SHEFFIELD UNITED v MANCHESTER CITY
Over 7,000 fans will be making the short trip over the Pennines to Bramall Lane for this fourth round tie which has come at just the right time for both clubs.

In retrospective – the short trip will actually be something of a nightmare for the blue army as no trains are running on the Sunday and a massive landslide on Snakes Pass as shut the road for weeks. 7,000 down the Woodhead Pass is going to be fun!

But onto footballing matters. It’s always good to play a Bryan Robson team. Once one of the most over rated managers of all time – a failure anywhere he’s been he no longer gets the press attention but he’s sure to get the full attention of the 7,000 faithful.

As mentioned in the opening intro – this cup game comes at just the right time for both clubs. Sheffield United are suffering in the Championship – currently a lowly 14th and coming on the back of a poor performance and a two-nil defeat against arch-rivals Wednesday. In fact the Blades have only won two games in the last nine.

However, City have exactly the same record – two wins out of nine but we hold a fantastic league position and the Blades don’t! A welcomed break from the league the FA Cup match represents City’s best possible chance of bringing proper glory back to Manchester. Both Sven and especially Hans Backe have being making all the right noises this week about how important the FA Cup is and how they are both taking it seriously and will be fielding their strongest possible starting eleven.

In season’s gone by, the Invisible Man would be worried about an away game to an out of form Championship side. It was just the type of game which City would promise so much but deliver nothing but grief and heart-ache. These days, under the Sven Revolution, things are distinctly different. Sunday, there will be an air of confidence amongst the team and the fans.

We will fancy our chances of going through at Bramall Lane in a confident and efficient manner. Sven is, without doubt, a cup competition man. The has a fantastic record of winning five cup comps in 3 different countries. Who knows, this year might just make it 6 cups in 4 countries. With only 11 Premiership teams still left in the cup, the lowest amount since the Prem started in 1992, it might just be the year for an “unfashionable” club to win.

And City deserve to go along way in the cup. Quarter Finalists for the past two seasons has given the fans an appetiate to go that little bit further. And going back to Wem-ber-lee would be an amazing experience – the very first for countless young fans. Having been on the pitch of Wem-ber-lee last summer in front of 80,000 (albeit at a MUSE gig) was an immense experience. The ground is truly stunning both inside and out (just a shame about the area!)

Anyway, back to the game on Sunday afternoon. Yes another game on tele on a stupid day at a stupid time – oh for a Saturday 3.00pm kick off. Both teams have their injury problems – the Blades more-so than City. James Beattie is struggling with a knee injury and is by far and away their best player so there’s some good fortune for City.

However, Micah Richards and Javier Garrido both became injured today. Add them to long term absentees Johnson (abdominal), Bohinov (Knee) and Castillo (Shoulder) and City are starting to look a little thin. Binachi has returned to be waited on hand and foot by his Mum in Italy so striking options are limited.

However, Bianchi would have made little impact in this game. He couldn’t handle Premiership centre-halves moaning about how rough they are. He’d have no chance on a bobbly pitch and Championship defenders hell bent on chopping you down.  

Good news is that Mpenza has been training all this week and should be in contention for his first start of 2008. The most likely line-up for City will be Hart (possibly Schem), Corluka at RB, Dunne at CB, Nedum at CB, Ball at LB, Didi at CM (possibly Gelson), Elano at AM, Vassell at RM, Petrov at LM and Mpenza at FW.

There will be quite a few familiar faces for the 7,000 faithful to give some banter and stick to on Sunday. The Blades boast amongst their ranks dinosaurs such as Lee Hendrie, Ugo Ehiogu, Gary Naysmith, Jon Stead, Rob Hulse, Gary Speed, Keith Gillespie and Geoff Horsefield. My GOD it really is a football retirement centre!!!!

And don’t forget we all get to shout constantly for 45mins at Paddy Kenny for being the fattest keeper in the land. Happy Days!

City Danger Man
Elano – Expect the little midfield maistro to have the skill and guile to dominate the middle of the park

Blades Danger Man
Gary Speed – He may be even older than Didi (if possible) but this guy is still pure class. He can pass well and often scores a headers from corners.

