Manchester City: Spending more than Chelsea
I'm sure that headline might have sounded crazy before this summer but new manager Sven-Goran Eriksson's connections and new owner Thaksin Shinawatra have combined to give City the spending power and international pull to sign some quality players and get close to signing several more.
So far, Man City has acquired young Italian striker Rolando Bianchi, Bulgarian midfielder Martin Petrov, Swiss midfielder Gelson Fernandes and former Barcelona midfielder Geovanni. Their newest signing appears to be Brazilian winger Elano, who impressed at Copa America.
The club has also been linked to Nery Castillo (who has signed with Shaktar Donetsk), Bulgarian striker Valerie Bojinov (a move is close according to reports) and highly-rated Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini.
All the transfer talk is certainly exciting for Manchester City fans and it will be interesting to see how Errikson fits all the pieces together. Yes, he had his struggles as England manager but he has been highly successful in club soccer before.
What do you think of Manchester City's transformation into transfer window high roller? Do you think it is enough to make City a real force? Share your thoughts below.
Castillo went to the Ukraine? That surprises me - it's a two league, but much colder than Greece (or even Scotland).
Posted by:h4 | July 30, 2007 at 03:10 PM
I think that they will "struggle" (mid-table) year one while adjusting to the Premiereship, then I think they could be ridiculously good.
West Ham appear to be after Eidur Gudjohnnsen (sp?) I'd cry tears of joy....
Posted by:Dannyc58 | July 30, 2007 at 03:13 PM
Nice shout out for City, thanks Ives. Greatest club in England, with the truest bluest fan base in the world. After 30 years without any major trophies City still draws 40k+ at home games even versus lesser clubs.
Other players linked to city: Ivica Dragutinovic - Nasty central serbian defender
Zigic - Powerful and talented strike partner for my boy Rolando
Vedran Corluka, Yakubu, Gudjohnsen, the list goes on!
City is top half of the table and pushing for a european place with a few more pieces.
The Blue Moon is Rising!!
Posted by:Steve T. | July 30, 2007 at 03:14 PM
My younger bro is a Man City fan, so for his sake I'm glad that they're spending. Trashcan Sinatra, human rights issues aside, seems to have been good for this team. Of course, we are talking about a team that was likely to finish between 16th and 20th before the recent spate of transfers, so I still have trouble seeing them as anything more than a mid-table team - while these are good (and in some cases underrated) signings, they're not enough to put Man City in the elite range. But I could see them threatening for a UEFA Cup spot before settling for something between 10th and 12th in the end.
Posted by:Joamiq | July 30, 2007 at 03:16 PM
> Castillo went to the Ukraine?
Shaktar Donetsk has been very good at attracting players they would seemingly have no chance to sign. The huge money helps, I suppose. They have also added Christian Lucarelli and it seems likely that Donetsk is going to make some of the bigger clubs miserable in the Champions League.
> human rights issues aside
The Man City post and comments here are interesting. Thaksin Shinawatra is an ex-dictator living in exile. It is widely known that he was fond of ordering summary executions, he is openly hostile toward a free press, his business dealings were often unethical or illegal, and his political party participated in widespread electoral fraud. Other than that he is lovely human being. Apparently providing the cash to buy some good but not great footballers puts some people in a very forgiving mood.
Posted by:nathan3e | July 30, 2007 at 03:54 PM
Amazing, City is getting some love. This is why I love your blog Ives.
I love the signings so far and have my fingers crossed for more of the same. I don't expect us to be more than mid-tier this season, but there is reason to be optimistic, which is a shift from the norm.
City Till I Die!
Posted by:Brandon Robins | July 30, 2007 at 05:10 PM
nathan3e: I didn't mean to forgive at all, which is why I mentioned it - people should go educate themselves about this guy. At the same time, in depth discussion of his crimes against humanity is not appropriate for this blog, while in depth discussion of his purchase of good but not great footballers is.
Posted by:Joamiq | July 30, 2007 at 05:26 PM
Joamiq -
An in depth discussion of his crimes against humanity would indeed not have been an appropriate topic for this blog, but he did purchase a football club. Where is it we think the money for these good but not great footballers is coming from?
Posted by:nathan3e | July 30, 2007 at 08:26 PM
nathan3e - Oh, trust me, I'm in total agreement.
Posted by:Joamiq | July 30, 2007 at 10:06 PM
They need Claudio Reyna back if they have any chance of being in the top half of the table...
;-)
Posted by:JonG | July 30, 2007 at 10:17 PM