Zabaleta: We must be united (tut tut Zabba, terrible choice of word!)
City ace Pablo Zabaleta says unity is key if Blues are to chase down Reds
Pablo Zabaleta said City’s team of stars need more unity if they are to make a real challenge to United’s Premier League supremacy.
The Blues find themselves 15 points behind their Red neighbours with nine games to go in the league season, meaning the title race is as good as over.
And Zabaleta, a firm favourite to be City’s player of the season, has warned his team-mates they need greater mental strength and a more united front if they are to develop the kind of winning culture which their Old Trafford rivals have.
“We have to grow as a group and in terms of our mentality,” said Zabaleta, who has been away with Argentina on World Cup qualifying duty.
“People often consider that it’s enough having champions in your team to win, but if great players don’t form a united front you are not going anywhere.
“We need to learn to be more solid. United have played better, and being 15 points behind is too big a gap.”
Zabaleta questions whether United have been that much better than City in terms of quality this season, claiming Sir Alex Ferguson’s side have the healthy knack of picking up points even when they were not merited.
“The difference is they have won even when they have played badly and we have managed to drop points when it wasn’t deserved,” said Zabaleta. “It’s a question of mentality. United have developed a winning culture over the last 20 years, but we are at the beginning of our project.”
Some critics have pointed the finger of blame at manager Roberto Mancini, saying he is to blame for the occasional outbursts of discontent which have marked City over the last two or three seasons.
The Italian is also portrayed in some quarters as being aloof and uninterested in his players, beyond their input to the team.
But Zabaleta paints a different picture, saying: “I have good relations with the manager. I have known Mancini for three years and have realised that you can talk with him, not only about football, but about life’s problems.”
Zabaleta is well placed to comment on City’s shortcomings. He is one of a very small number of City stars whose performance levels have improved from last season, to the point that he is now generally regarded as the best right- back in the Premier League.
A year ago, he faced a battle simply to get into the team with Micah Richards seeming to be first choice and that became a three-way battle during the summer when Maicon was signed from Inter Milan.
But Zabaleta has responded magnificently, showing the same toughness and nous in defending, and becoming a more effective attacking force, scoring three goals, his best return since moving to European football seven seasons ago.
“I think this is my best season– I’m playing well and regularly,” he said. “In a way, the injury problems Maicon and Micah have had have helped me, and for a player continuity is essential.”
Zabaleta, interviewed by Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, also urged former team-mate Mario Balotelli to match his ability with off-field discipline in order to achieve true greatness.
“I think it was inevitable he would say goodbye to City,” said Zabaleta. “He had created a
difficult situation. Mario is a great player who must learn to manage his life off the field better – he must be more
disciplined and quiet. Returning to Italy and being back with his family is helping him.”
The 28-year-old revealed that he came close to signing for Juventus when he was at Espanyol, before electing to join City in 2008, two days before the Sheikh Mansour takeover.
Zabaleta has integrated into English life very well and is a popular figure at community events as well as a committed player.
He puts his adaptability down to the fact he committed himself to the game from an early age.
“I had already made the leap from Argentina to Spain, having left home at 12 years of age to go and play football,” he said. “I lost my mother when I was a kid and quickly learned how to handle being alone, so I had no problems blending in in Europe.”
City to receive much-needed boost as star striker Aguero set for Newcastle return
Sergio Aguero is ready to breathe some life into Manchester City’s season after declaring himself fit for the first time in a month.
City’s centre forward has not played since the 2-0 victory over Chelsea in the Barclays Premier League at the end of last month after suffering a knee injury.
But the South American is back in training after treatment in Argentina and has an outside chance of playing in the Saturday’s home League game against Newcastle.
With City trailing leaders Manchester United by 15 points, it is likely that manager Roberto Mancini will save Aguero for the league game against the club’s neighbours scheduled for Monday April 8 and the FA Cup semi-final against United or Chelsea that takes place six days later at Wembley.
The City manager, though, will be delighted that Aguero is once again available for selection as he tries to prevent United’s lead at the top of the league becoming embarrassing.
Arsenal and Manchester City are likely to compete for Montenegro international striker Stevan Jovetic, 23, who has scored 12 goals in 24 Serie A games for Fiorentina this season and is valued at £28m by the Italians. talkSHIT
However, Fiorentina striker Luca Toni, 35, has advised team-mate Jovetic to join a "real top club", rather than Arsenal. Sky Sports
Villa to rebuff City interest in Benteke
Aston Villa will stand in the way of Christian Benteke joining Manchester City in the summer, with manager Paul Lambert reportedly adamant the striker will not be sold to the Eastlands club.
