The international break has been good for Manchester City. Everyone connected with the club have been able to take a step back and see how far we have come inside a couple of unprecedented months, while our Academy graduates did us proud in Europe.
Our new players in particular have had a chance to pause from the frantic pace of Premier League football. They know what is required now having faced the likes of the rags and Arsenal at one end of the spectrum and the hapless Derby County at the other. The uncompromising Blackburn certainly gave our new boys a taste of what they can expect from certain encounters this season.
So far so good is the order of the day, but we need to score more goals to further lift the optimism and momentum currently engulfing the club. Starting with seeing off Aston Villa. Until that happens, guarded caution on our progress will be my viewpoint.
I’m looking directly at our midfield this weekend to up their work rate and stop a steadily improving Villa from playing, as well as using our unbeaten home advantage as a bedrock to make things happen for our strikers. We should be able to play more freely at home.
At the back, a Dunneless reshuffle is required and a Corluka-Richards axis will have to be strong to contend with the powerful Carew.
From the off we have to dictate play on saturday and get the excellent pass and move mentality under Svennis into top gear again. Villa are riding on the back of beating Chelski and very often teams who pull off the unexpected get derailed in their next game if the opposition make a flying start at them. Sounds familiar…?
Up front, Bianchi and Mpenza will always be a threat with the right service and with Bojinov and Sturridge not even options, this could be a chance for dare I say it, Georgios Samaras to do a phoenix from the flames by pushing for an appearance. If the lad can bag a goal and Eastlands gets behind him, who knows…?
…then again, SGE could always give the Villain’s nemesis Darius Vassell a start for his usual input whenever they come to town!
Here’s to an open and exciting game.
Attack, attack, attack.
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