Eriksson sacked
First year of controversial Shinawatra's reign went more than good for Manchester City. After the season where they barely escaped relegation, Eriksson and few other players arrived keeping City at the very top for a long time, to finally end up 9th which is an obvious progress. Still, Shinawatra wasn't satisfied, so he sacked Eriksson and brought Mark Hughes in his place, former Blackburn boss and the legend of their hated neighbours form Old Trafford. The fans protested upon Eriksson leaving, and Hughes seems to have regrets already and threats to leave even before the season started because he is neither satisfied with the discipline nor with the organization of the club. One thing is certain: Hughes will have a lot of problems fixing the situation in the club, first of all, which won't at all be easy with the constant pressure of marking results with an average team.
Weaker than last year
We can't say that City are much weaker than last summer. Isaksson, Samaras and Geovanni left which didn't damage the basis of the team, while Jo and Ben Haim who reinforced the team are fine players and they could help Hughes a lot. The problem is much bigger. Already by the end of the last season, it was obvious that something is not working in the club, and after the announcement that Eriksson doesn't enjoy management's confidence, a complete break down happened so the last match of the season saw them suffer a disastrous 8:1 failure against Middlesbrough. Hughes is trying to prevent the chaos inside and around the squad. He is trying to bring the self-confidence back to the players, but at the moment the ship seems to be sinking. Latest Corluka's request for moving to Tottenham is another sign that things are not working well. Interestingly, unlike last season when Eriksson had a pretty big budget Hughes will have to manage with the last year's squad. Even Jo wasn't signed upon his request, and it is simply incredible that the Brazilian is paid as some of the biggest stars of this transfer window (18-20 million pounds)
In
Jo (CSKA), Ben Haim (Chelsea)
Out
Isaksson (PSV), Geovanni (Hull), Sun Jihai (Sheffield United), Samaras (Celtic)
Can Hughes stop the breakdown?
While the situation inside City was stable they kept a near-top position. Unfortunately for their fans, it is not easy to get back on winning trek and the big question is if City will succeed in it during Shinawatra era. We think not and that City could end up in the relegation battle this season in spite of the fact that they have a quality squad and an excellent coach. Knowing Hughes' mentality, it is not impossible to see him leave City pretty soon. They are psychologically unstable; there are too many unsatisfied players and Hughes will hardly be able to set up the play like he is used to. City could be the negative surprise this season.
Our tip: Manchester City to finish in bottom half
Odds 2.00
Bookmaker: Bet365
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