellent defending saw him considered one of the best defenders in the league. Balotelli, Sergio Aguero and James Milner will all need to step up this season and take City to the next level.

Before watching the Community Shield, I had Manchester City as my favourite for the Premiership. But after seeing that Manchester United have just as much, if not more strength in depth as Manchester City, I now have the Red Devils as favourites. Manchester City will have to deal with the Champions League campaign which will ultimately take its toll on their Premier League campaign, and it will be interesting considering how lacklustre they were in the Europa League last year.
For me, a strong Champions League campaign, Premiership runners-up and a strong FA Cup challenge. Transitional yet hugely impressive season lies ahead for the blue half of Manchester.

Prediction: 2nd

Best Starting XI



One to watch this season: Sergio Aguero

Can Man City challenge for the title? How do you think they will do in the Champions League? Leave a comment below

Can Arsenal Win The Premier League?

This weekend was an intriguing indication of how much of a rollercoaster ride the Premiership season has been so far. It was also a clear sign that nothing can be taken for granted, nor can any outcome in the Premier League be guaranteed.

We learned that Manchester United is truly not the unbeatable wrecking machine they have been deemed as, after their unbeaten run came to an end against relegation contenders; Wolverhampton.

We also learned that no matter how many goals Arsenal are winning by, they can still be caught. While Manchester City are still in the title hunt, Tottenham are outsiders, while defending champions Chelsea are surely out of the race altogether (lagging 10 points behind league leaders Man United).

Despite losing to Wolves this weekend, it’s clear that Manchester United is still the strongest side in the Premiership, hence still the team to beat. Today we look at their closest rivals and nearest challengers; Arsenal, who despite their capitulation against Newcastle, and losing 5 games this season, they are only four points behind United, and are the nearest challengers for the Premier League title.



Experience

Arsenal has had this same batch of players, training and competing together for the last 3-4 seasons. Rarely do you see more then 4 or 5 first team squad players joining or leaving the club in any given transfer period.

The spirit and harmony amongst the group is stronger than in previous seasons, while those tricky away games which Arsenal were renowned for struggling with and losing, are no longer evident this season.

Examples of this include the 3-0 victory away to Birmingham City, a 3-0 victory over Manchester City, a 2-1 win over Blackburn and another 3-0 victory against West Ham, all places where Arsenal had notoriously struggled in last season (a 1-1 draw with Birmingham, a 4-2 defeat to Man City, 2-1 defeat to Blackburn and 2-2 draw with West Ham which damaged the Gunners title challenge last season).



With the team growing collectively, individuals have improved and progressed to take a greater responsibility and establish themselves as top quality players. Some of the instrumental figures in their campaign this season are as follows:

Alex Song

The defensive midfielder has been an unsung hero this season, and has come on leaps and bounds in the last two years at Arsenal. The 23 year old Cameroonian international has now matured into an all round midfielder, who has moved on from just “a ball winning midfielder” to a midfielder who wins the ball from the opposition and distributes efficiently in order to start attacks. Similar to what made Claude Makélelé such a World Class midfielder during his time at Real Madrid and Chelsea.

His stats so far this season support his improvement; last year he played 27 Premier League games in total (he’s played 22 times so far, this season) and has significantly improved his contribution to the team. The first improvement is his goal contribution with 4 goals, compared to the solitary single goal he scored last season.

Also an improvement in his defensive statistics have shown that Arsenal have conceded an average of 0.17 goals per game this season, compared to an average of 1.15 goals per game last year. He has also only received 4 yellow cards and 1 red compared to the 10 yellow cards he collected last season.



Samir Nasri

The French international was left out of France’s World Cup squad, which was too many people’s surprise, and this omission subsequently benefitted Nasri and his performances this season. The Frenchman has been in blistering form this season, scoring 9 goals in 21 appearances, compared to the 2 league goals he scored last season.

The 23 year olds dribbling skills, technique, and pace has all been key to his performances this season. He scored vital goals in the victories over Manchester City, West Brom, Aston Villa and Fulham.

Nasri’s excellent form has not gone unnoticed, with him collecting the Barclays PFA Player of the Month award for October, December and January of this season, and there are murmurs he could already be a candidate for PFA Player of the Season.



Robin Van Persie

After reaching the World Cup final with Holland, the Dutchman made a slow start to the season, which was hampered by an ankle injury that forced him to miss two months of the campaign. He has now managed to maintain a run of games which has taken his goal tally to 8 in 14 appearances, with 5 assists.

