A Progress Report on Manchester City's Summer Signing Fernando

The jury remains out on Manchester City’s summer recruitment. Since UEFA introduced financial fair play (FFP), City’s policy in the transfer market has been modified, with the days of seemingly unlimited spending—on both transfer fees and wages—a thing of the past.

In the summer of 2013, with Manuel Pellegrini preparing for his first season in charge, City swooped for Alvaro Negredo, Jesus Navas, Fernandinho, Stevan Jovetic and Martin Demichelis—a much more measured and affordable set of dealings that helped reduce the club’s wage bill.

With Negredo having been sold at a profit, the only one of those whose value remains in doubt is Jovetic, who has continually battled niggling injuries and, as a result, has failed to really settle or find any rhythm. A summer move surely beckons for him.

Even taking into account his dubious form, that batch of players were undoubtedly a success. City won two trophies and altered their style of play significantly, ushering in a new, free-flowing kind of football that dazzled and brought success.

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The summer of 2014, though, seems somewhat more hit-and-miss. FFP constraints were even more pronounced with City having been hit by UEFA sanctions limiting their net spend to £49 million, with Txiki Begiristain, the club’s director of football, unable to land the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Angel Di Maria due to their price tags.

However, with Eliaquim Mangala, who arrived from Porto having cost the club a huge sum of money—as much as £40 million, if this interview with the Guardian's Daniel Taylor is correct—the club could have pulled in one of the top players they stepped aside for. Mangala, although full of potential, has so far been a disappointment and added little to the side that makes it stronger.

Another questionable move is the signing of Fernando. He cost just £12 million, but his form has been patchy at best. He too came from Porto, and he made a fantastic start to the season, with two outstanding displays in City’s first two matches of the season.

He looked powerful, able to handle himself physically, as well as being mobile and intelligent. An injury in the game against Stoke City at the Etihad in August curtailed his impressive start, and since then, we’ve only really seen fleeting moments of his best.

Based on his first few months at City, he is most certainly better suited to a three-man central midfield, where he can sit and break up play. He appears to be much more effective against top sides, with his display against Roma in City’s seismic 2-0 win back in December arguably his best display in a blue shirt.

There’s no doubt he has a knack of breaking up opposition attacks, often finding himself in the right place at the right time, capable of making tackles, blocks and interceptions. The problem so far has been his technical quality in possession. It’s a serious drawback that is reducing his impact considerably.

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He appears uncomfortable on the ball, often ceding possession under seemingly little pressure. He struggles to turn when receiving a pass, with his footwork frequently letting him down.

His display against Middlesbrough, in which his comedy of errors led to their opener, was a low point, but he had the ignominy of being taken off at half-time against Hull City on Saturday, with City once again struggling at home.

In fact, there have been an array of questionable performances, and there’s a strong argument to say that James Milner, whose preferred position is central midfield, could and should have played more games in that role this season in favour of Fernando.

It’s by no means a failed transfer yet, though. Fernando clearly has facets to his game that could flourish once he settles into English football a little more. He is strong and athletic, and he has an ability to stifle creative players. Whether he is worthy of a consistent starting place at the moment is up for debate and clear improvements to his game need to be made, but his patchy start can surely be improved upon.

Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and will be following the club from a Manchester base throughout the 2014-15 season. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter: @RobPollard.