Man City 07/08

Nedum Onuoha has committed himself to Manchester City by signing a new four-year contract with the Club.
The 20-year-old defender, who was outstanding for the England Under 21 side at the recent European Championships, put pen to paper on the new deal today, and he told www.mcfc.co.uk:

“I’m delighted that the contract is all sorted out now, I just want to get back to working hard and playing well when pre-season training starts again next week.

“I like to think that I have been improving game-on-game and season-on-season recently, when I compare myself from now to two years ago I think there is a massive difference in my performances.”


Great news, he is improving all the time (although he has not had it easy with injuries so) and has the makings of a top class defender.

SVEN-Goran Eriksson is set to be named as City's new manager in the next 24 hours.

The ex-England coach has made his mind up and is ready to sign a preliminary contract with the formal contract signed once he has been unveiled as the Blues boss.

He left his home in Sweden this morning for a summit meeting in London with his advisers and representatives of the Blues' new owner Thaksin Shinawatra.

A source close to Eriksson told MEN Sport this morning: "Unless there are any last-minute hitches, and that is highly unlikely, he'll be the City coach soon."

Eriksson will earn £2.5m-a-year which would make him the most highly paid boss in the Blues' history.

Billionaire Shinawatra - the highly controversial ex-Thai prime minister who is happy to be dubbed `Frank' because of his Sinatra nickname - is determined to land the Swede.

And once Eriksson does put pen to paper he will be straight into the transfer market with Bolton's Nicolas Anelka and West Ham's Marlon Harewood two potential early targets.

Anelka has been such a hit at the Reebok that he's been lined up by Arsenal as a replacement for Barcelona-bound Thierry Henry.

Kitty

M.E.N Sport understands City had been contemplating moving for Anelka when he was with Fenerbache in Turkey but boss Stuart Pearce, who was sacked at the end of the season, did not want to bring the French international striker back.

Thaksin Shinawatra closes in on the 75 per cent shareholding he needs to delist the club from the Stock Exchange and gain control.

The former Thai Prime Minister moved a step closer to that figure after satellite TV giant BSkyB agreed to sell their 9.9 per cent stake in the Blues.

BSkyB are the last of the major shareholders to sell to Shinawatra, after John Wardle, David Makin, the Boler family trust and Francis Lee sold their shares late last week.

With a number of small shareholders also agreeing to sell to Shinawatra, he is now understood to own around 67 per cent of the club.

Meanwhile Sven has asked Sweden's assistant boss Roland Andersson to come to Manchester as his No 2, while former England midfielder David Platt is in the frame for a coaching role.

Just heard off another site that 3 more lots of shares have been bought by TS and he is now up to 69.6% so he now needs just 5.4% !

Sky Sports News understands Sven Goran Eriksson will take charge of his first training session at Manchester City on Wednesday, after flying north from London on Tuesday night.

The former England coach will not officially be named as City's new boss until Thaksin Shinawatra purchases 75 per cent of the club, but will sign a three-year deal as soon as the former Thai Prime Minster takes formal control.

Shinawatra is expected to reach the necessary share threshold in the coming 24 hours and Eriksson will duly begin his work at Eastlands in earnest on Wednesday.

Upon his first training session with City, Eriksson will have the chance to cast his eye over a squad that has seen key players Joey Barton and Sylvain Distin depart over the summer.

It is expected that the Swede will be handed a sizeable transfer budget in order to overhaul his playing staff and a number of stars have already been linked with a move to Eastlands.

Former England charges Peter Crouch and Shaun Wright-Phillips have been mooted as potential targets for Eriksson - who is hoping to improve his reputation in English football after a difficult five-and-a-half years in charge of the national side.

Whats your team looking like Goater?
Who are your potential signings?

We are very interested in Samaras, I hope they will be stupid enough to let him go Goat

Crouching Punty wrote:Whats your team looking like Goater?
Who are your potential signings?

Well we have been linked with a fair few players but Yakubu is one of hi stop targets according to SSN and th enewspapers, along with Anelka, whilst we are also linked with Owen and Defoe. As for midfield we need to replace Barton and have been linked with Reo-Coker but not bid and it looks like he is off to Villa. We also need some creativity and have been linked with Ljunburg, SWP, Benayoun and Bentley.

I guess we also need a CB to replace Distin and id like ot see us go for Curtis Davies from WBA or maybe Silvestre from the scum. Id also like a left back and would go for Bridge or Baines.

At the moment everything is just paper talk but im hoping we will move fast and some forums say we might have some players signed by weekend....fingers crossed.

Fey wrote:We are very interested in Samaras, I hope they will be stupid enough to let him go Goat

How much would you bid ? there has been talk of a few clubs interested in him and prepared to pay £2m. Its unknown if we would accept this for him at the mo but i hope we dont. I still rate him and think at 22 he has a bright future ahead of him, he just needs to get his confidence back and he could be a great player. If we bring in 2 players like Anelka and Yakubu it would be great to have Mpenza and Sam on the bench.

