LONDON (DF) -- With all eyes on today's historic FA Cup semi-final at Wembley against crosstown foes Manchester United, under-fire Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has vowed to take the game to rivals United, defiantly proclaiming he's not afraid of being sacked at the end of the season.
A series of sub-par performances have left Mancini's side desperately clinging onto the fourth and final UEFA Champions League spot, only three points ahead of Tottenham Hotspur, having played a game more. Regardless of the result, today's Manchester derby stands poised to set the tone for City's remaining league fixtures.
"We must play our normal game," said Mancini at his pre-match press conference. "I am not afraid of Manchester United. I am not afraid of losing my job. As a manager, you don't think of these things. I am only afraid of losing."
Liam Murphy, a former City trainee who now follows the club with the Manchester Evening News, believes today's match could prove to be the defining moment of Mancini's tenure as City boss.
"I'm afraid it's make or break time for Roberto," alleged Murphy. "Our form has been simply spastic this season. Fantastic attacking flair mixed in with dreadfully dire defensive dross. A Champions League place is a must for us this season, without a doubt, but if we blow it today, against United of all clubs, I think he's already gone."
"It's really entirely up to him," Murphy continued. "Should he beat United, go on to win the FA Cup and finally bring a trophy back to this club, all the criticism, all the negativity regarding his tactics, all the discussion of his terrible transfer dealings, all the media stories claiming he's an inept manager and in way over his head, it'll all disappear."
"You know how they always say 'beware the wounded animal'? Maybe Mancini will surprise everyone and come out fighting."
Manchester United's wing sensation Nani has declared his disappointment after being excluded from the PFA Players' Player of the Year shortlist. The young Portuguese was baffled by the snub, and said his petulance, diving, and feigning injury should have had absolutely no effect on his fellow professionals including him in the shortlist. -- (Daily Mail)
Former Blackburn Rovers boss Sam Allardyce has claimed the club would not be in a relegation fight had he not been sacked by owners Venky's in December. Sources at Blackburn agreed, saying they believe Allardyce was referring to the fact he would have already had the club relegated by now. -- (Daily Mail)
Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti insists he isn't afraid of dropping £50m flop Fernando Torress and risking the wrath of Roman Abramovich. The former AC Milan boss revealed that even though Abramovich picks the team, he's the one who hands in the final lineup to Premier League officials before the game. -- (Daily Mirror)
Arsenal supporters have reacted angrily to the news that American tycoon Stan Kroenke will launch a takeover of the club after purchasing a further 32% of the club's shares. The Arsenal Supporters Trust has urged its members to resist any potential offers to prevent Kroenke from single-handedly making the club competitive by injecting cash for high profile, quality signings in the summer. -- (Telegraph)
Under-pressure Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini will allow striker Emmanuel Adebayor to make his loan move to Real Madrid permanent in the summer. The defensive-minded Italian tactician insists City don't need a commanding striker who has the ability to score goals and win games. -- (The Sun)
Newcastle United are preparing an ambitious £19.2m bid for Anderlecht's 17-year-old wonderkid Romelu Lukaku, with first team boss Alan Pardew admitting the club's scouting network had unearthed the gem on Football Manager. Pardew said: "They signed him last week, and so far he looks good." -- (Metro)
Sunderland have revealed they are being sued by one of their own fans who was knocked unconscious by a wayward strike from former player Djibril Cisse during a 2008 training session. The Sunderland legal team will claim the fan was negligent and knew he was taking his life into his own hands by standing 30 yards to the left of the goal when Cisse was practicing shooting. -- (Metro)
MANCHESTER (DF) -- Volatile Manchester City wonderkid Mario Balotelli could be facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines, possibly for the rest of the season, after it was discovered the young Italian international is allergic to certain types of grass.
Balotelli was forced off early in the second half during last Thursday's UEFA Europa League tie against Dynamo Kiev. His manager Roberto Mancini confirmed the freak injury during the post-match press conference. "Mario had an allergy, I don't know what, his face was swollen, I don't know why. Maybe he was cold."
A Manchester City physio, speaking in a condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the allergy and Balotelli himself, revealed the young Italian suffered the same reaction after coming on as a substitute in the 1-0 FA Cup victory over Reading.
"He's allergic to certain types of grass. I'm told, mostly the green kind," said the City physio. "It's really quite extraordinary. He's perfectly fine on our artificial indoor training pitches, but as soon as he gets outside onto the grass, something goes horribly wrong."
Respected sports kinesiologist and allergy expert Dr. Steven K. Daniels feels Balotelli may have to take radical steps if he hopes to have a future in the game, given the recent revelations regarding his health.
"Mario is obviously a fantastic talent and I'm sure everyone would love to see how he develops," Daniels said. "He should really take a step back and consider his options. The only way for him to further his career might be to move somewhere where artificial pitches are the norm, avoiding grass altogether. Russia, Scandinavia, the United States-- he has options."
"I know those aren't the top leagues, but given the choice, which would you prefer: stability and good health in Tromso, or fame, fortune and a puffy face in Manchester?"
