Think big or forever stay small

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3037976/Manuel-Pellegrini-punching-weight-Manchester-City-signings-no-better-club-think-big-forever-remain-small.html?ITO=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490

It's like a broken record but we haven't bought big for years. Even with the burden of FFP, we could have been in for the likes of Costa, Fabregas and Sanchez. We wouldn't have been able to strengthen defence as we would have liked last summer, but I'd have stuck with what we had for one more years whilst significantly improving the midfield or forward line.

I'm sure that if we'd got one of those three players, they'd have made a huge difference to us. Other players would have raised their game as it would have been harder to even make the team. Sanchez on the right instead of Navas? No contest. Costa and Aguero up front? Trouble for every defence in the league and in Europe. Fabregas and Silva in the heart of midfield? Chances galore for whoever was up front.

We needed that one world class player in the summer and we got bits and bobs.

For me:

Fabregas isn't world class. Good player and would improve the team, but he had a great start to the campaign, then for the past 6-8 weeks has gone missing.

Costa isn't world class either. Again, better than the two doughnuts who warm the bench, but then again, he'd be another regular in the treatment room - maybe Jovetic could have shared a lift with him?

Sanchez. Top class player and one we definitely needed. Not only his goals and assists, but his work rate puts some of our players to shame.

"Fabregas isn't world class. Good player and would improve the team, but he had a great start to the campaign, then for the past 6-8 weeks has gone missing."

Does the same every season, starts off brilliantly and then tails off towards the end. Barca decided to get rid as he wouldn't take the injections the others do apparently...

Bloody hell....maybe some of our players need these injections!!

Maybe with Fabregas you get the best out of him until end of December/ January, then coast the rest of the season (as Chelsea are doing).

You may not regard them as top class (and they aren't in the top 10 players in the world for sure) but they are a step up on what we've already got. And Costa can play up top when Aguero is injured and vice versa.

In the last 18 months, Chelsea have got Costa, Fabregas and Matic. That has definitely improved them. We went backwards.

Some of our players just need a massive kick up the backsides!

I'm not entirely surprised by this news, to be honest.  Barca's duo, the ones we have now, and Guardi, never bought much in the way of superstars, instead offloading the big old names they had and bringing in new players for small money who went on to become what they are today.

I'd say we're emulating that, but Mangala does tend to fly in the face of this theory!

We only need worldies as an attraction - for more fans, more merch sales, and more appeal for other players.  But what we really need, more than anything, is players who'll go all out to win, to care about what they do and who they're doing it for.  I'd rather see a team of James Milners than a team of Yaya Toures.

I understand what you are saying Dawg, but look who we brought in:

Jovetic.....he was being looked at by a host of top clubs around Europe. He could easily have been as influential as Fabregas, but he was injured too often. I'm sure the club didn't expect him to be injured so much. When he has made sub appearances, he's looked lively - so maybe a run of games would see more energy in our MF's...but the problem is, the Manager isn't flexible enough to change the system to accommodate that extra energy. So in hindsight, I sort of feel a little sorry for Jovetic, especially being dropped from the CL squad.

We're talking about a player who is relatively young compared to the others who get picked week in week out.

Fernando. Cheap buy and not in the class of Fabregas. However, if ever there was a game that needed his aerial attributes against Fellaini - it was Sunday. Not a Matic, more a squad rotational player.

Sagna - on a free. But I honestly don't think he's improved or degraded our squad. The problem has been the significant drop in form of Zaba.

Mangala - we all had the discussion yesterday about him. You claim Costa is top class, well against Costa at the beginning of the season, Mangala had him in his pocket. He made a couple of mistakes - and since then, has been rarely used and certainly not given a good run of games. £40m was a lot of money - but he's young and could easily go on to be a top class CB. Again, money spent on talent, but not used properly by the Manager.

Willy - well, not really much to say about him. Hart's been in excellent form for the most part this season, so he's hardly gonna get a look in.

I honestly think the Managers lack of creativity and flexibility, mirrored by his over-loyal approach to certain players and dismissive dealings with the likes of Jovetic, Nasri, Milner and Lampard has led to the buys over the past 2 years being picked on.

That squad at the start of the season should have been good enough to be challenging for the title. Even if Chelsea were 4-8 points ahead and we were comfortably in second, then these things happen. But it's the fact that his managerial and tactical inadequacies, plus his stubbornness, has driven us all to question the lack of quality....and for me, it's a fraction of the reason why we're clinging on to 4th spot.

I loved Jovetic's energy at the start of the season, but his injuries and irregular appearances have put paid to his career at City. I'll be sad to see him go and maybe Nasri too.

Whatever is going wrong at the club, the manager is just adding to it. Sticking with his favourites when they've been underperforming for so long.

Topdawg wrote:I loved Jovetic's energy at the start of the season, but his injuries and irregular appearances have put paid to his career at City.

So has his colour blindness

Whatever we think of him, he'll be gone in the summer.

8 goals in 28 appearances over 2 years....that's not enough appearances to show his worth.

35 in 116 for Fiorentina over 5 years.....

He's definitely a 1 in 3 player - and not a natural out and out striker...so his record isn't too bad.

Compare that to Nasri:

City - 16 in 114 appearances.
Arsenal - 18 in 86 appearances.

Similar players - but Nasri's goal record hasn't been great.

Like I said, we should be buying one big player every year. Imagine if we had got Hazard when Bobby wanted him? He's such a player that I think we'd have won back to back titles, or at least been bloody close.

I still maintain our biggest mistake was selling NDJ.  That can only be because he was a Kiaora player, same as Tevez and the club simply did not want to deal with him.

