City Can Ill Afford Expensive Sideshows

By David Hamill

First it’s Spurs. Then it’s Villa. Then it’s Manchester City. Then it’s back to Spurs again. The only thing predictable about the race to break the big four’s stranglehold on the Premier League is that it’s unpredictable.

And the only thing consistent about the pretenders is their inconsistency. Aston Villa can win just about anywhere as victories at Anfield and Old Trafford testify, but they can also lose to anyone as well – refer to results at struggling Blackburn and West Ham.

Tottenham put nine past Wigan before losing at home to relegation candidates Wolves (their first team that is not their reserves) before filling White Hart Lane with optimism again by thrashing City – who had just reaffirmed their credentials with a fine victory over Chelsea not so long ago.

Junctures like this calls for characters and leaders in the dressing room and on the pitch – and this is one area that causes concern at the Eastlands club.

When things go well for Man City they tend to go very well. There’s no problem raising motivation for the big matches. But their star players don’t seem as interested when they are up against the so-called lesser teams or even against, as their pitiful display in North London suggests, the sides they are going head-to-head with for fourth place.

It’s the management’s responsibility to ensure strong egos don’t turn it on when they feel like it but perform with the same level of focus and commitment for every match. But sometimes there is little that can be done to galvanise those who clearly want out.

Of course that’s a not so subtle reference to Robinho and it wasn’t a surprise to see him trudge down the White Hart Lane tunnel after being substituted, knowing the cameras would be on him, after he’s made it clear he wants to leave City just over a year since joining in a record transfer deal.

The move was virtually doomed from the start because prior to his shock switch the former Real Madrid player insisted on a transfer to Chelsea – managed by fellow Brazilian Luiz Felipe Scolari at the time.

When Robinho was presented to the media for the first time alongside Mark Hughes, the forward looked lost, bewildered and gave the impression he didn’t even know who the City manager was – and the fact that he wants out already would back up claims that he didn’t really want to join in the first place.

City may have comprehensively beat Chelsea off the pitch in a bidding war but claims that it represented a turning point for the club’s long-term aspirations proved wide off the mark. There have been much better signings for City since then. But bringing in star names for huge fees won’t guarantee anything and unless they have the commitment and desire to remain at the club for the long haul will prove to be nothing more than a costly and time-wasting sideshow.

So for the time being, City are probably the least likely of the three to make it into that last Champions League spot. But like players’ attitudes, things can change very quickly.

Tags: Manchester City, Premier League, Aston Villa, Tottenham, Eastlands, Man City, Robinho, Mark Hughes, Champions League

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City Can Ill Afford Expensive Sideshows

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