Prediction
Despite the absence of Richards, City’s defence will be too strong for the Blades – The Invisible Man can’t see them breaking us down. With Robson’s inept management style there is little chance United will score. However, City won’t have it all their own way. The pitch is not in the best shape and they will be tough in the tackle and won’t give us much space.

Expect a hard fought game. Petrov will struggle to be as effective as he as in recent weeks but still expect him to whip in a couple of world class crosses during the match. Hamann v Speed will be a great contest in the middle. Elano will beat his men and will influence the game. If City score in the first half the match will open up and City will counter to great effect.

The Blades lack of pace at the back will allow City to exploit them down the flanks and through the middle. Vassell may even score 2 out of 2 games! The Invisible Man predicts a 0-2 Man City victory.

Head to Head

All competitions - Not met since both were in the Premier League in 2006-07. City are undefeated in four; won two and drawn two since United’s 1-0 home victory at second league level on 22 January 2000.

FA Cup – The clubs have been drawn together three times in the FA Cup, and Sheffield United have won all three. The most recent was in 1939 at this fourth round stage; the previous in 1914, required two replays.

Manchester City has been unsuccessful in our appeal against the rejection of a work permit for Iraqi midfielder Nashat Akram. Manager Sven-Goran Eriksson headed a high-powered City delegation that travelled to the Home Office in London for the hearing.

And in spite of the 21-year-old having an impressive international record with the current Asia Cup holders, the panel rejected the Club’s request to allow the midfielder to ply his trade. City had agreed to transfer Akram from the Al-Ain club in the UAE and he had impressed the coaching staff during a recent training stint at our Carrington complex.

Sven said, “This is a big blow and a great disappointment to us. I have huge sympathy for Nashat. He is a very good footballer with an excellent international pedigree. He has now returned to the Middle East and we will keep in touch with him. He is somebody who we will maintain an interest in for the long term.”

Akram was one of the stars of the Iraq side that won last year’s Asian Cup and had featured when they went to the semi-finals of the 2004 Olympic soccer tournament.

They say familiarity breeds contempt and the majority of City fans had that feeling by half-time today. Playing a team 3 times inside two weeks was just too much. Each time West Ham have played us this season they have got stronger and learnt a little bit more.

Take for example the Lucas Neill v Petrov mini-saga. Neill has finally got Petrov’s cards marked. However, it’s taken him four matches to learn! City played poorly today and to be perfectly honest - the Hammers deserved to go back down the M6 with all three points.

City have hit a brick wall in recent weeks and coupled with the fact that we’ve played West Ham so often this year the result, in reflection, becomes a good one. It’s not very often that you can say we’re picking up points and playing badly – but that is the case and if you believe the pundits that’s the sign of a good team. So there is positives to be had!

For the game itself, we were poor. Completely one dimensional going through  Petrov for every move. Now MOTD2 gave a 5 minutes presentation by Dixon and Keown on how West Ham stopped Petrov and how other teams can do it. So from now on – unless we can start becoming more adventurous with our play – the Petrov attacking option is a no-go.

West Ham started the game much the brighter team, which is becoming commonplace at Eastlands. The Invisible Man is not sure whether it’s our new found “Italian Way” of playing that makes us slow or whether the team are not up for it from the start. Anyway their bright opening was rewarded with a goal from Carlton Cole (Yeah, remember him!!).

A great little overhead kick left Hart with no chance. Micah was very brave and threw his head into the path of Cole’s swinging boot. It’s something you don’t see Prem footballers doing but Micah is made of hard stuff.

West Ham continued to control the game making nice triangle passing and leaving City to play on scraps. When we won the ball it would be overplayed at the back then pumped up to Petrov. How predictable! The team’s lack of a front man was there for all to see.

However, out of a nothing corner City managed to equalise through Darius Vassell – poking home from 3 yards after Petrov’s whipped in cross was mis-controlled by Bianchi and fell invitingly for Vas to toe poke home.

