City are serious title contenders

TEAMtalk's Simon Wilkes is happy to eat humble pie and admit that Manchester City must be considered serious title contenders this season. Robbie Savage said on Radio 5 Live last night that he thinks Manchester City will "finish above United this season".Although this is a very bold claim from the blonde bombshell, I agree they have to at least be considered genuine Premier League title contenders due to their financial clout.Only a few of us here at TEAMtalk Towers tipped Roberto Mancini's men to finish in the top four this season in their prediction pieces for the 2010-11 campaign - but I think the majority may be starting to regret that following Monday night's resounding 3-0 win over Liverpool at Eastlands.I'm aware it's way too early to be talking of silverware, and on Monday we invited you all to have a crack at what Mancini deems his first-choice starting XI, with not many plumping for the team that lined up against Roy Hodgson's Reds.But the way City's slickers clicked so quickly, admittedly under the glare of watching owner Sheikh Mansour, points to a successful season on the blue side of Manchester.On Monday night they played a 4-2-3-1 formation which simply swamped and overran Liverpool in the middle of the field, with Gareth Barry and Nigel de Jong offering solid protection for an impressive back four marshalled by the experienced Kolo Toure and under-rated Vincent Kompany.There has been a lot of Barry bashing from TEAMtalk bloggers and readers alike since England's World Cup calamitous campaign - but the fact of the matter is he's still an effective performer in the Premier League and plays a huge role in ensuring both City and Fabio Capello's men keep hold of the ball.Yaya Toure played in a more advanced midfield role supporting lone striker Carlos Tevez, while Adam Johnson and debutant James Milner were the men tasked with creating havoc down the flanks, where they were ably assisted by marauding full-backs Joleon Lescott and Micah Richards, who have the freedom to attack thanks to the protection from Barry and de Jong.Liverpool will not be alone in leaving Eastlands pointless this season as this set-up will be too hot to handle for the majority of opponents - and if plan A isn't working, Mancini has an embarrassment of riches on the bench to switch to plans B, C or D.TEAMtalk's Rob McCarthy urged Milner not to swap Aston Villa for City earlier this month and many of us agreed as we thought he'd struggle for game time and stall his career progress.But on Monday night Milner, as well as Johnson, showed they have the potential to become not just regulars for City, but also for their country.Both players displayed top-quality pace, skill and delivery - and when you add in a fantastic work ethic and hunger to win back possession, City's credentials are getting stronger by the minute.Mancini faces a tough task managing to keep the various egos at Eastlands happy, but it's the strength in depth in his squad which means they'll be there or thereabouts when the race for glory enters its final stretch.Remember Patrick Vieira, Emmanuel Adebayor and David Silva were on the bench last night, while Mario Balotelli, Aleksandar Kolarov and Jerome Boateng are all being given time to find their feet following summer arrivals.With so many fantastic players at his disposal, Mancini can ensure he can keep them all fresh as daisies as the season goes by - and every time a player gets his chance he'll be busting a gut to keep his place.The final scary thought for their title rivals is that if City are challenging for silverware on several fronts as we head into the New Year, Mansour will no doubt open his chequebook and bankroll a few more big-money signings if that is what's required.Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho admits City are "dominant in the transfer market", adding "the player they say they want is the player they get".And if the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal are struggling to keep pace come Christmas time, Messrs Torres and Fabregas may well be tempted to join the Eastlands revolution.The Special One also admits City could "maybe" win the league this season, and it's hard to disagree with the Portuguese mastermind, who has proved he knows a thing or two about the beautiful game.

Source: Team_Talk