The 27 year old scored his first ever Premier League hat trick against Wigan, and has now reached the consistency he desires. He will be vital in Arsenal’s title challenge going into the final third of the season.

Arsene Wenger

The intelligent Frenchman has seen and been through it all during his 15 years in England. He is one of the most experienced managers in world football, and has the knowhow and understands the requirements needed in order to win the Premier League title. He needs to keep his players focused and motivated in order to push on for the final title challenge, as it’s no secret to any Arsenal fan, that in the past four seasons, it’s been the month of February which has seen them falter in the title race. With this more experienced group of players, they are more than capable of winning the league this season.



Fixtures

With 13 Premier League matches left to play, Arsenal has 7 home games to play compared to Manchester United, who have 6. Manchester United still has to play Chelsea twice, local rivals Manchester City and Liverpool, as well as a visit to the Emirates to face Arsenal.

Arsenal still has to welcome Liverpool and Manchester United to the Emirates, and face a tricky trip to Tottenham at White Hart Lane. However of their remaining 13 fixtures, 6 are against teams currently situated in the bottom half of the Premier League table, compared to Manchester United who have to play 5 teams currently in the bottom half of the table.

So on paper, it would favour Arsenal in this fixture list, but as I stated earlier nothing in the Premiership can be taken for granted, but this is just an example of the games still left to play for each side.



Squad Players

Whereas Manchester United have squad players such as Javier Hernandez, Park Ji-Sung, Anderson, as well as the experienced individuals Ryan Giggs, Wes Brown and Paul Scholes, Arsenal’s squad players haven’t been up to scratch, with Wenger relying heavily on his first eleven, and that’s been the reason they are not heading up the Premier League table at the moment.

Czech international Tomas Rosicky, hasn’t been the same since returning from his 18 month injury spell, and his below par performances have angered many Arsenal fans. For an individual who has such an impressive touch, and creativity, he hasn’t scored a league goal since January 2010. For an attacking midfielder this just isn’t good enough.



Fellow midfielders Denilson and Abou Diaby have both been criticised for a lack of up-tempo to their games, while the latter has struggled with injuries which have hampered his progression at Arsenal.

Summer signing Sebastian Squillaci has also been the subject of much criticism, and has been at fault for many of the sloppy defensive performances, while the side has conceded 20 goals in the 15 appearances he has made this season. His immobile and lackadaisical performances have angered many fans, while there were calls for Wenger to sign a new centre back during the January transfer window, which subsequently came and went without a single penny spent by Wenger.



Now with Johan Djourou out for a month, with yet another knee injury, and Alex Song currently sidelined, the Gunners are desperately short at centre back. Belgian defender Thomas Vermaelen is needed back as soon as possible. With the poorest defensive record of the top four, Arsenal need to sure up defensively if they are to challenge for the Premier League title.

Finally there have been concerns over the goalkeeping department for the past year and a half, with Lukasz Fabianksi given the number one spot, he had been in impressive form this season, and had finally started to come good. Fabianski now has subsequently had shoulder surgery, and is out for the rest of the season.

Now the promising young and fellow Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny has taken over as Arsenal’s number one goalkeeper. He is a player with the all the attributes to make it at the highest level, but his performances have been tarnished by some shaky defending in front of him.



Chances?

For me, it is between Manchester United and Arsenal for the Premiership title. Manchester City are not too far behind, they have great individuals, but are not the complete package yet. Plus I feel City manager Roberto Mancini’s tactics of nullifying bigger and better opponents rather than attacking them and attempting to take three points is ultimately their downfall.

Manchester United has the more experience squad, who have been there and done that before. They also have young talented players to bring in, who can add that unknown quality against opponents (such as Rafael, and Javier Hernandez). However United have the trickier fixtures, and face two difficult games against Chelsea, and still have to face title rivals Arsenal. They will also have one eye on the Champions League, in which they are expected to progress quite far into the latter stages.



Arsenal on the other hand, has had very good away form this season, and has shown that they can beat any team at the Emirates. This will be necessary in order to pick up as many home points as possible, and beat their title rivals.

Arsenal has a young, hungry squad, who have a point to prove. They also have the Carling Cup final to look forward to, which can act as a benchmark for them this season, and they can collect that silverware that has eluded them for the past five seasons, should they beat Birmingham City.



There is of course, a long way to go, and plenty of football still play. But as we reach the business end of the season, should Arsenal collect the first possible trophy of the season, it could instil a much needed winning mentality which can act as a basis for them to push for the title, but for now it’s in Manchester United’s hands, and they are justifiably considered the title favourites.