Replay’s showed that Vassell was offside when the move first started but was onside when the ball reached him. The offside rule needs clearing up cos it’s to grey at the moment. However, the Invisible Man was delighted that justice was done after Santa Cruz equalised for Blackburn at the very same end in very similar circumstances.

What comes around, goes around – meaning that City must be becoming a bigger team as we would never have got that decision in years gone by.

The second half was a non-event for City and it’s loyal supporters. West Ham’s Noble and the ever-irrating Bowyer controlled the midfield with our star man Elano no where in sight. Hart made some great stops, most notabley one with his legs and a fine tip over in the third minute of injury time. Without an onsong Hart West Ham would have beaten City for the first time since the 5th Round Cup exit which ruined the rest of that season for City.

City’s strike force was completely ineffective – Bianchi showing he’s not got the fight or bottle to be a successful striker in the Premiership. He’s far more suited to getting the over-protection that Italian refs give attackers. He tried but his best effort was so far short of what is expected and needed. He spent far to much time on his knees appealing for nothing. He looked like a man who’s head was no longer in England.

To end on a positive, City are still only 2 points off Champions League and level on points with Villa and Pool. Although we’re in 7th – a few good performances and wins under the belt will mean City will still be challenging for European competition.

Player Ratings

HART - He was great in the sticks. No chance for the goal. You would have been disappointed though if he had of conceded one of the many West Ham shots on goal as most of them were straight at him. 8/10

DUNNE - At fault for the goal with a stupid pass on the 18 yard line. Positionally was out of sorts and was not the usual rock he has become this season. Disappointing 5/10

BALL - Didn’t offer much in attack but did his job in defence well. A simple but effective performance. At home you do expect more of your full backs. 6/10

CORKLUKA - Same as Ball. Rarely got forward but defended well enough. A very quiet game for him. He did let Ljungberg get past him a few times though. 6/10

RICHARDS - A good display from the young England International. After conceding to Cole he wasn’t going to let him get the better of him for the rest of the match. A good strong performance 7/10

IRELAND - Started off playing in centre midfield – and the game passed him by. He then went onto the right wing and the game passed him by. A poor performance but the lad ran further than anyone else. 5/10

HAMANN - Broke up play the Didi way and won a fair few “dodgy” fouls. Passed it simple and did his job well. The old legs are not giving up just yet! 7/10

ELANO - Same as Ireland. The entire match just passed him by. A few nice passes is not good enough for our main creative force. This corners and freekicks were awful. 5/10

PETROV - Set up the goal from a corner and cross but other than that he was marked out of the game by Neill and Ferdinand. Tracked back very little and his short passing game was way off. 6/10

VASSELL - Scored his goal and was in the right place at the right time. Goes missing from the game and doesn’t look for the ball enough. Ran well up and down the flank until Boa Morte injured him 6/10

BIANCHI - A poor performance. Was clean through on two occassions and decided to shoot from distance. Very short of pace and lacks the edge and strength needed to be a quality Premiership goal getter. 5/10

MANCHESTER CITY – WEST HAM UNITED PREVIEW Well this really is getting quite boring isn’t it. Having to play West Ham three times in two weeks has resulted in even the most passionate of fans thinking – not this old record again.

It certainly will make the Invisible Man think twice before singing “Can we play you every week, can we play you every week”. However, our results against the not so happy hammers have been good of late.

City haven’t conceded a goal against the Hammers this season and if you go include last years games as well then they haven’t scored a goal against our great defence for 465 minutes. A Newton goal was our undoing that day. Having to play them again though so soon after Wednesday’s one nil win in the FA Cup means that this game is much harder to call.

Curbishly has sent a war cry out to his players saying that they can qualify for Europe this season if they believe in themselves a little more. They’re just 7 points off a four place finish so that is not as tough as it may sound at first.

For City this game is yet another critical game in our ever-impressive season. With four teams on 39 points a win is vital to open up a little mini-gap. Villa play Liverpool on Monday night so someone is going to lose ground on us if we managed to get a fourth win over the Hammers this weekend. Let’s hope Wigan can do what they did to us against Everton tomorrow and draw.

