With the rise of the new multi-billionaire fashion accessory, the football club, can money truly buy success?
As Manchester City crashed out of the Europa League, with stars on the pitch like Tevez, Barry, Kolarov, Silva, and for 36 minutes Mario Balotelli, is this team that's worth a few hundred million, really cutting the mustard?
The easy answer would be "No", but have they improved? have they bought some of the best players in the world? are they going to get better? will they get to the heights of united? who knows...
Personally, as a complete neutral, I think it's great that there is another team in the premiership that can attract stars from across the world. I do think that the money in football is ridiculous, there is no doubting that, but if everyone else is doing it....
Why shouldn't man city fans love the fact that they can now mix it with the big boys in the league, fair play to them. But for me the one thing they don't quite have yet, and whose to say they ever will, is that caliber of player that you look at and instantly associate everything to do with that club, with them. I'm talking about your Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, John Terry, Frank Lampard, Carlos Puyol, Raul, Steven Gerrard, the kind of player that bleeds their team colours, the kind of player the fans couldn't and wouldn't imagine playing for any other club. Now don;t get me wrong I am completely aware that all the players mentioned will have earned their fair whack whilst signed to their prospective clubs, but are they the kind of players that are just playing for money? or do they truly love their club, fans, and day to day job? would they put their body on the line for a result? I think in some cases this is shown week in week out, John terry on countless occasions has put his body where others wouldn't, I remember him being kicked square in the face not that long ago as he made an attempt to rid the ball from his own area. A level of commitment that i couldn't see Mario Balotelli ever showing for City. Again, I appreciate it's easy to pick on "super Mario" (apt nickname) as I don't think there are many less committed football players about, theres the odd, "i'm injured every week, but pay me a fortune because if i'm not i'm brilliant" such as Mido who has been pulling that one off pretty successfully for at least a good 5-6 years now. But for me there doesn't seem to be that kind of passion in the squad, nobody that would die for the cause.
Even Chelsea after their abrupt rise to fame and fortune, managed through a series of successful seasons to develop a squad, that in the end developed into a passionate, trophy hungry, blue blooded, team of winners. I think it's pretty safe to say that Chelsea fans would hate to see Drogba, Malouda, Essien, Cole or Cech leave for another club, for "a new challenge" ( which between the lines, is clearly, a bigger wage packet every month) As for me surly the challenge whether you're in a blue shirt or a red shirt, is to win that 50/50 tackle, make sure you get on the end of that corner, get an extra yard on the winger. The only difference is the passion you feel for the team you're doing it for, surely?
I don't doubt that with the right investment in youth, and experience, and the right kind of characters at the club, that in the long run city could push themselves into the higher tier of European football, and be tarnished with the same brush as United and Chelsea. And who am I to say that Carlos Tevez won't become Man Cities greatest ever player? But not yet, theres no balance, passion, or drive in that team, which are things that right now money can't quite buy.
If I was a premier league manager ( which i'm not) I would rather have 11 darren fletchers, John Terry's, Dirk Kuyt's, players that love their club more than they love the game itself, over any of the current City squad, every day of the week. But thats just me, a fan of football, passion, brought up watching Paul ince put his shirt on 5 seconds before he steps on the pitch every single week without fail, watching cult heroes, like Paulo Dicanio, Gianfranco Zola, Juninho, Matt Le Tissier do everything in their power every single week to help their team to success, and thats what football needs, players not employees.
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