Real Talk Football

Manchester City’s Infighting Could K.O Title Chances

Manchester City have shown they have the capability to challenge for the Premiership title and while its evidently clear they have the squad to achieve, will infighting and overinflated ego’s hinder their chances?



It’s no coincidences that football club with problems behind the scenes, just cannot perform on the pitch and subsequently underachieve. It’s pretty much fact. In recent years, there are numerous examples of infighting, while the damage done can be disastrous.

Newcastle United were relegated from the Premier League in 2009 after a turbulent season whereby the club had managerial issues, hiring three managers in one season, and the conflicts among the board spelled the end for their 16 stay in the English top flight.

Even this season, infighting has done significant damage to clubs performances. The Aston Villa situation immediately comes to mind, whereby then manager Martin O’Neill resigned before the first league game of the season due to owner Randy Lerner accepting a £26million bid for star player James Milner, and basically selling him against the managers will.

Villa who were a top 6 club, with serious aspirations of ascertaining Champions League qualification, are now struggling to maintain the standards they set for themselves over the past four years. They currently sit 17th in the league, and ramblings between Gerard Houllier and the likes of John Carew, Gabby Agbonlahor , Stephen Ireland and Richard Dunne have hindered the teams progress this season, they are now relegation battlers.

At the other end of the spectrum, is Roberto Mancini, who despite all he has had to deal with this season, still has a serious chance of Manchester City collecting the Premier League title for the first time in history, which would make them only the 5th different club to do it since its inception in 1992.



There have been rumours of unrest in the camp ever since Mancini took over in 2009, but no such unrest has become such public as the numerous displays this season.

Earlier this season, the first signs of trouble came a cropper, when summer signings James Milner and Yaya Toure clashed at half time during a 3-0 defeat at home to Arsenal. The manager and the players played down the rift, claiming “heat of the moment” and “frustration”.

A week later, another clash between team mates occurred during a 2-1 defeat to Wolves, where defender Vincent Kompany and striker Emmanuel Adebayor were seen furiously arguing with each other. This was again, played down by the players citing an attempt to “get a reaction out of each other”.

The next sign of trouble came at half time again, this time in a 2-1 win against Newcastle, where Mancini had a war of words with star striker Carlos Tevez in the changing room. This would be the beginning of a frosty relationship between the pair, with Tevez showing public display of anger towards Mancini in a 1-0 win against Bolton.



The reason for this bust up? Tevez was substituted with a few minutes left of the game, and he was deemed to be unhappy at a pre-recorded interview being shown in the stadium of Tevez “singing Mancini’s praises”.

One week after is incident, Tevez handed in a transfer request, which was subsequently dismissed by the club, and Tevez supposedly withdrew the transfer request two weeks later.



Whilst this saga was continuing, there were more problems popping up left, right and centre for Mancini. £23million striker Mario Balotelli had a training ground fight with team mate Jerome Boateng. The two clashed in training and were seen attempting to choke it other! Again this was deemed a “minor flare-up” and an isolated incident. Balotelli has since stated his desire to return to Italy, as he is “home-sick”, but this of course has been rejected by Manchester City.



The latest and probably most absurd incident came just yesterday, when striker Emmanuel Adebayor (again) had a training ground fight with vice captain Kolo Toure. This may not come as much of a surprise, especially to Arsenal fans, who knew the two were very disruptive influences in the dressing room at the Emirates and subsequently shipped out of North London.



It was rumoured that when Kolo Toure came out in the press explaining that certain players need to "pull thier weight" for Man City to exceed, was aimed at the Togolese striker.

What is with these guys and training ground fights?

Toure fouled Adebayor, they scuffled, with Kolo ending up getting Adebayor in a headlock. They were subsequently separated, and today they have attempted to downplay the significance of the fight claiming it wasn’t a major incident.



Now for Mancini, the aim is damaged limitation. He has an abundance of riches, undoubted quality in every area of the team, and a team consisting of proven winners in each of these areas; such as Kolo Toure in defence, Yaya Toure and David Silva in midfield, and up front with Carlos Tevez.

City are also expected to complete the £27million signing of Bosnian striker Eden Dzeko, paving the way for Adebayor to make his exit (Real Madrid and Juventus are rumoured, while Malaga seems a more likely destination).

Now if the individuals at Man City can keep their temperament and ego’s under wrapped then there could possibly be the strongest contenders for the title, however as the numerous incidents highlighted and displayed this season, keeping the team spirit and unity needed in order to win the title would be something short of a miracle.

