Manchester City target Isco
With the transfer rumours already flying around the world this summer, and several deals already done before the window is officially open, the summer is already the hottest topic in football. Some of football’s biggest names are being linked with moves around Europe, including Edinson Cavani, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Wayne Rooney. But as always in the transfer window, you always wonder “is this true? Is it paper talk?” There’s always the sense of excitement when the rumours say you’re close to signing a player who’d be great for your club, or the sense of dismay when one of your key men is linked with a move away. Throughout the transfer window you’ll see many emotions: joy, sadness, curiosity are just a few. You can never predict what’ll happen in the window, and that’s what makes it one of my favourite parts of the year.
After a disappointing campaign last season for Manchester City, many people are predicting the Blues to spend big to try and regain the Premier League title. Indeed, that’s what’s happened so far at the Etihad, with both Sevilla’s Jesus Navas and Shakhtar Donetsk’s Fernandinho joining the club so far for a combined fee of around £45m. They also have a new manager, Manuel Pellegrini, as they look to rebuild and progress more as a club. But the team definitely still needs some improvements to get to the best it can be. But who should those players be?
Creativity definitely needs to be added to the midfield after a lack of it at many points last season. Fernandinho and Navas both bring this to the club, but the midfield still looks incomplete, and could do with a couple more midfielders to finish it off and make the City midfield look formidable. A more consistent goalscorer is also important, as that is something City were without last season. Carlos Tevez started well, but faded out throughout the campaign, whilst Dzeko’s performances were inconsistent at best, and Sergio Aguero failed to live up to the highs of the 2011/12 season, meaning that if City want to win the league again they will need that goalscorer.
As well as transfers in, we need to have a think about who could be leaving the club too. There’s some obvious ones, like Aleksandar Kolarov who simply don’t have the quality to play for the club. Maicon and Scott Sinclair have both ultimately failed since signing from Inter Milan and Swansea City respectively last summer and should be offloaded to allow the wages to be spent elsewhere. Of course, Kolo Toure has already sealed his move away from the club, having agreed to join Liverpool when his contract with City expires. These players are players that City could easily survive without next season, and are easily replaceable.
However, Edin Dzeko and Carlos Tevez have also been linked with moves away from the club this summer, Dzeko with a move back to Germany (with Borussia Dortmund noted as favourites) and Carlos Tevez being linked with moves to both Italy (most notably AC Milan and Juventus) as well as his native Argentina. Dzeko has been largely inconsistent since joining from Wolfsburg in 2011, and has left some City fans calling for him to be sold, despite being the Blues’ top scorer last season. Tevez only has one year left on his current contract with City, and has previously expressed a desire to end his career back in South America, meaning City could sell in order to get some of the investment they paid for him back.
If those two strikers do leave, there obviously needs to be a replacement, as that would leave City with just one striker, Sergio Aguero. For me, there is only one replacement: Edinson Cavani. The Uruguayan striker, who plays for Napoli, has caught the eye of many of Europe’s biggest clubs since joining his current club in 2010. In all competitions, the 26-year-old has scored 104 goals in just 138 games for the Partenopei, which is a very good tally in any league across the world, and shows the quality that Cavani possesses. Last summer, Cavani was linked with a move to City, which never materialized, but this summer, speculation has intensified, with City once again linked, along with Chelsea, and Real Madrid. Chelsea have allegedly pulled out of the race now, leaving just City and Real, with City apparently the favourites. He would provide that consistent goal-scorer to the Blues’ side, and be a key part in their title challenge.
With Dzeko apparently set to join Borussia Dortmund this summer – with some sources in Germany already claiming he has agreed a deal – there could be a switch set to happen the other way, as part of the Dzeko deal, and that player is Marco Reus. The left winger rejoined the club last summer from Borussia Mönchengladbach, and has impressed for BVB in this past season. With City having already signed Jesus Navas, a right winger, Reus could be exactly what City need on the other side, and with Dzeko supposedly having his heart set on a move away from the Etihad, this deal for Reus is looking more and more likely.
Next season, the centre-back pairing for City looks set to be Vincent Kompany, the captain, and Serbian youngster Matija Nastasic, who impressed after signing from Fiorentina last August. These two players are both well-liked by the City faithful, and I for one am confident in their ability to be big parts of our season in 2013-14, as we look to regain the title. But what happens if one of them gets injured? We’ll still have Joleon Lescott as backup, but he was pushed out of the side by Nastasic at the start of the season, and now many are unsure he has the quality to come into the City side and be part of a title-winning side. So, we need a new defender instead. In recent times we have been linked with Stefan Radu of Lazio, who we were also linked with a move for last summer, but never came to anything. He has made nearly 120 league appearances in the last five years for Lazio, as well as 14 for his national side Romania, and may well be good enough to come into the City squad and play an important part when required.
Also being heavily linked with a move to Manchester is Isco of Malaga. The attacking midfielder has been linked with a move away to some of Europe’s biggest clubs after impressing in both La Liga, and the UEFA Champions League this season. Despite reported interest from Real Madrid, City are thought of by many as clear favourites for Isco’s prized signature, and is exciting many Blues fans with his recent performances in the European Under-21 Championships. Rumours emerged on Saturday that Manchester City have reportedly agreed terms with the Spaniard, and he will join after the Championships have finished (the final is on Tuesday 18th June). Of all the players City have been linked with in recent weeks, Isco seems the most likely of all, and seems to be only a matter of time before he puts pen to paper.
Transfer windows are sometimes nearly the most important parts of a season – they can be the time that decides a title or decides who will be involved in the relegation dogfight. Last season, City didn’t take advantage of the window, failing to make any big deals, missing out on the key ones such as Robin Van Persie, and it showed throughout the season as they failed to win any trophies. This season, if City want to regain the title under Pellegrini, they will need to be more clinical in their transfers, and that has already started with the two captures this summer. There’s still over two months until the competitive season starts again, so City need to take advantage of the chances they have, and make the right signings to get back on top. This could be a very good year for City, but only if the transfers are right.
The Blue View 