KIEV (DF) -- Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has launched a stringent defense of his negative tactics following an uninspiring 2-0 Europa League defeat to Dynamo Kiev on Thursday night, claiming that his City side would be fully capable of winning the Italian Serie A.
"This is how we play in Italy," alleged Mancini after City's ineffectual performance in Kiev. "I won three titles with Inter this way. You play slow, don't move, pass it sideways, and the ball goes in."
A first half goal from former Chelsea and Milan striker Andriy Shevchenko coupled with Oleg Gusev's second half strike ensured the Blues have it all to do next Thursday at Eastlands. Many in the media have been left scratching their heads over the Italian's refusal to allow his crop of world-class players the freedom to express themselves.
"It's hard to believe a player with such fantastic flair could turn out to be such a defensive manager," said former City trainee Liam Murphy, who now follows the club with the Manchester Evening News. "We couldn't win Serie A. We can't even beat Dynamo Kiev. If Edin Dzeko winds-up playing on the left wing and Pablo Zabaleta turns out to be the most attacking midfielder, we're in deep trouble."
Criticism of Mancini's pessimistic tactics wasn't limited to experts in the media, as a plurality of City supporters took to the airwaves and internet last night to express their displeasure. Several who had made the long trip to Kiev felt especially aggrieved.
"I traveled 2,500 miles and spent over 1,000 quid to watch this rubbish?" asked one disgruntled City supporter outside the Valeriy Lobanovskiy Stadium. "What a joke. If I wanted to watch this sort of football, I could just drive down from Blackley on Sunday and see it when we play Reading."
LONDON (DF) -- After snatching a vital point from a disappointing Manchester City side, Fulham boss Mark Hughes went on the offensive against the club which replaced him as manager nearly 15 months ago, suggesting that if he were still in charge, City would have cruised to a 6-0 victory.
In a game where clear cut chances were at a premium, Damien Duff's second half goal canceled out Mario Balotelli's excellent strike from distance to give Fulham a deserved draw at Eastlands. Balotelli's moment of brilliance proved to be City's lone attacking highlight, with the home side often struggling for cohesion up front.
"There was no inspiration," said Liam Murphy, a former City trainee who now follows City with the Manchester Evening News. "It's something fans have been criticizing Mancini for since he took the job. The build up play is slow and predictable. No one was criticizing Hughes for that when he was in charge. Games were exciting-- play was pacey and quick. Now we're watching Serie A."
In his post-match interview, Hughes admitted he was disappointed with a draw, feeling Fulham were the better team on the day. He also turned up the heat in his rivalry with Roberto Mancini by taking a swipe at the Italian's languid tactics.
"We played really well today and I'm a bit disappointed to be perfectly honest because I thought we looked the more likely team to score. Tactically, I'm light years ahead of the Man City manager. If I had had that sort of talent at my disposal when I was in charge, I'm sure City would have won 6-0 today."
A Fulham spokesperson later clarified the Welshman's fiery comments, insisting Hughes has every right to defend his tenure as City boss. "It's not out of the ordinary for former managers to discuss what they would have done in a match involving their old clubs-- especially when they have the attention of the television cameras."
"Obviously, there's a bit of acrimoniousness still leftover from 15 months ago, but that's to be expected," continued the spokesperson. "Mark wanted to be part of City's rebuilding project and he had the rug taken out from under him. He still feels he's the best man for the job."
"If his verbal volley hits Roberto upside the head on the way to the Eastlands directors' box, then so be it."
MANCHESTER (DF) -- Despite a vast majority of bookmakers across Europe insisting otherwise, Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has claimed his side aren't favorites to lift the Europa League trophy in Dublin on May 18th.
After turning on the style to collect a cool 3-0 win against Aris Thessaloniki, a scoreline which flattered the Greek giants, many European bookmakers stopped taking bets on Manchester City, with most believing it to be a forgone conclusion that City captain Carlos Tevez will wind-up lifting the cup at the Aviva Stadium.
"We're seeing the same thing all across Europe," said Ingo Metzger, a renowned betting patterns expert based out of Zurich. "Now that they're through to the round of 16, everyone is jumping on the Manchester City bandwagon. There isn't a club left in the competition that can compete. UEFA should simply award them the trophy now to save everyone the hassle of having to show up."
Mancini refused to be drawn into speculation after the match on Thursday, but did admit he viewed the competition as wide open. "We are not favorites. There are sixteen great clubs left and I'm sure one of them will win it."
"We don't like to get ahead of ourselves," declared a City spokesperson after Mancini's press conference. "We have a lot of fixtures between then and now, and there are plenty of fantastic teams left in the draw. We're just excited to be in the mix. As a club, we're taking things one game at a time."
The spokesperson revealed that the City hierarchy have taken steps to ensure seats will be available for their supporters, regardless of the cost. "So far, Sheikh Mansour has only reserved half of the publicly available tickets for the final, but that could change should we make it all the way there."
"We have the money to buy the whole stadium."
