A tale of two cities

As the Premier League reaches its halfway stage we assess who’s top of the class and who needs to try harder.

MANCHESTER CITY

Roberto Mancini deserves real credit for the way he has taken his team. He may have money to spend but it takes serious managerial quality to turn the turgid defensive City side of last season into this year’s Barca-style free-scoring model. And look at the way he handles difficult players like Mario Balotelli and Adam Johnson. Going out of the Champions League is the only reason he doesn’t get 10 out of 10.