Following their brief stay at the famous St. Andrews in Scotland, Manchester City will fly out to the USA as the next leg of their pre-season preparations. Although the more cynical of us would have us believe that this tour of the USA is nothing more then a chance for the blues to expand their global brand; to the players, it means a whole lot more.
Manchester City FC Travel Squad
Goalkeepers (3): Willy Caballero, Richard Wright, Ian Lawlor
Defenders (8): Micah Richards, Dedryck Boyata, Gael Clichy, Karim Rekik, Aleksandar Kolarov, Matthias Bossaerts, Matija Nastasic, Jason Denayer
Midfielders (8): Fernando, Samir Nasri, Scott Sinclair, Javi Garcia, Jesus Navas, Jack Rodwell, Bruno Zuculini, Emry Huws
Forwards (4): Alvaro Negredo, Stevan Jovetic, John Guidetti, Kelechi Iheanacho
As part of UEFA’s punishment for City’s failure to comply with Financial Fair Play regulations, City will face sanctions which Owen Gibson of the guardian writes: "will limit Manuel Pellegrini's options when it comes to naming his 21-man European squad, cut from the usual 25". These restrictions will have a major effect on this summers transfer policy and will force Manuel Pellegrini and Txiki Begiristain into some tough decisions regarding the future of the upcoming youth players and the those on the fringes.
With the majority of Manchester City's first eleven being afforded extended holidays following their World Cup exertions, now is the perfect opportunity for some of the youth and fringe players to stake their claim for one of the treasured spots in the 2014/15 squad. Here are the X major battles set to take place.
Joe Hart - Willy Caballero
Following Joe Hart's decline in form and Costel Pantilimon's contract expiring, Manuel Pellegrini decided to place his faith in his former shot-stopper Willy Caballero to provide competition for England's number one. Many have attributed Joe Hart's poor performances from his his failure to push himself without a serious contender for the number one spot. Things have changed now. In Caballero, City have signed a high quality goalkeeper with tons of experience, and most importantly, someone who will not be happy to sit on the bench. Caballero came to play, and not just in the cup games. With that in mind, and with Hart still enjoying his holidays, Caballero has a few matches to impress the City staff and convince them that he has what it takes to not only push Joe Hart to his limits, but to replace the England keeper if his form doesn't improve.
Karim Rekik - Matija Nastasic
Following his brilliant debut season under Roberto Mancini, nobody expected the heavy speculation that is currently surrounding Majita Nastasic's future at the Etihad. The experienced head on young shoulders, the calmness, and the assuredness that he played with in Mancini's watertight style of defending has seemed to give way to an unease and discomfort at playing the attacking high line that is so vital to Pellegrini's style. Along with his mysterious knee injury that hardly helped, most fans categorize his dip in form as teething problems, a common issue for defenders of his age. On the other hand, some argue that Nastasic is an Italian defender at heart; a tactician who prevents danger quietly with subtle positioning instead of lunging into full-blooded challenges. Although a perfect breed for Mancini, Pellegrini's philosophy requires defenders to be pro-active, aggressive, and to spend more time chasing runners in behind as is inevitable with a high line and these are exactly the attributes seen in another young centre back; Karim Rekik.
Rekik, a Dutch footballer of Tunisian descent, signed for Manchester City from Feyenoord in the summer of 2011. Long seen by the academy staff as one of the those most likely to succeed at the highest level, Rekik is a cultured centre back, good on the ball, and a natural leader. He was given the opportunity to impress on loan at PSV Eindhoven and impress he did; So much so, that Louis Van Gaal decided to include him in his provisional 30-man squad for the World Cup. Although cut from the eventual list, to be included to that point at 19 years old is a major achievement, and a good indicator of his talent. Rekik is wanted on loan for another year by PSV, but has made his intentions clear that he desires to play for Manchester City but only if they can offer him significant game time as is needed for his continued development.
Considering that he is 21 and not required to take up an international place on the squad until next year, Nastasic is currently extremely valuable to City. On the other hand, Rekik doesn't need to take up a squad place for another three years and, even then, he would also add to the homegrown quota that City are so desperate to fill, making him even more valuable. Both are exciting prospects, but with Mangala rumored to be arriving, and neither happy to waste away on the bench, expect both to be making the most of their opportunity to impress and claim the fourth centre back slot for the year.
Javi Garcia - Jack Rodwell - Bruno Zuculini - Emyr Huws
With the new additions of Fernando Reges arriving from Portugal and youngster Bruno Zuculini from Argentina, Manchester City's midfield reserves will be the most nervous with regards to FFP squad restrictions. With a maximum of two positions available, who will make way for the 2014/15 season?
Poor Javi Garcia has had it rough in blue; arriving amongst a torrid of unwanted last-minute signings, nobody wanted to give Garcia a chance. Scapegoated again and again for his lack of pace and lack of visible defending, Garcia has become the butt of everybody's jokes. Constant speculation regarding his future and with the majority of fans calling for him to be sacrificed as part of the squad restrictions, Garcia has quietly improved and, dare I say it, become a valuable player. Since Pellegrini was forced to become more pragmatic in an attempt to improve City's poor away record at the beginning of the season, Garcia's value increased dramatically. First impressions are hard to shake but without Garcia's availability as a stop-gap centre back, and the security he provided to see out a close match, City's season could have turned out much differently. Considering a tough Champions League match where Pellegrini, as rumored, plays a midfield trio of Fernando,Fernandinho, and Yaya, who out of the current squad would you trust to slot in without placing the entire match in jeopardy? My answer is Javi Garcia.
Next on the list would have to be Jack Rodwell. The analysis of Rodwell's situation is actually quite straightforward: Does Pellegrini trust him to stay fit and if so, can he reach the heights that everybody who saw his man of the match performance for the England U-21's against Germany projected him to reach? His talent is obvious, even with City he has shown flashes of what he can do. The question is: Does Pellegrini, with squad spaces at a premium, take the risk on someone who could very well end up unavailable for the majority of the season?
Now comes the contenders; Bruno Zuculini and Emyr Huws. The most likely situation is the two of these going out on loan and battling for contention in the squad next summer, but can either of them impress enough to convince Pellegrini that their time is now? Zuculini was widely regarded as one of the finest young prospects in South America, although his form declined as he approached the end of the season. A season-long loan, most likely to Spain, seems to be on the cards. Huws also has a bright future, and after going on a hugely successful loan for the year at Birmingham, the City academy graduate will be hungry to begin a new long line of homegrown talent to play for the English giants.