The Daily Mirror claims City boss Roberto Mancini is eager to bring Benteke across in much the same fashion as James Milner and Gareth Barry, while Serie A outfit Fiorentina are also thought to be interested.
However, Villa appear to have other plans. Lambert is said to have told owner Randy Lerner that the Belgium international is not to be sold under any circumstances.
Villa bought Benteke - who has netted 13 goals this campaign - for £8 million last year, and they are keen to build their team around him in the coming seasons. Much of their plan to keep hold of their star front-man, though, revolves around avoiding relegation.
Quiet men Begiristain and Soriano firing Manchester City into Europe's elite
The former Barcelona duo have made few public waves since arriving last autumn, but are working behind the scenes to transform the "noisy neighbours" into a global superpower
Manchester City will almost certainly not retain the Premier League title this season, and have once again disappointed in the Champions League. Not even an FA Cup win can salvage their campaign.
But striding quietly and confidently through the corridors of power at the Etihad Stadium are two men determined to ensure that many more happy days lie ahead.
Former Barcelona duo Txiki Begiristain and Ferran Soriano have made few public waves since arriving in Manchester last autumn, but both have been working tirelessly behind the scenes in a concerted effort to turn one of the newest additions to Europe’s elite into a global superpower.
Soriano, in the capacity of chief executive, is tasked with increasing City’s sporting and commercial revenues. Begiristain, as director of football, concentrates on forging new footballing partnerships, expanding the club’s scouting network and establishing a distinctive identity on the pitch.
Together, the pair were lured to England by the challenge of replicating the hugely successful – and hugely fashionable – Barcelona model in a completely different yet infinitely malleable environment.
Admittedly, they are not building from scratch. City have already won the Premier League and FA Cup. Construction work on the Etihad Campus is well underway, and the financial results for 2011-12 saw the club move up to seventh in the Deloitte Money League, only narrowly behind Arsenal.
Even so, their ambition is already evident. Begiristain has begun selling the club to the world, showing contacts around the developing Etihad Campus and giving a glimpse of the club’s future. Representatives from Mexican giants Club America visited last month, and left suitably impressed.
Not content with this, Begiristain has been travelling the world in his new role, renewing old friendships and establishing fresh connections, with a particular focus on South America – a market he views as central to the future of the club’s scouting, transfer and partnership strategy.
Soriano, meanwhile, is planning a radical overhaul of City’s wage system, with the eye-watering basic rates of the Sheikh Mansour era to date replaced with more Barcelona-like, heavily incentivised deals which handsomely reward only those driven to be the best in the world.
It is a change which, if successful, will have profound consequences for many of City’s underachieving squad – not least Yaya Toure, whose agent Dimitri Seluk is playing an aggressive game in a bid to get his client’s current £150,000-a-week deal extended beyond 2015.
On the pitch, the plan is to get City playing an expansive, attacking 4-3-3 formation from the youth sides to the first team, with a view to facilitating the kind of frequent and seamless progression through the ranks witnessed at Barcelona and their legendary cantera, La Masia, in recent years.
This may well lead to tension with boss Roberto Mancini, who has been accused of employing negative tactics during his time in England and often favours experience over potential.
But then, Mancini’s own future at City is far from certain. Soriano recently went public to declare him a “champion” in the Italian press, but it is questionable whether the uncompromising Italian will tolerate Begiristain’s overriding judgement on player acquisitions, as well as his remit to impose a tactical philosophy on the club.
These doubts are shared by City, who are also slightly troubled by Mancini’s continuing inability to make an impact in European competition. Pep Guardiola is no longer in the market, but Malaga’s Manuel Pellegrini could be available and may well be seen as a better fit.
In the meantime, the biggest difference Begiristain and Soriano have made is in terms of credibility. Once viewed as the tactless nouveau riche bully-boys of European football, City are now making use of their connected new executives to present a more acceptable face to the continent’s elite.
Both had a significant hand in enabling the sale of the troublesome Mario Balotelli to Milan in January, utilising a cordial working relationship with Rossoneri CEO Adriano Galliani. The good feeling endures, too: at an engagement to publicise his book ‘The Ball Doesn’t Go In By Chance’ in Milan last week, Soriano sat at the same table as Galliani.
Next year it will be Begiristain and Soriano who attend the Champions League draws on behalf of City, pressing flesh with other top men at Europe’s biggest clubs. Prior to England’s friendly victory over Brazil last month, the pair were at a London hotel as part of a distinguished group which included ‘super-agents’ Jorge Mendes and Pini Zahavi.
