GOLDEN BOLLOX 26-2-2010
Are Roberto Mancini's days at Manchester City numbered already?
Roberto Mancini's tenure at Manchester City is coming under intense boardroom scrutiny for the first time after a dismal run of two wins in eight matches which has left the world's richest club in danger of ending the season with nothing.
Sportsmail understands that there is increasing anxiety, with executives questioning for the first time whether they made the right choice when replacing Mark Hughes with the enigmatic Italian at the end of last year.
City lost 3-1 after extra time at Stoke City on Wednesday to crash out of the FA Cup. That came on the back of an exciting but disappointing Carling Cup semi-final defeat by Manchester United at the end of last month.
The only challenge that remains is for Mancini's City to try to qualify for the Champions League. Such an achievement would undoubtedly secure Mancini's future but anything else is increasingly likely to see him on his way back to Italy after six months.
City's official line on Mancini - who has thought from the start that he would be on his way this summer if he did not finish in the top four - is that he will remain in charge into the summer and beyond.
However, the official line on Hughes was that he would not be sacked, at least until a few days beforehand.
City executives are also disturbed by the mundane, unambitious football that has recently begun to characterise his reign.
Since Mancini arrived at the club, only three of his 15 games have offered any real encouragement of a bright future. These were a 3-0 win at Wolves, a 2-1 Carling Cup first-leg win over neighbours United and a 4-1 home win over Blackburn. The rest, even the victories, have been mundane and unconvincing.
Mancini's harshest critics suggest City have not beaten anybody of note in the League since his arrival and that he is likely to be found out against Chelsea, United, Arsenal, Aston Villa, Everton and Spurs.
On the credit side, Mancini has gone some way to making City a better defensive unit. But, in the other half of the field, City players have been sapped of confidence.
Details of dressing room unrest and players objecting to Mancini's training regimes are well documented and do not always merit undue attention. Players moan about training at every club.
However, the griping has been particularly intense at City in recent weeks and some senior players are suffering. The form of Stephen Ireland and Shaun Wright-Phillips has disappeared this season.
It was not impressive under Hughes but has got worse since the Welshman left. Indeed, one only had to observe the body language of players as Mancini tried to deliver a team talk before extra time at the Britannia Stadium on Wednesday to see that some players are simply not listening.
Craig Bellamy, meanwhile, did not seem too bothered about listening to Brian Kidd, the assistant Mancini was presented with by the City board when he arrived.
Another problem that City would have as they tried to move forward is in identifying a successor. There is an overwhelming fondness for Inter Milan boss Jose Mourinho - which is hardly surprising - and City's football administrator Brian Marwood would love to tempt Arsene Wenger from Arsenal one day.
Away from football, Mancini is flat-hunting in Cheshire. He may be advised to wait a while.
Kompany comeback suffers blow as calf problem keeps him sidelined
Vincent Kompany may have to put his comeback on hold because of another calf injury, Manchester City learned yesterday.
The influential skipper has been out for a month since he limped out of the FA Cup win over Stoke.
He was due to return against Aston Villa next Monday but he is now being troubled by a similar problem in his other leg.
City hope that it is not as bad as the first injury and that the Belgium defender can play at Villa Park as they try to stay in touch with Manchester United at the top of the table.
City’s victory over third-placed Chelsea at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday was their first win in four Premier League games without Kompany (below) as United opened up a 12-point lead.
Kompany’s deputy, Kolo Toure, and Joe Hart were to blame for conceding a second-half penalty against Chelsea, when Demba Ba was brought down, although Hart redeemed himself by turning away Frank Lampard’s spot-kick brilliantly before City went on to win 2-0.
It was the perfect response by Hart after his error in the 3-1 defeat at Southampton a fortnight earlier and a warning from Mancini that he will not hesitate to drop the England goalkeeper if he continues to make mistakes.
Hart’s fist-clenching celebration after the save spoke volumes as he kept City in the title race and proved a big point to his manager.
Yesterday he said he had put the Southampton debacle behind him and is determined to push United all the way for the title.
‘If United keep on winning there’s nothing we can do but if they don’t they need to know we are going to be there,’ said Hart. ‘We’ll never give up. Even if there was one game to go and 12 points difference we’d do what we can.