Only time will tell, but we know we are in for a sensational title race.

Real Talk Football

Mancini: One Year at Eastlands

Roberto Mancini was recently asked;

“It’s nearly a year since you became manager (of Manchester City) and the man you replaced is managing the opposition team (Mark Hughes of Fulham), do you feel this team has improved in the year that you’ve been here?”

The 45 year old took his time to reply and stated simple that they “have improved”, and continued to defend his corner when being pushed by the journalist stating that “by the end of the season, we will be in the Champions League and (we) will win something”.

Confident words and a confidence response, the video of which can be seen here. However the real question to ask is; with their millions of pound twined with the calibre of players in the Manchester City squad, is there any real substance to Mancini’s claims?

Under former boss Mark Hughes, it was clear that being at the helm before the new owners took charge; ultimately meant his time in charge would be limited, however during his spell at the Eastlands club, he had amassed a number of great victories, including two big wins over Arsenal, a win over Chelsea and thrilling encounters in matches against local rivals Manchester United.



But most importantly was the sense that under his guidance, and with his free flowing attacking Manchester City side, it would not be such a silly statement to believe that they would make it into the Champions League sooner rather than later, establishing them as a serious threat to other teams at the top of the division.

It would now be argued, that with following his poorly handled dismissal, Man City’s signing’s are a step forward and those which should have any football fan drooling, but football wise, the club has taken a step backwards.

Under Mark Hughes, the club were scoring goals, their strong-arm tactics were ruffling feathers and many clubs couldn’t handle this new found City side and their new found ability to outplay sides, making them look a certainty for that elusive fourth spot.

Mark Hughes Favourite Line-up

However Mancini was drafted in, boasting three Serie A titles in the bag, and the experience of working with high calibre names. His first few months in charge saw a slowdown in Man City’s free flowing attacking prowess and saw a more resolute and compact side emerge, one that in the end cost them the much craved 4th spot, losing out to Tottenham.

Now after a summer of activity, which has seen them spend money like its heading out of fashion, saw the likes of the talented yet temperamental Italian/Ghanaian Mario Balotelli (£24 million), Midfield powerhouse Yaya Toure (£28 million), attacking midfielder David Silva (£24 million), left back Aleksander Kolarov (£16 million), versatile defender Jerome Boateng (£11 million) and exciting midfielder James Milner (£24 million) all join the club, saw a team with an array of players good enough to contend for the Champions League crown let alone the Premiership title.



But with this in mind, despite Man City progressing as they should with the quality on show, they are still not meeting their full potential and for me these boils down to one sole entity; and that is that of boss Roberto Mancini.

Despite beating a few of the big teams on the odd occasion, Mancini seems to be satisfied just to match these "big teams" rather than play to win (the Manchester United 0-0 draw comes to mind). The defensive minded 4-5-1/4-2-3-1 formation, may just about overpower some of the “smaller” teams, but Manchester City fans “revolution” seems to have stalled, with them and pundits alike not really too impressed.

Fair enough Mancini’s player need time to gel, but I feel that when you pay a lot of money for these kinds of players, and you have a mix of players who have Premiership experience (Such Bridge, Richards, Hart, Given, Barry, Adebayor, Tevez) you don’t need as much time to adapt to the Premiership, as the bunch coming in from overseas.



Also Mancini may state that his side are now “playing as a team” and “doesn’t concede a lot of goals” and so on, but the potential of Man City to be World beater is that which cannot be ignored.

In the Premiership, it’s known for its fast paced, all action, highly committed open football. Not defensive minded tactics, no nonsense “stop at all means necessary” defending and holding midfielders.

Roberto Mancini's Favourite Line-up

Mancini needs to consider toning down the defensiveness and adapting a more expansive approach in order to ascertain the heights Man City are capable of reaching, as the Sheiks patience may be shorter than it seems.

Allow De Jong to anchor the midfield, while Yaya Toure runs the midfield. Play Milner on the right wing, with Adam Johnson on the left, allowing for them to switch sides and get forward. With Yaya and De Jong in the middle, the freedom going forward will be greater as the two central players have great engines and are just as comfortable tackling as they are passing.

In defence, keep the Kompany and Toure partnership as they create the foundation for the side. Kolo Toure has great experience, while Kompany is a highly skilled individual with an eye for the game. Lescott, Boateng and the young Boyata are more than admirable deputies.


Full backs are the area’s whereby the side could definitely need strengthening, I’m not one for rumours, but Dani Alves of Barcelona is a name being touted around. For now Richards is a capable right back, while Boateng’s versatility allows for him to cover at right back.