City are now moving freely in the circles befitting a club with grand plans. A new six-year kit sponsorship deal with Nike, worth around £12 million per year, will start from next season. Before then, a summer of renewed spending looks in prospect, with Radamel Falcao, Edinson Cavani, Luis Suarez, Stevan Jovetic and Isco all on the list of potential recruits.
Insiders say Begiristain and Soriano favour actions over words. But while they work quietly, the club Alex Ferguson once witheringly dismissed as “noisy neighbours” are getting louder all the time.
Ferguson surprised at how poor Manchester City have been
Alex Ferguson has stated his surprise at the size of the gap between the two Manchester clubs in the Premier League this year.
Manchester United currently sit 15 points clear at the top of the table with nine games left and it is a phenomenal turn around from last season.
The heartbreak of a late Aguero goal is still fresh after United narrowly missed out on a record 20th Premier League title last season, throwing away an eight point lead with six games remaining to gift Manchester City their first Premier League title.
After such a closely fought title race, it seems that Sir Alex expected much more of a challenge this year. When asked by Sirius XM if he expected a closer race this season, he said:
“Absolutely. With Manchester City coming on to the scene in the last couple of years and Chelsea and Arsenal and Tottenham – teams that are vying for that top-four position – you would expect it would be really tight.
“After last season, what we said was, ‘Let’s make sure we don’t lose on goal difference’, because that’s what happened last year.
“Of course, our goal difference has improved dramatically, but I never thought for a minute we would be 15 points clear at this stage of the season.”
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[/spoiler]Liverpool will again attempt to sign Blackpool midfielder Tom Ince, 21, the England Under-21 international they tried to buy in January before refusing to match the £6m asking price. Daily Mirror
The agent for Aston Villa's 22-year-old striker Christian Benteke says it would be a "dream move" for the Belgian to join Inter Milan - but adds no contact has been made with the Italians and that Benteke could stay at Villa. Sky Sports
Mexican forward Carlos Vela, 24, says he would like to stay at Real Sociedad next season, and has not thought about a possible return to Arsenal. talkSHIT
Manchester United captain and centre-back Nemanja Vidic, 31, is expected to be a summer target for AC Milan. Metro
Liverpool are keen to sign Barcelona's 16-year-old winger Sergi Canos. Daily Mirror
West Brom captain Chris Brunt has urged the club to finalise a new deal for in-form defender Gareth McAuley, 33. Sky Sports
Reading owner Anton Zingarevich has vowed to back new manager Nigel Adkins in the summer transfer window. talkSHIT
Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has moved a step closer to a second stint as Chelsea manager having reportedly reached a provisional agreement with Blues owner Roman Abramovich. Metro
Mourinho has reiterated his desire to return to Stamford Bridge by saying: "One day, I have to be back." Daily Express
New Reading boss Nigel Adkins has consulted a World Cup-winner on how to save the Royals from relegation - England rugby union hero Jonny Wilkinson. Daily Mirror
Mark Halsey will not be given a Premier League match to referee over the Easter weekend as the fall-out from Callum McManaman's unpunished tackle in the Wigan-Newcastle game continues. Daily Telegraph
Newcastle defender James Perch, 27, says the team's large collection of French players will be given a course in Tyne-Wear derby history to prepare them for the "unique" atmosphere they will face in the meeting with Sunderland on 14 April. Newcastle Journal
England fans paid touts £300 each to see Tuesday's World Cup qualifier against Montenegro - for tickets with a face value of just £20. Daily Star
Newcastle midfielder Yohan Cabaye, 27, has revealed how reading books by rugby player Jonny Wilkinson and tennis star Rafael Nadal helped him through a battle with depression after Euro 2012. Sun
France fans booed Karim Benzema off the pitch when he was replaced by Moussa Sissoko in Tuesday's 1-0 defeat by Spain. The 25-year-old striker has now gone 1,001 minutes without a goal for the national team. El Pais
A judge has recommended that Real Madrid winger Angel Di Maria, 25, be fined 1,500 euros for suggesting that Spanish referees were making "deliberate" errors in favour of opposing teams. Marca
Scotland fans helped ensure their match in Serbia took place after arriving at the ground with shovels to help clear snow. Sadly for them, it could not prevent a 2-0 defeat. Subscribe to 5 live's 606 newsletter
A banner from a bookmaking firm poking fun at Fernando Torres that Chelsea won a legal battle to remove, has returned on the side of a van parked outside the club's Stamford Bridge stadium. Metro