I think a good win at the weekend for a hammers team with nothing to play for and we will be fine closing out the season.

Summer is going to be hard, make no bones about it.   There are a lot of clubs with a lot of money to spend.  Our biggest problem is making them come and play to us.   I think it's going to need a Pep or an Ancelotti in place to do that.

The thing is....we're always gonna be able to offer big money, but can we really lure the marquee names to Manchester?

I'm not so sure we can.

I think our scouting system needs improving.

If you look at Chelsea:

Hazard
Oscar
Ivanovich
Luiz
Cahill

None of these were world superstars...but they improved the team significantly and didn't cost fortunes.

Arsenal:

Bellerin
Cocqoulin
Carzorla

the same.

United:

Mata and Fellaini were already established, but didn't cost the earth.
DiMaria - jury's still out on him, but on his day is excellent, but cost masses of money.
Falcao - a waste of money/salary.
So spending huge sums doesn't always work.

I'm sure there are plenty of new Oscar's, Hazards, Sanchez's out there - we need to find them.
I'm sure we wouldn't be able to buy a Bale, Pogba every season unless we suddenly started to dominate the CL. For now, we need players that will challenge for the title every season, not a bunch of Galatico's...a la TLMLF's of this world.

Also...I think it's absolutely imperative we give some of the academy players a place in our squad for next season. 2, maybe 3 of them. Start by bringing back Lopes and Rekik. Add to them Denayer, Barker, Angelino, Byrne if needed. They have been raised playing the 'City' way by Viera. Some of them already train with the 1st team. They'd be hungry and have desire to make a name for themselves....and could improve massively for the experience playing alongside Kompany, Zaba, Silva, Aguero....and our new signings.

The current squad are far too comfortable and it may even add an extra 10% to the likes of the above stars as well.

Sorry BB....bit of an overlap there, but we're singing from the same hymn sheet.

I'm not after chasing several Galacticos every season but, if we buy at least one every summer, that gives the whole club a boost/kick. It improves the first team and helps us to prepare for when old stars leave.

If we had bought one biggish player and one youngster with potential every close season, we should have three more 'worldies' in the first team and maybe one or two young Hazards as well.

The thing is Dawg, it'd be great to get them, but to buy 'worldies' means we're up against Real, Barca, Bayern...and the lure just isn't there when you are up against the elite teams.

Granted, we missed out on Hazard and Sanchez....but we couldn't have got Suarez, Bale or Pogba last year...and IF they do come on the market, we're up against those 3 teams this summer...and every summer after that.

If we were to get Pogba, I'd be made up and happy to supplement him alone, with the likes of De Bruyne, Sterling and even Barkley.

Buy two or 3 more sensibly priced player in the summer - and go again next season with the addition of 2 or 3 academy prospects.

Wholesale changes won't happen IMO. I think if we got rid of Jovetic, Dzeko, Kolorov and TLMLF....that's a sufficient enough change for one summer.

Out of that list of four, only one actually plays. Losing the others will make no difference to us so I'd be happy to lose a few more. Jimmy's going anyway and Lamps hardly ever gets a look in these days. If Sagna and Navas left, I wouldn't cry. We need to at least get rid of the players that make little or no contribution or are never going to get games. If that means moving 10 players on, so be it. Get rid of as much of this malaise as possible and start again.

I agree with you Bluey - if we got Pogba as our main buy this summer and got KdB, Sterling and Barkley, I'd think that'd be a great summer transfer window for us.

Hazard cost a fortune to be fair, it's why both we and United turned the deal down.

£32m isn't a fortune in this day an age.

The same year we spent £54m on Rodwell, Garcia, Sinclair, Maicon and Nasty....just goes to show we were buying shit 3 years ago when the Spaniards weren't here.

It wasn't that, it was the agent fees that they wanted that was way above what we or United have a policy of accepting.

I'll admit that, at the time, I thought it was too much money and we were better off out of it. How wrong  I was.

Looking back at that £54M, I think it was ok for Nasty and Rodwell but Sincalir and Maicon

Fair point - but do we pay the agent £5m and get a Hazard or waste £54m on load of shite?

It's a player/agent's market...we have to be realistic. If it costs another £5m, so be it - it's peanuts for the right player and only leads to buying second rate players - as that's all that's left.

Interestingly.....Chelsea have spent over £1.1b since 2001 with a  net spend of £640m.

We've spent £893m since 1992....with a net spend of £631m.

When you look at the players bought each season - and the amount that are released, it's a pretty impressive buying/selling policy. It's almost "hedge your bets that one will be great, some will be sold for a massive profit and others, we'll take a hit on".

Chelsea's buying policy...clearly not ours!

Man City:

http://www.transferleague.co.uk/manchester-city/english-football-teams/manchester-city-transfers

Chelsea:

http://www.transferleague.co.uk/chelsea/english-football-teams/chelsea-transfers

Now, the figures may not be EXACTLY spot on....but they'd be close.

Look at Salah. wanted by quite a few. Bought by Chelsea for £10M. Hardly plays and goes on loan after 4 months. Talk of him being sold for £18M. Similar with KdB and Schurrle I guess.

I remember Steve Sidwell was got on a free and sold 12 months later for £5M.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3038855/Chelsea-set-announce-signing-Nathan-4-5million-deal-beating-Manchester-City-Brazilian-wonderkid.html

Wonder how much they'll sell him for in 3 years time? Probably the next Oscar...and where were we in all of this?

The only way we'll get the best youngsters interested is by consistently winning things, consistently playing good football and consistently paying top wedge. If we'd have won back to back titles, or even three on the bounce, we'd get past the stumbling block of many JFs favouring London and the bright lights.