Ball Ball Ball, Footie Footie Footie
The new league season has started in English football and I think I should unburden myself of my thoughts, hopes and worries before we get too far into the season. As a Manchester City fan I go into the season knowing that we could do anything from challenging for a European place to flirting with relegation. The summer has seen the long-feared departure of Shaun Wright-Philips to pastures new, we’ve signed a few new players and let a few go. Each will have an impact on what happens to us now.
Shaun Wright Philips
SWP was going to leave eventually. I think most City fans acknowledge that. The chances that we could build a team around him in a relatively short time were remote. There was too much pressure on him and the last time we relied on a player so much, with Kinkladze, we were relegated and his career went into decline. I’m sad that Shaun has left and slightly surprised. I thought he’d stay for another year and easily play himself into the England World Cup squad (assuming that they qualify). If he’s stayed at Eastlands he would have played every game he was fit for rather than having what will probably be a bit of a start-stop season at Chelsea.
I still think that Shaun will make it to the World Cup but I think that his chance of ousting David Beckham from the right wing is reduced. He may force the issue with Mourinho and play so well that he becomes a fixture but I’ll be surprised if he can do that from the substitutes bench. The person who has benefited from this more that anyone else is probably Wayne Bridge who was ripped to shreds by SWP in both of the matches at Eastlands against Chelsea in the last two seasons. He was probably a delighted man the day he heard that he’d never have to face Philips again.
Other Departures
Of course other players have left during the summer, McManaman, Bosvelt, Macken and Negouai being the main names amongst those. Bosvelt is the only one I’m that bothered by. He did a decent job in midfield for us, and while he is by no means a great player I thought we should keep him given the fairly sparse options we have in midfield. Macken never really managed to perform in the Premier League. He’s not a bad player but I think a change of scene will be good for him and he’s probably do a good job for Palace, I wish him well. Negouai never really featured in the first team at all and is probably also best in pastures new. This leaves McManaman.
Steve McManaman, possessor of the the nickname “McMinimum” the best since Neil Pointons “Dissa”, has left the club. I haven’t heard one person express sadness about this. He was a major disappointment at City, never producing anything of note and seemingly happy to sail along on his reputation as an ex-Real Madrid player. I was happy when we signed him, I’d seen him playing in Spain and thought he’d done a decent job. We needed creativity in midfield and I felt he could provide it. He didn’t, he was a major failure for us and I’m delighted that he has gone and that we can spend his wages on the something more useful like the academy or a new lawnmower for the groundsman.
Arrivals
A number of players have chosen to join City, whether on loan or on permanent deals. The loan signings are Kiki Musampa, who played well at the tail end of last season after a dodgy start, and Yasser Hussein, who is at the club on the recommendation of Ali Benarbia. Both midfielders which is no bad thing as we need some. We’ve also signed Andy Cole and Darius Vassell permanently. I’m not totally convinced by either but they may prove me wrong. I’ve never particularly liked Cole as a player. He has scored a lot of goals but I always feel that he needs a lot of chances to score a goal. Whether we can create enough chances for him will be interesting to see. Vassell is a decent player although last season wasn’t his most impressive. He may be a player who benefits from a change of club though and maybe slightly less pressure on him to carry an attack.
Midfield Engine?
Since Ali Benerbia, and to a lesser extent Eyal Berkovic, left City we have lacked a true creative midfielder. Currently the first choice midfield consists of Sinclair, Barton, Reyna and Musampa, none of them extremely creative although Reyna has his moments. Last season we had SWP to provide some invention but with him gone it looks a bit worrying. I’ve nothing against the current players, they’re a decent enough bunch I just feel that we need to bring someone in who can add something special to the mix.
Youngsters
One of the hopes I have for this season is that some of the promising young players we have will come through and establish themselves in the first team. We have the brightest prospects that we’ve had in a long time with Bradley Wright-Philips, Willo Flood, Lee Croft, Karl Bermingham, Stephen Ireland, Micah Richards and Nedum Onuoha all pushing for a chance and some of them already established in the first team squad and challenging for places. Flood and Bermingham have gone out on loan for a few months to Coventry and Burnley respectively which is good for them and I hope it helps them to establish themselves later in the season.
Overall I’m fairly happy with how City are set up. I still think we need some creativity in midfield but in general we’re alright. It will be interesting to see how Pearce gets on this season, he has started well but he hasn’t had to deal with a run of bad form yet and that could be a test for him.