Rumour has it that City will beat off the likes of Liverpool and Chelsea to sign Boro wonderkid Nathan Porritt (the new Ryan Giggs apparently). Still i havnt heard conformation yet so dont want to get too excited but this kid would be a brilliant signing, he is supposed to be $h!t hot.

Supposed to be yeah..still havent seen him play but im dissapointed we're letting him go...obviously the little c**t doesnt want to stay though so f@ck him.

From a reliable journalist who posts on KUMB. He's a West Ham fan so he does lots of research on our stuff.

"SWP will leave Chelsea this summer - that is certain.

There are currently only two clubs in the frame - West Ham and Aston Villa.

Chelsea have accepted West Ham's bid of £13.5milliopn and SWP has accepted in principle our contract offer.

All we are waiting for is his signature.

I have no idea if Villa have reached agreement with Chelsea or SWP, though I doubt it."

Nicky Weaver has signed for Charlton, we dont need him with Hart on the bench but very sad to see him go after 10 years service. Without all his injuries he could have been England number 1. Still at 28 he has a lot to offer and will eb a good signing for them.

Sgoater1 wrote:Nicky Weaver has signed for Charlton, we dont need him with Hart on the bench but very sad to see him go after 10 years service. Without all his injuries he could have been England number 1. Still at 28 he has a lot to offer and will eb a good signing for them.

ah nicky weaver in 2000 was supposed to be the next big thing

Then the 3 years of injury.

ikassson and hart for number 1 spot then

Crouching Punty wrote:

Sgoater1 wrote:Nicky Weaver has signed for Charlton, we dont need him with Hart on the bench but very sad to see him go after 10 years service. Without all his injuries he could have been England number 1. Still at 28 he has a lot to offer and will eb a good signing for them.

ah nicky weaver in 2000 was supposed to be the next big thing

Then the 3 years of injury.

ikassson and hart for number 1 spot then

Yeah back he was incredible in the season we got promoted under Royle, its such a shame he had so many injuries.


This just shows how good he was, yes its long but well worth a watch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKlWM__7lZI

Manchester City have reached a preliminary agreement with Reggina to sign striker Rolando Bianchi for £8.8m, according to the Italian club.

Reggina expect the 24-year-old to complete his move to City on Wednesday.

Bianchi would become new City boss Sven-Goran Eriksson's first signing since he took charge of the club.

He was the fourth top-scorer in Serie A last season with 18 goals as he helped Reggina secure their top-flight status by finishing 14th.

Eriksson has assumed the helm at City as part of Thaksin Shinawatra's takeover of the club.

He was officially appointed on 6 July but had seen the squad in training prior to his unveiling and appears to have moved swiftly to make improvements.

The Swede also seems to be utilising his contacts in Italy where he was manager at Roma, Sampdoria and Lazio.

Eriksson is understood to have a substantial budget to revamp the City squad after they struggled last season under former boss Stuart Pearce.

The side finished 14th and one of the main problems was in attack as City failed to score any Premier League goals at their Eastlands home from 1 January until the end of the season.

The club have lost key players in central defender Sylvain Distin and midfielder Joey Barton during the summer and Eriksson will also have to replace them as well as strengthening his squad.

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My only worry is that Bianchi is a one season wonder. Previous to this season his scoring record is uninspirng

Could be a good buy, or just another Corradi and a costly mistake.

Bianchi is young, and inexperienced at the top level... he just had one good season, so it is a big risk... but that one season he proved his talent, which is beyond doubt...

Corradi was talented, and had a good season at Lazio, but it wasn't as good as Bianchi... Bianchi looks a level better. Also, when Corradi joined Man City, he was coming from 3 poor seasons... Bianchi is joining directly after his great season... the momentum makes a difference.

But a LOT will depend on whether Sven and City are able to nurture this young talent, and ensure that he gets time to adjust to a whole new league... IMO Bianchi is making a mistake... he should have spent another season at familiar Serie A and established himself...

Sven has always been one of teh most shrewdest coaches in business, so I guess you can trust his spending - most of them usually come good

Is Ljunberg confirmed??

Rasiak-9 wrote:Could be a good buy, or just another Corradi and a costly mistake.

bluenine wrote:Bianchi is young, and inexperienced at the top level... he just had one good season, so it is a big risk... but that one season he proved his talent, which is beyond doubt...

Corradi was talented, and had a good season at Lazio, but it wasn't as good as Bianchi... Bianchi looks a level better. Also, when Corradi joined Man City, he was coming from 3 poor seasons... Bianchi is joining directly after his great season... the momentum makes a difference.

But a LOT will depend on whether Sven and City are able to nurture this young talent, and ensure that he gets time to adjust to a whole new league... IMO Bianchi is making a mistake... he should have spent another season at familiar Serie A and established himself...

Sven has always been one of teh most shrewdest coaches in business, so I guess you can trust his spending - most of them usually come good

Is Ljunberg confirmed??

Rasiak-9 wrote:Could be a good buy, or just another Corradi and a costly mistake.

I think Bianchi has great talent and potential, through our academy we are used to nuturing talent. My only concern is whether he can adapt to England but i trust Sven knows what he is doing and has done his research, and overall view the signing as an exciting one.

