With Distractions Behind Them, Manchester City Must Storm Back to the Top
It’s seldom been said, but last season was one of upheaval for Manchester City.
Hamstrung by UEFA’s patently unfair financial fair play sanctions, City’s net spend last summer was restricted to £49 million. A number of top players—Alexis Sanchez and Cesc Fabregas spring to mind immediately—whom City would otherwise have attempted to sign but were allowed to move to rival clubs unchallenged.
For the first time in a number of years, City had to accept something of a bystander role in the transfer market. FFP sanctions hurt them more than perhaps many people felt they would.
They paid £32 million for a new defender, Eliaquim Mangala, and therefore, they are on shaky ground when complaining too loudly. It’s a significant sum to spend on one player, and many have suggested that the money would have been better used elsewhere.
Mangala, 24, has plenty of time to prove he represents value for money, and there’s been enough to suggest he could be an excellent player in the long term, but he took up a sizeable chunk of City’s restricted spend and, as a result, has been under added scrutiny.
Overall, though, City were hurt by FFP, and their rivals were allowed to close the gap.
Add to that the opening of the new City Football Academy (CFA), and it becomes clear that last season was one mired in difficulty, with the club’s energy and resources stretched.
The CFA is the centrepiece of the Sheikh Mansour era, a £200 million facility that has left no stone unturned. It houses both first-team and youth players—from those aged eight and at the beginning of their footballing journey to Manuel Pellegrini’s world-class stars—and has everything a player could need to aid their development.
The attention to detail is remarkable. The medical facilities are second to none. There are endless rooms where players can utilise up-to-the-minute performance-analysis technology. There are 16.5 football pitches, including an indoor FIFA-standard pitch that has the same dimensions as the Etihad turf.
The 7,000-seater academy stadium boasts a Desso pitch—the most advanced technology available—and allows City’s EDS players to experience playing in front of big crowds in preparation for the first team.
“We are building a structure for the future, not just a team of all-stars,” said Sheik Mansour on the promotional literature that accompanied its launch. This is the bedrock of the club’s future.
It opened in December, bringing to a close years of research and design. It’s been a huge undertaking that consumed the club. Very few have acknowledged just how much went into its creation.
But much of last season’s distractions are gone. City’s FFP sanctions are expected to be lifted, and given the good health their finances are in, competing for top players is back on the agenda.
The club posted record turnover figures for the last financial year—£347 million, an increase of £76 million on the 2012/13 figures, according to the club's annual report. With losses cut to just £23 million, self-sufficiency is expected to be achieved in the next set of figures.
City’s finances are in rude health. They may have struggled thus far to bring new faces in this summer, but that’s perhaps are mark of the calibre of player they are chasing, rather than a lack of resources or any inertia in the boardroom. Signing the best is very often a complicated process.
And with the CFA now six months into its journey, the club’s attention can be focused more on first-team affairs. Much of the hard work is done, and patience is now needed as the academy staff look to use the resources they have been given and attempt to produce stars of the future.
The club now has a very strong base. Finances are healthy and continue to travel in the right direction, and the facilities and infrastructure are now in place and beyond anybody’s expectations.
Since Mansour's acquisition of the club in 2008, there has been constant change and development as City have gone from perennial underachievers to one of the most dominant sides in English football. They are reaching the stage now, though, where the turbulence is coming to an end and a period of serenity can follow.
They want their Premier League trophy back and are desperate to make a bigger impression on the Champions League.
This season, there are no excuses. The club has everything in place to make a serious assault for titles.
Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and follows the club from a Manchester base. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter: @RobPollard.
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