Which nicely brings the Invisible Man onto that last Premiership game. Our home form and away form are like chalk and cheese. It was a drab, and poor game with only a couple of shots on target, both of which came in injury time. We lost a great opportunity to make fourth place our own – putting more pressure on the West Ham game.

However, our impact in front of goal didn’t improve on Wednesday night. Despite 7 blocked shots and a few off target we only managed 1 shot on target – Elano’s brave diving header.  

This is a real concern for The Invisible Man. Far too man times this year we have failed to get more than a couple of shots on target and our strikers and midfielders are not even firing blanks. The gun has jammed and nothing is being shot! With only two weeks left of the transfer window Sven has to make his move fast.

Vassell is never going to score more than 5 a season, Samaras seems all but certain to leave, Castillo is out for 6 weeks but doesn’t look like a striker, and that just leaves Bianchi. Our one player who looks like he can score and cause problems to opposition defences.

There seems to be a real problem with him and Sven though. Constantly being linked with a more back to Italy on loan and often quoted in the press as being unhappy – Sven has settled for him to play out his City Season from the bench. After his good performance in the week though he might have found himself playing up front again.

It’s a tough call to see if Sven will make that decision and either drop Vassell. It’s more than likely that Vassell will move to the right and Ireland will go infield pushing Elano up to play in “the hole”. That’s where Elano needs to play as he’s so much more effective than wide right or as a midfielder.

Well onto West Ham. They don’t like playing us much do they! However, they are getting closer and closer to us as the season progresses. With Dean Ashton up front they will always pose a threat to our back line and that was proven time again in the FA Cup match where Hart made some last ditch saves. Six wins and four draws mean West Ham will be dangerous but City will have the upper hand at home.

City Danger Man
Martin Petrov – this guy is in the form of his City life and has Lucas Neill in his back pocket. Expect him to enjoy himself down the left flank

Hammer Danger
Dean Ashton – He might be big, bulky and always huffing and puffing but the ex-Crewe man has power and a fantastic sight for goal. He hits them with real venom. 

Prediction
Before the FA Cup draw and replay the Invisible Man would have plumbed for an easy City victory. However, the teams now are sick to death of playing each other and the Invisible Man thinks West Ham will have more to prove than City on Sky Sports tomorrow.

It’s going to be a much tougher game. West Ham will be a bit more open and will be going for the 3 points. City though have Petrov and Elano – two proven matchday winners. With Petrov able to run circles around Lucas Neill he will surely be the bookies favourite for a goal or assist.

Therefore, the prediction for the fourth and final encounter versus the Spammers is an entertaining 2-1 home victory.

 Head to Head

Manchester City 2-0 West Ham United
23 September 2006 – Ref: Chris Foy
Man City scorers: Samaras 50, 63

West Ham United 0-2 Manchester City
11 August 2007 – Ref: Peter Walton
Man City scorers: Bianchi 18, Geovanni 87

Well City ain’t won at Goodison since 1992 and this weekend’s game was almost a carbon copy of last year’s dire affair. The Invisible Man is unsure of whether or not the atrocious view from the back of the lower bullins was actually a blessing in disguise.

That Bullen’s stand though needs to be torn down. How can a Premiership club called themselves Premiership with wooden little seats which would look more in place at a pre-school reception. They were tiny. Good job The Invisible Man stood up for the entire match then!

Now, on previous visits to Everton, The Invisible Man has always been impressed with the crowd, the roar and the banter the scousers give. However, Saturday was unbelievable. No atmosphere, no banter, no singing. Even after they scored they didn’t sing. Has it ever been so quiet? Maybe the previous night’s capital of culture celebrations took there toll. “Capital of Culture, You’re havin’ a Laugh!”

Anyways, onto the dire match itself.

One shot on target meant that against both Liverpool and Everton in recent games we have managed a total of one shot. Competing against these teams doesn’t quite hit the mark. It’s a good job City keep beating teams in the bottom half of the table because against our actual rivals we are not at the races.

