Roberto Mancini is rather fortunate that he does not have to answer to Roman Abramovich. If the Russian had been Manchester City’s owner, Mancini would likely have been sacked on the morning of May 6th 2010 – hours after a Premier League defeat to Tottenham which meant Spurs, and not City, would qualify for the Champions League.
Of course the reality was different. Sheikh Mansour and the Middle Eastern ownership at City stuck with the Italian manager and their patience has yielded a Premier League title and an FA Cup triumph as well as participation in the Champions League.
But European competition has not been kind to Mancini or City during the past two seasons. The manager struggled in the Champions League while at Inter and that did not change in Manchester as he was shown to be tactically out of his depth particularly during this season’s limp group stage performances.
Although he can be granted some leniency in the cases of Mario Balotelli and Carlos Tevez, his man management has also been suspect as he has clashed publically with the likes of Joleon Lescott, Joe Hart and Micah Richards.
And to make matters worse, Man City have gone backwards domestically as they seem likely to relinquish their Premier League crown, barring an unforeseen 12 point collapse by bitter rivals Manchester United.
Poor return
It is a poor return considering the €1 billion spent on refurbishing the squad and facilities which leaves both club and manager at a crossroads when the first rays of summer emerge.
If there are still doubts over Mancini’s credentials at the highest level, can City risk the possibility of a third group stage failure in next season’s Champions League?
It all depends on the options that may become available in four months’ time. Jose Mourinho is likely to part company with Real Madrid even if he wins the Champions League. And City would certainly consider replacing Mancini with Mourinho at the drop of a hat because of his proven track record in the Champions League.
Chelsea and PSG are likely to be in the running for his signature. But the Portuguese boss has indicated that he favours the Premier League which could put City in pole position as he has already experienced the harshness of Abramovich’s reign.
Other possible candidates like Borussia Dortmund’s Jurgen Klopp and Swansea’s Michael Laudrup may be sounded out for the role, but they will be below Mourinho on the shopping list.
Speaking of shopping lists, City’s transfer moves during the past two windows have been interesting. Despite Mancini’s vocal protestations, City’s owner eschewed marquee signings in favour of players of the calibre of Javi Garcia, Jack Rodwell and Scott Sinclair.
At the time, they claimed it was a strategy to fall into line with UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules. Yet when the Premier League announced rules to curb spending, City were one of the clubs to oppose the proposals.
It might be reading into the issue too much, but the case may be that the club’s hierarchy have scaled back spending until they have the manager they want in place.
Do you think he will still be City's manager at the start of next season? Leave your comments below.
