City under the spotlight as the Community Shield is reborn
City under the spotlight as the Community Shield is reborn
Once the foundations have been laid, the stage is set for rapid success. It has been three years now since the Abu Dhabi United Group acquired Manchester City from the scandal-clad palms of Thaksin Shinawatra, and progress has been steady. Financial outlays in past off-seasons have entered the three-digit mark with consummate ease, with managers not quite needing to embrace their inner miser (we refrain from the phrase ‘wheeler-dealer’ to avoid a Redknapp-style, profanity-ridden outburst), but this time, the suave Roberto Mancini has parted ways with barely £50m and yet managed to bring in two established stars, and one highly-touted youngster. Time remains, of course, for further spending.
But, in the purchases of Sergio Agüero and Gaël Clichy, the blue side of Manchester has done their hopes of mounting a serious title challenge no harm, though the major rewards could very well be reaped thanks to the efforts of the existing squad members. Many of the signings of the days gone by, like Yaya Toure, Nigel de Jong and Vincent Kompany, have already excelled, and if one were to consider City as perhaps reaching 75% of their potential last season, these additions will certainly help them reach an alleviated, highly efficient steady-state standard. Manchester City’s foundations have been set, and tested. We now await the finishing touches to add their brushstrokes to this impending masterpiece.
And what better introduction than a titanic battle with your oldest, fiercest foes?
Usually, the Community Shield would represent nothing but a friendly, and against any other opposition, the relative importance of this fixture could be played down. There is a mystique about this City side that has never been as painfully present as it is today, and as they take to Wembley on Sunday afternoon, there will be many a keen eye eager to evaluate their chances of challenging Sir Alex Ferguson’s perennially mighty outfit. Aside from being just nine points off the pace last season, the morale boosting FA Cup win - one of the results of which was the deflowering of a thirty-five year old banner at Old Trafford - would have instilled that winning mentality the press so often adheres to. Expectations will justifiably be sky-high this time out; in the past, targeting first place could not have been deemed as realistic, but the scenario has to change when August 13 comes around.
Aforementioned is the fact that the transfer window still has a month to run. Mancini will have just under four weeks from Sunday evening to peruse the strengths and weaknesses of his current side, and he will certainly choose to dismiss the deadwood (Carlos Tévez included) and perhaps finally attain the creative midfielder he so desperately craves (Samir Nasri). Every decision he makes is crucial, but as far as the present is concerned, the Community Shield will be allowed to revel in its new-found importance. The stage is set for Manchester City to impose themselves on England’s feared footballing hierarchy.