Left back, is another problem area, while Kolarov had a budding reputation in Italy, injury has hampered his start to life in England. Also Wayne Bridge still warms the treatment room, and never seems able to string more than a few games together before reinjuring himself. The versatile Argentine Pablo Zabaleta has been playing left back most recently, and will continue to do so until a greater option comes in.

The frontline is the most intriguing part of the Man City’s line-up, with a combined value of £122.5 million; the options available are the envy of any club in the World. With the disruptive influence of Emmanuel Adebayor, he would have no place in my team, and Mancini seems to feel the same.

J ô seems to be favoured by Mancini and must be impressing in training as after previous spells away from the club on loan, he has been given his chance in the team, all be it from the subs bench. Roque Santa Cruz pretty much has no future at the club, and is expected to leave this January. With his injury prone nature and lack of goals, he is expendable.

Finally we come the final three strikers, two of which need to slot into the starting eleven. For me, Tevez is one of the best players in the World, hence for that reason, he has to start. Supporting him; the highly creative and technically gifted David Silva would be an excellent link between midfield and the strikers; however I feel Balotelli’s ability, value for his worth would make him a starter and be capable of forming an excellent partnership with Tevez upfront.


This, of course is just my opinion, and my feelings to what I would do if I was under as much scrutiny as Mancini is. Manchester City has an abundance of riches as well as an abundance of talent, however with these great expectations come great responsibility. Champions League qualification, and some form of silverware is the benchmark for this season, and unless Mancini start delivering on his promises, he could be on his way out sooner rather than later.


What are your thoughts on Roberto Mancini’s reign? How long do you guys think it will last? What does the future hold for Man City? Let us know what you think

Premier League Preview - Manchester City

Manchester City

The big money spending blue half of Manchester, back by the Abu Dhabi royal family member Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Sultan Al Nahyan, have real aspirations to be the biggest club in the world, while throwing cash at every single player they fancy is their approach.

This is underlined by the fact they’ve spent over £300million in the two years since the Abu Dhabi United group took over. Amongst others, some of the signings included the British transfer record breaking £32.5million deal for Real Madrid striker Robinho, a £17million deal for Roque Santa Cruz, Carlos Tevez singing for £25.5million after leaving rivals Manchester United. While Arsenal duo Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure came for £25million and £16million respectively.



Halfway through the Sheik’s second year in control of the club, they disposed of manager Mark Hughes and replaced him with Roberto Mancini, and highlighted Man City’s immediate aims were to be playing Champions League football this year. However the Sky Blues subsequently missed out finishing in 5th place and one spot behind Tottenham.

This preseason has seen the likes of Jerome Boateng, Yaya Toure, David Silva and Aleksander Kolarov join the club, and altough no one has left just yet, Mancini has a problem in that he has around 38 first team players on the books while the Premier League has new rules state that only 25 can be registered to be used until the next transfer window. Therefore the likes of Stephen Ireland, Shay Given, Jo, Vincent Kompany and a few more names could be on their way out of the club.



The underlying belief is that it is going to be a very big season for Manchester City this year.

Key Player: Carlos Tevez

The Argentina forward is one of the best strikers in the world and is probably the only indispensible member of the Man City squad. Last season he scored 23 goals in 35 appearances, and will look to continue his excellent form into this season.



Manager: Roberto Mancini

Key Signing: Yaya Toure

The Ivorian defensive midfielder has flirted with the Premier League for many years now, and after plying his trade in Ukraine, France, Greece and most successfully in Spain with Barcelona, he had finally arrived on these shores. After turning down a move to Chelsea and an approach from Arsenal, Yaya joins his brother Kolo at Manchester City for a measly £200,000 a week.

Money aside, he is expected to slot into the midfielder and become one of the dominant forces in the Premiership, helping out the defence in need be. An excellent player, with perhaps an underlying problematic attitude, Mancini will have to keep him in check if the team are to gel and achieve this year.


Aims: Champions League Football

Prediction: 4th

I feel that Man City will either get off to a slow start and kick on midway through the season, or get off to a flyer but fall off towards the latter stages of the season. I say this because of all the new faces, it will undoubtedly take time for the team to gel and build up chemistry amongst the players. Champions League is a real possibility mainly down to the calibre of players, as well as the budget, available to Roberto Mancini, but the season after they will be contenders for the title.

First Five Fixtures: Tottenham (A), Liverpool (H), Sunderland (A), Blackburn (H), Wigan (A)

Best 11