Source: Daily_Mail
Roberto Mancini faces bumpy ride in Manchester City hot seat
In the hot seat: Roberto Mancini[LNB]Roberto Mancini will read a carefully prepared opening address to his Manchester City players today and then begin sorting out the rampant egos that have undermined so much of what his predecessor Mark Hughes tried to do at Eastlands.[LNB]Mancini, 45, has known for some time that he was to become City's new manager and has spent some of that period looking into the backgrounds of his new players ahead of addressing them at their Carrington training ground this morning.[LNB]Given that City's first-team squad spent Saturday night and the early hours of Sunday morning enjoying their Christmas party at London's Vanilla Club, and that Mancini's English is very limited, it should certainly be an interesting first meeting.[LNB]Nevertheless, the players who Hughes had struggled to get the best out of consistently during his time at City will soon find their reputations count for very little when Mancini begins to exert his influence over the coming days.[LNB]'Dealing with players who are difficult, uncooperative and sullen will not be a problem for him,' said one well-placed source in Italy yesterday. 'Because he was like that as a player. [LNB]'He was a miserable, aloof-seeming guy on the outside and very difficult to get to know. It's only when you get to know him that you realise what a good person he is.[LNB]'He had (Zlatan) Ibrahimovic at Milan once and used to laugh about how he didn't mind him being such an idiot because he used to be the same himself.[LNB]'He can be a shouter and a biter, but he is clever. He will motivate players and over time they will respect him and like him.'[LNB]One of the factors that always counted against Hughes as he tried to get the balance right at City was his perceived failure to get the best out of the Brazilian Robinho.[LNB] HAVE YOUR SAY... Are Manchester City right to replace Mark Hughes with Roberto Mancini? What do you make of the goings on at Manchester City? Were the ambitious club right to axe manager Mark Hughes so ruthlessly after a 4-3 victory over Sunderland? And is relatively inexperienced former Inter Milan boss Roberto Mancini the right man to take the Eastlands hot seat? TELL US WHAT YOU THINK Bought by the club's owners as their 'marquee' signing in August last year, Robinho became a millstone around Hughes's neck. He once sprinted for a total of just 38 metres according to Prozone statistics during a game at Chelsea and last week at Tottenham he was not much better.[LNB]Nevertheless, City owner Sheik Mansour and chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak will expect Mancini to find a way to incorporate him into his team as they will Emmanuel Adebayor, bought for £25m and paid £170,000 a week.[LNB]It is understood that some City players turned on Adebayor in the dressing room at Tottenham last Wednesday after an insipid display. Certainly, Hughes was disappointed by what he received from his star signing of last summer.[LNB]Mancini is known to be a little guarded with his treatment of players until he gets to know them, but he certainly handled some high-profile individuals during a four-season spell at Inter that saw him win three Serie A titles and two Italian Cups.[LNB]As a player, he was close to his Sampdoria strike partner Gianluca Vialli and his room-mate, former England captain David Platt. Both are known to have encouraged him over the years to try his hand at managing in the Barclays Premier League.[LNB] Dropped: Emmanuel Adebayor and Robinho[LNB]Despite his four games for Leicester in 2001, his lack of English will be a problem. With only Brian Kidd on hand as his assistant, early communication with his players will be difficult and this could be crucial given how quickly he needs to get some results if he is to guide City towards the top four.[LNB]City's run-in is difficult, which makes forthcoming games against Stoke (twice), Wolves, Blackburn, Portsmouth, Hull and Bolton extremely important.[LNB]Mancini will certainly not do his job quietly. He is known in Italy for his anti-authority stance and is likely to be as outspoken once his English allows it as the man who followed him into the San Siro, Jose Mourinho.[LNB]He will be an interesting addition to the Premier League mix, provided he is allowed to stick around long enough.[LNB] City's 17[LNB] Vultures: People running Manchester City have shown they don't deserve to be involved in English footballGutted Mark Hughes hits back at City chiefs to insist he was on track for gloryMan City 4 Sunderland 3: Santa Cruz at the double for Hughes' last standRobinho switch from Manchester City to Barcelona a case of 'when not if'ALL THE MANCHESTER CITY FC