‘We all under-performed against Southampton but that’s gone, you can’t do anything now, you move on. You’ve got to look forward. We’ve got a lot to do but we’re going to have a damn good go at doing it.’
Hart said he used the knowledge gained in training with Lampard on England duty to guess which way he was going to put his penalty on Sunday, denying him a 200th goal for Chelsea.
El City también sigue a Kondogbia
A pesar del buen ritmo que ha retomado el Sevilla en los últimos partidos tras el cambio de entrenador, es inevitable dejar de lado la necesidad de sanear las arcas del club nervionense, por lo que a Del Nido le toca vender. El próximo verano habrá movimientos y ya grandes equipos tienen en la órbita a muchos jugadores de Nervión, entre ellos Kondogbia.
El francés, que está mostrando su mejor versión en las últimas jornadas, es también pretendido por el Manchester City, al igual que su compalero Jesús Navas. Especialmente interesante es el seguimiento al palaciego, por el que apuntan que estarían dispuestos a pagar 20 millones de euros.
(Manchester City are prepared to spend £17m to land Sevilla midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia. The 20-year-old France youth international was a target for Reading last season before he opted to move to Spain. Estadio Deportivo)
Maicon surgery rules defender out for a month
Manchester City's Brazilian defender Maicon will be on the sidelines for another month after undergoing surgery on his knee.
City will be without Maicon for at least a month after the Brazilian star underwent keyhole surgery on his knee to clean up the meniscus.
With Micah Richards still expected to be out for two or three weeks recovering from more drastic meniscus surgery, the Blues remain light on cover in the right-back area.
Maicon has made 11 appearances for the Blues since his summer signing.
Pellegrini shrugs off City link
Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini has dismissed speculation he is set to replace Roberto Mancini at Manchester City.
Mancini infamously cursed when asked about the Pellegrini rumours recently, stressing he was annoyed at the constant discussion over the Italian's position at the Etihad Stadium.
But Chilean boss Pellegrini said Mancini should have nothing to worry about, as the former Villarreal and Real Madrid manager is not looking outside of his Malaga responsibilities.
"I don't care about these rumours. Both the squad and my staff are entirely focused in our duties here," he said.
"We are happy in Malaga and our future will depend on this club. Regarding hypothetical offers, I haven't dealt anything with anybody and this is not my concern right now."
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[/spoiler]Players hit back after Benitez slates Chelsea squad in training for limp display in Manchester City defeat
Rafa Benitez was involved in a training ground bust-up with Chelsea's shell-shocked squad on Monday.
Less than 24 hours after they were beaten 2-0 by champions Manchester City, the Spaniard told his players that their attitude had cost a series of managers the sack, then lectured them on their failure to grasp tactics and a lack of effort.
But interim manager Benitez was stunned when one senior player suggested he might be at fault, given the club's success in winning the European Cup last May.
'We won the European Cup with this team,' the player said. A furious Benitez also accused the squad of under-performing since he replaced Roberto Di Matteo in November.
DSSC understands skipper John Terry, who has been overlooked since recovering from injury, then made a passionate case on behalf of the players, even though he wasn't even on the pitch at the Etihad Stadium.
Benitez is trying to prepare the players for Wednesday's FA Cup tie at Middlesbrough, but he is now facing a battle to keep them onside.
Chelsea failed to win the FIFA Club World Cup in December and were then beaten over two legs in the Capital One Cup semi-final by eventual winners Swansea.
They are only two points clear of fifth-place Arsenal in the Barclays Premier League and face a tough trip to the Riverside for tomorrow's fifth-round tie.
It's understood that he began a pre-training discussion with the player by calling them into a huddle at their training centre in Cobham, Surrey.
After picking up on a comment made by skipper Terry in the dressing room following their defeat at City, Benitez attempted to single him out. Terry defended himself and reminded Benitez that senior players have spoken to him about his managerial methods since he arrived after Chelsea's shambolic defeat in the Champions League against Juventus.
A discussion that began with the best of intentions then descended into a heated discussion between the players and the interim coach.
One player reminded Benitez that, in addition to the Champions League, this Chelsea squad also won three Premier League titles and four FA Cups.