A very cautious City did very little in the first half apart from a deflected Elano freekick. A combination of poor marking, Elano stood 3 yards behind all the other defenders and the fact Petrov couldn’t be arsed to close down the cross meant an easy goal for Lescott. This boy can’t stop scoring – at either ends! 

Everton dominated the first half without creating too many changes. Before the goal Cahill missed an empty net after a great save from Hart. He really did get down well to stop that one.

After the break it was City’s turn to dominate as Everton, rather foolishly, decided that 1-nil would be all they wanted. They decided to play on the counter attack but couldn’t get out of their half for 20 minutes. Literally!

The crowd started getting on their backs as City continued to win every loose or second ball. City passed it and passed it and ended up going back to Hart who would then pumped it forward 70 yards for us to lose the ball then win it back again and pass it some more before returning to Hart would hit it 70 yards. It wasn’t inspiring!

No cutting edge from City was the root cause for the defeat. Some fans like to blame Vassell for all our troubles but when you have no chances to miss the problem is a bit more than just a dodgy striker. Plus Bianchi was on the pitch for the seocnd and never got a sniff either. The trouble came from a midfield which was not creative enough. Every time we looked to set Petrov away down the left flank. It was very easy to read and Hibbert just stayed deep.

There were two highlights of the game though that were great to see. The first was Petrov’s run. He didn’t have any room down the flank so cut inside and took on two or three players. It was a cracking run fully of pace and single mindedness.

The second was Dunne’s run and back-heel. With no creativity or movement from the midfield a little gap opened up and Dunne took it on. He slowly built up his speed (considerable for a big man) and then he was juggernauting his way to the box. After his run was checked he back-heeled it perfectly to the left wing. Dunney Monster is KING!

Player Ratings

HART - A couple of great reaction saves and got lucky with Cahill’s rebound means a solid performance. His kicking was ineffective and Sven has already told him that it is “forbidden”. Slipped on his arse when the fans were singing “England’s No.1″ was funny though. 7/10

BALL - Did well against Areta and kept him relatively quiet. Poor passing let Ball down but he was really up for the game. Lost his way when coming over the half way line and didn’t overlap Petrov enough 6/10

NEDUM - Looked far more comfortable at Centre Back where he moved in the second half. Was way too deep in the first as a right back and rarely went past half-way. Looks like Ned’s thinking a bit too much at the moment, rather than do what we all know he can do. Wasted a good chance from a corner 6/10

RICHARDS - Strength and power from the young man in the first half meant little got past him. Anichebe gave him a good run for this money though. Moved to right back in the second half and sprinted along the line well linking up with attack. However, he was suppose to be a right-back and ended up playing as a centre forward and failed to track back in the last 20 minutes. 6/10

DUNNE -The Dunney Monster was surperb again. Strong in the tackle, imperious in the air and making every 50/50 a 70/30. Very little got past him and he read the game very well. Even went on a couple of tank-like runs and did a great little back-heel to Petrov – Dunnedinho! Kick long far too often though and was poor with his distribution which was a a shame. He also got a great round of applause from the Toffees when his name was read out which was great to see. 8/10 STAR MAN

DIDI - Did the usual Kasier thing. Kept it simple and reads the game better than anyone else. Found it hard to pass in a very conjested midfield and spent most of the game breaking up play. Was wrongly booked for a fantastic sliding tackle. Subbed in the second half for fear of getting another yellow. 6/10

CORLUKA -Didn’t look comfortable in midfield. Took too long on the ball and was caught often (mostly around the shins). Took a big kick in the second half which could have been red for Carsley. Too slow and not enough craft with his passing. 5/10

ELANO - Nothing from the little Brazilian. Marked out the game and couldn’t create on a soggy, boggy pitch. Tried hard in the first half but was invisible in the second. 5/10

PETROV - All the attacking was going through Petrov and he was marked out of the game. Found it hard going and rarely got in behind. Had the only shot on target for City though. 6/10