Not heard anything new on Ljunberg so we will have to wait and see, whta do you think of him as a signing bluenine ? id love him but would rather the fee be around £4m than £6m.

Wilhelmson's agent has said it is now a case of 2 EPL clubs fighting for him but wont confirm who they are, rumour has it we are one of them and some reports suggest he was at our training ground today.

Freddy and Wilhelmson - what do you think ?

bluenine wrote:Bianchi is young, and inexperienced at the top level... he just had one good season, so it is a big risk... but that one season he proved his talent, which is beyond doubt...

Thats my worry. Before this season his scoring record was abimsal to be fair.

He's been brilliant this season but there's a risk that he's a one season wonder.

Some of his goals were a bit lucky as well - ie balls bouncing too him. You could claim that this shows that he's a good anticipator and predatory but also its a risk that he was just a bit lucky, or having the best patch of his life and that he won't develop. He also now has to settle into a new league.

Having said that though, Sven would be a good manager to work under - he knows Italians well

Tweedle wrote:

bluenine wrote:Bianchi is young, and inexperienced at the top level... he just had one good season, so it is a big risk... but that one season he proved his talent, which is beyond doubt...

Thats my worry. Before this season his scoring record was abimsal to be fair.

He's been brilliant this season but there's a risk that he's a one season wonder.

Some of his goals were a bit lucky as well - ie balls bouncing too him. You could claim that this shows that he's a good anticipator and predatory but also its a risk that he was just a bit lucky, or having the best patch of his life and that he won't develop. He also now has to settle into a new league.

Having said that though, Sven would be a good manager to work under - he knows Italians well

Yeah but i guess there is no way of knowing until he plays. Although, i guess people would claim signing Alves, Doyle or Lita as good signings and last year was their first year of scoring in the Prem so i guess he falls into their category.

Beattie as well - after that season at southampton where he scored 24 - and Bianchi and Beattie are pretty similar in terms of style.

He could be a major coup though, and I hope he is too

Tweedle wrote:Beattie as well - after that season at southampton where he scored 24 - and Bianchi and Beattie are pretty similar in terms of style.

He could be a major coup though, and I hope he is too

Beattie ! i was trying to be positive. Nah seriously mate i think he is a decent talent and i trust Sven.

Bianchi has signed the fee is undisclosed but thought to be between £8-£9m ! he will wear the number 10 shirt.

Eriksson is delighted to have the striker on board, and he says: "He scored nearly 20 goals last season in Serie A, which is a lot of goals in such a difficult league. He's young, and I think it's a very important signing because he should have a great future. He's a good footballer as well as a good goal scorer, which is what we need.

"He's very hard working, very strong and he can score - if you can score nearly 20 goals in Serie A and you are not with one of the top clubs like Milan or Juve then you must be talented. It's a good record, and let's hope he continues with it.

"The signing's good because the club has been working very hard, and there will be some more to come in for sure. I hope that the fans will be happy with this first signing, and the rest as well. Then it's up to the player, but I'm very optimistic about Rolando."

Things are looking good. Good start

Sven-Goran Eriksson made a winning start to his Manchester City reign as his team came from behind to beat Doncaster 3-1 in a friendly.
The former England boss was booed onto the pitch by Rovers fans and then saw City go behind to Sean McDaid's 16th-minute strike.

But Bernardo Corradi equalised from close range just after the break.

Micah Richards' run and shot put City ahead before Emile Mpenza knocked in Corradi's cross to make it 3-1.

Eriksson's first game as City boss came 378 days his last game as England boss - the defeat by Portugal on penalties in the 2006 World Cup quarter final.

606: DEBATE
City came into the game well with quite an attacking style of play in the second half

HL

It was the Swede's first taste of club management since Lazio's home defeat to Napoli in January 2001.

He said: "I had been looking forward to this match for a while and it was good to be back.

"You learn more from a game than you do training and this was no different. It is always nice to win, even in a friendly."

About 1,200 Manchester City supporters made the 120-mile round trip to witness the start of the Eriksson regime.

They were joined in the crowd by £8.8m striker Rolando Bianchi, who will join the squad on their pre-season tour of Sweden along with fellow new boy Gelson Fernandes.

Well another busy day in the rumour mill as we are apparently close to our 3rd signing. The strongest rumour is that we will sign Martin Petrov from Atletico for £5.5m although some rumours say the fee could be up to £8m. Other links see us after Yakubu, Guily, Defoe, Young, Lucho and Castillo.

Petrov would be a quality signing, but they'd only sell if they land Quaresma though.

In my dreams id love Castillo, Yakubu and Lucho (who wouldnt) and if we got them id probably have to crack one off.

Samba de Baiano wrote:Petrov would be a quality signing, but they'd only sell if they land Quaresma though.

They have Luis Garcia and Maxi, and will sign Simao if Quaresma doesn't work out (which it probably won't). So Petrov could well be on his way. 5.5 million pounds is a bit much though, let alone 8 million!!!