Mark Hughes will know well enough that six successive Premier League draws is not title-winning form or even Champions League qualification form.
With the money that Manchester City have spent, there is now pressure with every game and there is a greater expectancy from both the supporters and the owners, but that is what comes with being at the top.
There is no doubt that City are on the right lines. The days of them finishing 10th are long gone and, whether it is this season or in the future, they will become a top-four club sooner rather than later. But the timescale is everything for Hughes and the question for Mark is how long has he got to take City into the top four? Sport on television Mark is a calm guy, however, and he certainly won’t be panicking. I can point out that they haven’t won any of their last six league games, but he can spin it the other way and tell his players that nobody has beaten them in that run and that they have lost just once all season to an injury-time goal at Manchester United. If City beat Hull at Eastlands next Saturday, then all the concerns will go away. They will then go into the game at home to Chelsea the following weekend with Eastlands absolutely buzzing and a real big-four feel about the occasion.
But City are being punished for every mistake they make at the moment and it happened again at Liverpool. For the third time in four games, they gave away a lead through bad defending. Their defensive problems have already been identified this season, but when you look at their personnel, City have a great goalkeeper and some very good defenders. Even if you had the best 11 players in the world it would take time for the players to gel and settle as a team and that is what is happening at City.
The midfield and front-line have settled well, but it’s a different scenario at the back. When I played at Liverpool, both the first team and reserves played exactly the same way, but it still took time to adjust when a new face came into the team. Kolo Touré and Joleon Lescott are still trying to build a partnership at centre-half. At the start of the season, Touré looked like the player he was three years ago at Arsenal, but now he isn’t playing so well. City have been shipping too many goals, but even the best players take time to get used to each other and there is no magic formula. Touré had a fantastic partnership with William Gallas at Arsenal, but Gallas is a different player to Lescott. Even if City had retained Richard Dunne to smooth the transition, there is no guarantee that he would have gelled any better with Touré or Lescott. City will get it right at some point, though, and the Hull game gives them the opportunity to get back to winning ways. They are one of four clubs, along with Liverpool, Aston Villa and Spurs, who I believe are fighting over the fourth spot. Sunderland have been magnificent under Steve Bruce, but they won’t challenge for fourth.
Despite Tottenham Hotspur’s incredible victory against Wigan and the fact Liverpool have won just one of their last 10 games in all competitions, I still fancy Benítez’s side to finish fourth. Their sole objective now is to ensure that they are playing Champions League football next season and, although they still have a slim chance of qualifying from the group stages, I don’t see that miracle happening. Liverpool just have to focus on getting it right in the league. It’s only November, but the league appears their only realistic route back into the Champions League. They have some difficult fixtures on the horizon, with away games against Everton and Blackburn next up, followed by a home game against Arsenal.
More season-defining games. Liverpool have been having them since October, but the one thing they have in their favour is that they have two big, big players in Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres. If they can keep them fit and playing, Liverpool have the edge over the rest in the race for fourth place.
AC Milan coach Leonardo rubbishes reports linking Gattuso with Manchester City
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footba ... l?ITO=1490
Will Mourinho finish what Hughes has started at Manchester City?
José Mourinho caused a storm, as only he can, in this newspaper last week by fluttering his eyelids in the direction of the Barclays Premier League before trying to reassure his domestic audience of his desire to stay in Italy. But despite the subsequent outcry, more squalls should be expected over the coming months if Inter Milan’s Champions League campaign goes awry. Inter lead the ultra-competitive group F by one point, but defeat by Barcelona, the holders, at the Nou Camp tomorrow night could leave them struggling to qualify for the knockout stage.
Mourinho has won Serie A by a street in both his seasons in Italy, but the Champions League is the club’s primary target, so an early elimination could cause him to look over his shoulder. The coach made a habit of flirting with other clubs even during his successful period at Chelsea, so several Premier League executives should prepare themselves for intriguing conversations with third parties. Liverpool cannot afford him, Manchester United do not want him, but the Portuguese is the ideal candidate to carry on Mark Hughes’s work at Manchester City. As an up-and-coming club with deep pockets who are desperate to embarrass the establishment, Mourinho, the self-styled outsider, could not find a more perfect challenge.
TRANSFER BOLLOX
Chelsea are hoping to win the race with Real Madrid for Bayern Munich's £45m-rated French midfielder Franck Ribery in January.
The Sun
The Blues' pursuit of Ribery has been given a boost by Bayern general manager Uli Hoeness conceding the player will leave the German club if he does not believe they are ambitious enough.Daily Mail
Bayern have revealed that they turned down a £70m bid from Chelsea for Ribery in the summer. (Daily Star)
WAG OF THE DAY - Gemma Hiles
http://www.thespoiler.co.uk/index.php/2 ... emma-hiles
OTHER BOLLOX
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is facing a fight to keep his Dutch coach Rene Meulensteen, with wealthy Qatar desperate to appoint him as their national boss.Daily Mirror
Liverpool face an injury crisis ahead of their must-win Champions League match with Hungarian side Debrecen on Tuesday, with major doubts over the fitness of Glen Johnson, Daniel Agger, Ryan Babel, Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard and Javier Mascherano. The Reds are already without striker Fernando Torres. Daily Mirror
Cash-strapped Charlton may be forced to sell a number of players, including star midfielder Jonjo Shelvey, this January as their financial woes increase. The club may also face administration next summer if a new investor is not found. Daily Mirror
Ipswich boss Roy Keane is on the brink of being sacked by the Norfolk club following a series of meetings on Sunday regarding his future. Town currently sit second bottom of the Championship. (Daily Star)
Manchester United defender Gary Neville says that a lack of strength in depth could ultimately prove England's undoing at the World Cup in South Africa next year. Daily Mirror
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has admitted that his side "lacked desire and sharpness" as they fell to a 1-0 defeat at Sunderland on Saturday.Daily Mirror
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AND FINALLY
Manchester United defender Gary Neville has joined his manager Alex Ferguson in blasting players who rely entirely on their agents and said: "A player doesn't need to pay between five and 15% of his wages to a guy to set up a bank account or buy him a new fridge." (Various)
Damien Duff's Fulham team-mates have been helping him get over his World Cup heartache following the Republic of Ireland's defeat by France in the play-offs by taking the mickey out of the winger. "He likes to take the mickey, so he is getting a bit back," said Cottagers midfielder Jonathan Greening. "But he is a great character and he will bounce back." (Various)
Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe has revealed that a change of boots before the game with Wigan on Sunday helped him to score five in Spurs' 9-1 win.Daily Mirror