CASTILLO - Looked way of the pace and like a fish out of water on the right hand side. Totally left footed and wanted to much time on the ball. Gave the ball away too often and needs to get match fit. Even failed to hit the target in the pre-match warm-up 5/10

VASSELL - No threat at all. A very easy day for Everton’s back line. Even his usual full of running self didn’t help in this game 5/10

GELSON - Came on for Didi and did what Didi did in the first half. (say that fast five times ) No real impact 5/10

BIANCHI - Came on for Castillo and had 35 minutes to impress. Did even less than Vassell and gave away far too many freekicks. Strange why the City fans keep singing that song when he’s this poor. 5/10

IRELAND - Gave balance to the team but didn’t contribute anything else. Looked very fragile next to those massive Everton players. Has he got even thinner? 5/10

 

EVERTON – MANCHESTER CITY PREVIEW
It’s back to Scouse Land this weekend for a six pointer of a match, which for the first time isn’t a relegation six pointer for Manchester City. Oh how good it feels to talk about qualifying for Europe rather than getting to the 40 point mark. Incidentally, a draw at the Toffee’s will bring up the magic 40!

If the Toffees manage to win then they’ll draw level on points with City and we’ll be pulled back down into the hunt for UEFA Cup spots. A win, and we will still be dreaming of the unthinkable – a Champions League birth. The Invisible Man has never seen City win at Everton though and this game will be a real tough task for the players and the fans too – for the past two seasons our hosts have failed to open the bars up in the ground meaning we all stay tee-total. Why Goodison do this is beyond me.

There’s no better time to be playing Everton with their Africa stars already on the plane to the African Cup of Nations so the omen’s are favouring City slighty. Our away form has been poor to date but the win against the Barcodes will surely give Sven’s men more confidence. With Petrov, Elano, Castillo and the Kaiser in midfield we have the capability of scoring from deep.

Expect resolute defending from Richards and DunneyMonster  and don’t expect Nedum or Ball to venture further than the halfway line in this match. Joe Hart will be full of confidence too after  great week in the press where he’s been tipped as a future England keeper and the current best English keeper in the league. He won’t disappoint and I expect him to make his usual breath taking save in this game – probably from an Arteta blaster.

Up front is where City are struggling. Don’t expect Vassell to get on the scoresheet but I do believe he will start over Bianchi. He’s a great team player and works harder than any other player for the team. He’s got himself a couple of assists recently and he might just get another.

Bianchi is not Sven’s favourite player at the moment – some suggesting that his work ethic and team play is not up to scratch. However, he is a natural born finsher and if he gets off the bench with 20 odd mins to go then he might just sneak a six yarder.

Everton Danger Men
Tim Cahill
Mikel Arteta

City Danger Men
Elano Blumer
Martin Petrov

Prediction
This game is tough to call. Both teams look very evenly matched. Midfield is where this battle is gonna be won or lost with both teams having midfielders capable of winning games on their own. A draw looks likely from the stats presented and the league table but something tells The Invisible Man that City can win at Goodison on Saturday.

Therefore, rather optimistically, the prediction is a hard-fought and tense 0-1 affair.

Head to Head
Man City                 2 – 1                   Everton
Everton                   1 – 1                   Man City
Everton                   1 – 0                  Man City
Man City                 2 – 0                  Everton
Everton                   2 – 1                  Man City
Man City                 0 – 1                  Everton
Man City                 5 - 1                  Everton
Everton                   0 – 0                 Man City
Everton                   2 – 2                 Man City
Man City                 3 – 1                 Everton
Everton                   3 – 1                 Man City
Man City                 5 – 0                Everton
Everton                   3 – 1                Man City

Manchester City’s shirt sponsors and manufacturer will have their branding removed from the kit worn in next month’s Munich anniversary derby.

 The decision by Thomas Cook.com and Le Coq Sportif came after talks between the companies and the supporters. Producing a kit that will incorporate a black ribbon of remembrance is just one of the initiatives City have adopted ahead of the match against Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday February 10.Other plans for the joint marking of the 50th anniversary of the tragedy on February 6 are expected to be announced shortly.