On Monday night sources at the club played down the nature of the exchange and maintained that it did not have an impact on the quality of the training session that followed.
Benitez has held several discussions with Chelsea's players about the training at the club since he replaced Di Matteo.
He knows he will be replaced in the summer. Chelsea are already casting around for a replacement
Manchester United are hoping a breakdown in contract talks between forward Cristiano Ronaldo, 28, and Real Madrid will open a door for the Premier League club to bring the Portuguese star back to Old Trafford. Daily Star
Chelsea are in talks to pay £10m for 17-year-old left-back Luke Shaw in the summer and immediately loan him back to Southampton. DSSC
Borussia Dortmund striker Robert Lewandowski, 24, is ready to quit the German club in the summer, alerting Manchester United who are believed to be interested in the Pole. Daily Mirror
Blackburn are looking to bolster their injury-hit squad with a loan move for a winger after Colin Kazim-Richards, 26, joined Martin Olsson, 24, Lee Williamson, 30, and Josh King, 21, on the sidelines. Lancashire Telegraph
Al-Ain and United Arab Emirates winger Omar Abdulrahman, 21, says he was unable to move to Manchester City after a successful summer trial because of work permit regulations. Sport 360
Arsenal face competition from Italian trio Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan to secure fiery Athletic Bilbao defender Fernando Amorebieta, 27, on a free transfer at the end of the season. skysports.com
The Gunners are also chasing Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder Sebastian Rode, 22, who will cost them £7.5m. The Sun
Pep Guardiola employed a detective agency to keep tabs on players such as Gerard Pique, Ronaldinho, Deco and Samuel Eto'o during his time in charge at Barcelona. El Confidencial
The president of the German Football Association, Wolfgang Niersbach, has officially declared the country's interest in hosting matches during the 2020 European Championship which Uefa has declared will be played across the continent. Die Welt (
Chelsea are in disarray both on and off the pitch, with interim manager Rafael Benitez unhappy with the lack of leadership and personality in his squad, while the players have no faith in the 52-year-old's methods and practices. Daily Mirror
Benitez is believed to have been involved in a training ground bust-up with 32-year-old Chelsea captain John Terry. The Sun
Aston Villa attacker Andreas Weimann, 21, has rejected a four-year contract extension as he was unhappy with the terms on offer. Daily Telegraph
League Cup winners Swansea have received another boost as left-back Neil Taylor, 24, is close to a return despite an initial prognosis when he broke his ankle in September that he would be out for the season. Wales Online
Arsenal are under fresh pressure to spend big in the summer after revealing cash reserves of £123.3m on Monday. Daily Express
Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel, 28, has opened the door to a summer exit from Anfield after suggesting manager Brendan Rodgers has misled him over his removal from the starting line-up. Daily Telegraph
Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, 28, has taken a break from his football duties to try his hand at being a pilot. 606 newsletter
CRAIG'S BONUS
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[/spoiler]GOLDEN BOLLOX 26-2-2011
Shaun Wright-Phillips: I don't want to join Spurs, Arsenal, or anyone else
Shaun Wright-Phillips says he’s happy at Manchester City after finding his way back into the first-team, and has ruled out any future move to Tottenham, Arsenal - or any other suitor for that matter.
Wright-Phillips has been called upon by manager Roberto Mancini after winger Adam Johnson was ruled out for three months with ankle ligament damage.
Speculation was mounting in January over his future, which included a possible reunion with former Blues boss Mark Hughes at Fulham or a high-profile switch to either of the north London clubs.
But since the transfer window closed, Wright-Phillips has made three appearances for City and looks to be back in contention for a regular place.
It is thought the 29-year-old's wages proved to be a major stumbling block for any deal - and may continue to be until his contract runs out.
A cameo appearance in Thursday night’s 3-0 Europa League win over Aris Salonika further confirmed his services will be required at the club and Wright-Phillips says he’s staying put.
‘Football works in mysterious ways,’ said Wright-Phillips.
‘If I am wanted here I will stay. I never wanted to leave in the first place.
'I still see a bright future for me here. It is just about getting chances.
‘I have played a few games recently and now I just want to keep doing well.’
After coming through FA Cup and European tests in the past week, City turn their attention back to the Premier League when they host 13th-placed Fulham on Sunday.
