Big spending Manchester City have been accused of using underhand tactics in how they conduct their dealings lately but lets face it – if your club suffered years of mediocrity only to be taken over buy a billionaire owner, they would be doing exactly the same.

The same fans that accuse City of ruining football will be the first to queue up in a moronic fashion outside the ground of their new cash-rich club the moment they land a big name signing.

 

But City’s pursuit of Everton defender Joleon Lescott has attracted stern criticism, most notably from Toffees manager David Moyes, who has labelled their rivals ‘disgusting’ following their refusal to take no for an answer over the player’s availability.     It’s understandable for Moyes to be upset – he is trying to build a team and this can only be achieved through cohesion and stability. But when he hears that one of his most coveted players wants to join a club who will be seen as direct competition for a top-five finish, it will hurt.   Nobody wants to appear to be defeatist or have their original stance undermined, but as soon as a player makes it clear he wants to play for someone else the only thing that can be done that’s in the best interests for the team and the manager is to sell.

Once their mind is made up, it is impossible for a player who has stated their intentions to leave to have the same 100% commitment as they did before. He knows it, and his colleagues know it.

Aston Villa held on to Gareth Barry and Manchester United did the same with Cristiano Ronaldo for another 12 months after both announced their desire to leave but it’s different, and potentially more destructive, to keep hold of a central defender in the same circumstances.

For a solid backline you need unity and communication. If Lescott is unable to give his all, and his team-mates suspects this, Everton’s defence will be disrupted and suffer complete breakdown – as was evident in Arsenal’s 6-1 humbling of the Toffees on the opening day of the season.     Speculation about one individual is an easy excuse for such a heavy defeat but Lescott was at fault for at least two of Arsenal’s strikes and the defending for the second and third goals particularly were very uncharacteristic of Everton.   The match was still retrievable at 1-0 but as soon as those free headers went in it was game over and the final scoreline immaterial.   The marking was atrocious for any Premier League side and once they start shipping goals in that manner, it will leave the player in question, whether he admits it or not, wishing he was somewhere else.

David Moyes may not be ready to publicly admit defeat but behind the scenes he’ll know there’s a good chance that Lescott won’t be at Goodison Park for much longer. By maintaining a firm stance over his reluctance to sell, he can turn the situation to his advantage and entice City to stump up an extra few million, especially with the transfer deadline looming.

And Moyes is well within his rights to do so, but including Lescott as an act of defiance in the starting line-up was a mistake that was punished empathically. If the Toffees want to wrangle as much money out of their rivals before the clock strikes midnight on the 31^st they’re better off doing it by leaving Lescott out of the squad until the deadline passes, when he might have a clearer head.

Assuming he does end up at City, just how good a player will they be getting and where will he fit in? With Kolo Toure arriving from the Gunners and club captain Richard Dunne linked with a move away from Eastlands, the Republic of Ireland international could be the odd one out.

 

And that would be a mistake. If City are to develop a team that can eventually challenge the top four, a blend between their new arrivals and strong characters who are the lifeblood of the club and know what Manchester City are about is crucial.     Now why would City play Dunne, a defender who has been labelled careless and among the highest scorer of own goals in the Premier League, ahead of Lescott, a highly rated England international with a value of about £20-£25m?

It’s another case when a player, after a fine season, sees his value sky rocket. Despite an excellent campaign that culminated in an FA Cup final, Lescott is overpriced and overrated. The former Wolves player still has to prove himself in European competition and on the international stage before massive sums like those reported are justified.

It’s very difficult to force your way into central defence with Rio Ferdinand and John Terry available, but Lescott played and struggled in England’s nightmarish Euro 2008 qualifers against Russia in Moscow and Croatia at Wembley. Perhaps Lescott can go on and establish himself as a quality international in time, but until then a £20m price tag seems extravagant to say the least.

Dunne on the other hand, is underrated. A four-year reign as City’s player of the year was ended last season, but City’s captain is also an experienced and distinguished international. For anyone in doubt of his ability, have a look at his performance in his country’s 1-1 draw with Bulgaria in a World Cup qualifier, when he virtually played the Bulgarians in Sofia on his own despite not being fully fit.

When you are linked with derisory £5m moves and don’t always appear to have the backing you deserve, it’s understandable to have indifferent performances for your club but at international level Dunne has enjoyed the full support from Giovanni Trappatoni and has rarely put a foot wrong in this qualifying campaign.

While City appear to have the upper hand in their pursuit of Lescott, they might want to be careful they don’t lose a player every bit as good.