City spokesman Paul Tyrrell told the Manchester Evening News: “After discussions with the Official Supporters Club and the Centenary Supporters Association, both Thomas Cook and Le Coq Sportif offered to remove branding from the shirts.

“Le Coq are happy to produce a unique kit for the occasion.”

All 3,000 City fans who get a ticket for the game will receive a letter from manager Sven Goran-Eriksson and skipper Richard Dunne as well as a picture of goalkeeper-turned-journalist Frank Swift, who died in the plane crash.

Eriksson asks all supporters to “uphold the good name of Manchester City and respectfully support the commemorations.”

The Invisible Man says “Hopefully the derby will be a time to reflect and all fans will respect the memory of Munich. City are doing an awful lot of good work to stop any potential issues that could hurt the name of Manchester City and for that I take my hat of to them.” The unbranded kits will look great on tele and I can’t wait to see it.”

 ”I was an avid fan of the Barcelona model – not allowing any sponsors on their shirts. It was a great statement. It’s an even greater statement that they have unicef on shirts now. I think all Premiership Clubs should promote charities on their shirts!” 

Alex McLeish plans to tie up the £2.5m signing of Giorgios Samaras. The Birmingham boss has been given the OK to match Manchester City’s valuation of the Greece international, who is surplus to requirements under Sven Goran Eriksson at Eastlands.

Samaras is thinking over a possible move to St Andrew’s and McLeish is confident he can persuade him to remain in the Premier League.

He faces competition from Championship side Charlton. But manager Alan Pardew is only prepared to take the Greek striker on loan for the rest of the season and City want a permanent sale.

The Invisible Man says “Every City fan knew it, and now so does Sven. Samaras can’t cut it as a striker in the English Premiership. City would do very good business to sell him to another Premiership team as he hasn’t made too much of a bother to find a new club. He seems the type of player who is happy picking up huge wages and not playing football.”

“He remains very popular with the City fans. We have something of a soft spot for him, although knowing he’s utter s**te. We treat him like something of a son – willing him to do well. Hopefully, he’ll find himself a club at his level. I think he would do well going back to Holland myself.”

Marseille may be prepared to offer Manchester City misfit Ousmane Dabo a route out of Eastlands.

Dabo has endured a torrid time, including a training ground bust-up with Joey Barton.

City had inquired about Marseille midfielder Samir Nasri and striker Mamadou Niang.

They were told neither were available but Marseille have asked to be kept informed about Dabo.

The Invisible Man says “This move would be perfect for all parties. I sincerely hope it goes through without a hitch so that Dabo can get his career back on track. He certainly isn’t as bad as he has come across in the few Premiership matches he’s played. He didn’t suit the pace of English football and would be more at home back in France.”

 

There’s strong rumours around the City messageboards today that the club has signed Nashat Akram. Reported on www.mancityfans.net a link to Akram’s own website has confirmed that he has passed his medical exam and will be presented to the media on 10th January 2008.

Taken from this personal website “After arriving to Manchester City, Iraqi midfielder and playmaker Nashat Akram has successfully passed the medical check up that he did in Manchester City. In regards of the negotiations, Akram and his agent has reached to an agreement with Man City’s side.”

“Therefore, Manchester City will hold a press conference on the 10th of January announcing the signing of Nashat Akram.” 

The Invisible Man says: “Akram is a 24 year old midfielder who is more of an attack minded player. He’s tall at 6.1″ and quite a slim build so hopefully he’ll be able to win us lots of freekicks. He currently plays for Al-Ain in the UAE and has enjoyed a two week trial with Man City.”

“If he signs he’ll become the first Iraqi player to sign for a Premiership Club and may become the first Iraqi player to play in the Premiership. At the moment The Invisible Man does not know enough about him to make a proper rating. However, it might just be a Frank PR stunt to gain popularity in Asia. It may be the case that Akram is farmed out to one of City’s new feeder clubs around the world.”

“Personally, the Invisible Man hopes Akram is the real deal and that City trialblaze the first successful Iraqi player in the Premiership. After all, their country needs some to cheer about – and it’s about time.”