Source: Team_Talk
Cook defends City's transfer dealings
Garry Cook has hit back at critics of Manchester City's recruitment policy, saying they will not spend with the same 'intensity' in January.[LNB] City manager Roberto Mancini spent more than £100million in the summer market as the likes of James Milner, Mario Balotelli, Yaya Toure, David Silva and Jerome Boateng were brought to Eastlands.[LNB]The plan is to turn City into Premier League champions and kings of Europe, but at the same time questions have been raised regarding a staggering £133million wage bill.[LNB]With new UEFA rules regarding Financial Fair Play on the horizon, the plans of billionaire City owner Sheikh Mansour will also come under increasing scrutiny.[LNB]However, City chief executive Cook insists that there is a strategy, telling the Guardian: "Critics only have their own perspective. [LNB]"They're not at the football club, they haven't been part of the planning or the long-term financial strategies.[LNB]"People think we choose players from the fantasy football league but there was a clear plan for who Roberto wanted to sign. [LNB]"One of the perceptions was that we only buy foreign players, then suddenly people saw that six of the England team who finished against Switzerland were City players.[LNB]"When people see the good things we are actually doing, they seem to be enlightened."[LNB]With regards to the new rules on finance, which will see Uefa only permit a loss of €45m (£39.7m) over the three years between 2011 and 2014, Cook also insists City, who lost £121m in 2009/10, have plans in place.[LNB]"Clearly our intention is to comply," said Cook. "Our two-year plan was to take a budget and build a competency to compete at the highest level, not forgetting the need for succession planning in every position. [LNB]"We are pleased with how that worked and will not be signing players to the same level of intensity in the next transfer windows.[LNB]"Financial fair play is on our conscience, we talk about it at every board meeting and it's part of our long-term plan."
