De Jong letting his feet do the talking

WHEN Nigel de Jong is mentioned, the average football fan is immediately drawn to the two milliseconds of negativity surrounding the player rather than the endless good he has done for Manchester City; endless good that he hopes to produce again this afternoon.

A borderline comical chest high challenge on Xabi Alonso in the World Cup final last summer was followed up by a leg-breaker on Newcastle United’s Hatem Ben Arfa last October, painting de Jong as the pantomime villain of English football.

However, one of City’s longest serving players — despite just 27 months’ service — is confident that he is slowly but surely changing his perception with the man on the street after a series of performances this season that have anchored City’s midfield, delighted their fans and helped get them to the coveted position of facing their oldest enemies from across town in the FA Cup semi-final.