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When you consider the amount of money that had been spent and the amount of wages paid to the players, finishing second in the league, finishing last in their Champions League group, and losing the FA Cup final to relegated Wigan was a huge underachievement for former Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini.
City looked lacklustre, especially up front, as the 2012-13 season went on despite beating the eventual champions Manchester United at Old Trafford again as the Italian manager was eventually sacked once the season ended. In came Manuel Pellegrini – a manager who has notably overachieved in the Champions League with teams like Villarreal and, most recently, Malaga.
A very intelligent and tactically astute coach, 59-year-old Pellegrini will no doubt improve City’s fortunes especially in the Champions League where he has reached the semi-finals in the past. Mancini, in contrast, is yet to pass the quarter-final stage. It is interesting to note that his Inter Milan side were knocked out in the quarter-final stage in 2006 to Villarreal – managed by none other than Manuel Pellegrini.
The signings of Jesus Navas and Fernandinho bought for a combined reported fee of around £45m will bring City much-needed width and dynamism. The former can be utilized as a useful impact sub – a role he plays to perfection in the Spanish national side – or as a starter causing havoc on the flanks early on, while Fernandinho – a star performer for Shakhtar – will bring much-needed dynamism and drive to City’s midfield, which will be especially useful if Yaya Toure is overplayed or absent.
Fiorentina star Stevan Jovetic and Sevilla frontman Alvaro Negredo also look like potential new signings in this new-look City team. The former is a versatile and technically brilliant forward who can play virtually anywhere in the front four of a probable 4-2-3-1 City formation, while the latter – who Sevilla confirmed is going to City – is a hard working goalscorer who banged in 31 goals last season for the Spanish side.
These potential arrivals will make City much more unpredictable and give them a lot of flexibility and options depending on their opposition.
And while former captain Carlos Tevez has left the club, Edin Dzeko looks to be staying with the Citizens as Pellegrini stated in a recent interview. With Dzeko alongside established stars Sergio Aguero, Samir Nasri and David Silva, competition for places will heat up and this can only be good news for City fans as Pellegrini’s new-look attack force will hope to do great things this season.
However, the main goal still remains the same – do as well as possible in the Champions League.
