Source: Daily_Mail
Mark Hughes admits the entire football world will be watching his lavish City
Mark Hughes knows the eyes of the football world will be on Manchester City this season - with just as many wanting them to fail as succeed.
Although the Abu Dhabi United Group have had ownership of the Blues for almost a year now, it is only this summer that they have really flexed their financial muscle.
By the time Hughes has made the additional defensive purchases he feels are required before the end of the month, he will have spent in excess of £100million on new players, a figure that would double if purchases since the end of a tepid 2007-08 campaign were taken into account.
'There is a lot of interest in us,' he acknowledged.
'There are a lot of people who want us to succeed and just as many who want us to fail.
'People who maybe have a negative slant on what we are trying to do sometimes have the loudest voices and are given more platforms.
'I think there are just as many people excited and wondering what we are going to do, whether we have the means to do it and whether we are going to shake up the status quo.
'We have to live with that and deal with that. It is about making sure we are the best prepared team in the Premier League. That is what we are striving to do.'
Unfortunately for Hughes, injuries have affected his planning.
Roque Santa Cruz and Vincent Kompany have already been ruled out and there are also doubts over Carlos Tevez, Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Adebayor and Craig Bellamy, plus Shay Given, who apparently picked up a knock on international duty with the Republic of Ireland this week.
It means of the six new faces Hughes has brought in this summer, only Stuart Taylor, brought in from Aston Villa to be Given's deputy, and Gareth Barry, who hardly had the best of week's with England, might be involved for a match given added spice by David Dunn's inflammatory comments.
Generally though, Hughes is unlikely to be short of options. And he won't be afraid to use them.
'If things aren't working then you have to address them,' he said.
'We will take it on a game-to-game basis. I would back my staff against any other staff in the Premier League in terms of preparation.
'If the game doesn't go as we feel we will look to be better for the next one. It is all about learning and being better at what you do.'
Hughes is acutely aware City have suddenly become a big scalp.
