Knives being sharpened as Manuel Pellegrini’s neck on the line
Out of the Champions League, out of all domestic cup competitions and five points adrift of Chelsea in the Premier League, with a game more played, it would take a fool to consider Sheikh Mansour has not yet given the future management of his club some serious thought.
City, despite out-spending most of their rivals, have still never reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League and seem to be struggling for direction in a season which has failed to deliver the consistency you expect of champions. Recent defeats to both Burnley and Liverpool underline that fact, while disappointing performances from even previously-reliable players such as Vincent Kompany indicate that the observation by Catalan journalists this week that ‘there is a strange atmosphere’ around the club is not easy to dismiss.
How else would you explain Sergei Aguero’s penalty miss that summed up the sense of gloom in the squad, or the dozens of poor decisions made by their defenders in the Nou Camp, which began the moment that Kolorov, who knew he had a tough night ahead marking Lionel Messi, got himself stupidly booked in the first few minutes.
It is not Pellegrini’s fault that Manchester City feel they are destined never to do well in the Champions League — it’s a feeling long-shared by their fans, who give the Premier League far more priority — and it is not his fault that Barcelona were too good for them in the Nou Camp. They would have been too good for anyone.
However, he does seem to be struggling to give his players identity and direction in a confusing season that has potential to collapse all together.
Removing the 61-year-old would cause few problems for Mansour, given that the Chilean’s three-year contract would have only a year to run at the end of this season and that, despite enjoying a successful first year at the club, there is hardly a campaign from supporters to keep him in the job.
City’s recent record — only three victories in the last 12 games in all competitions — suggests he has a real fight on his hands to stay in the role; and, with an early kick-off against a well-organised and in-form West Brom side on Saturday, just three days after this emotionally-draining night in Barcelona, the banana skin awaits.
In fact, what must worry supporters now is that it is not only their club’s league title on the line, but also its entire future in the Champions League. Fifth-placed Liverpool, remember, are only four points behind City in the table, and Louis van Gaal’s observation that the noisy neighbours are now in the ‘rat race’ for the top four should be enough to generate panic not just in the stands at the Etihad, but also in the corridors of power in the United Arab Emirates.
A quick look at City’s remaining games this season may well create panic too; it includes a trip to Old Trafford on April 12 — now there’s a story just waiting to be written — and to Tottenham on May 2, while surprise package Southampton, who have top-four ambitions of their own, visit the Etihad in the final game of the campaign.
Pellegrini insists he is ready, that City’s owners understand his ‘project’ is still on course, do not expect a title every season and accept the Champions League must be a long-term target for a club still fighting to justify its place at the top table.
Given everything we know about the history of Manchester City and the current direction of world football — look what happened to Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea despite winning the double — it’s an attitude that goes beyond self-confidence and into the realms of self-delusion.
The reality is there was little in last night’s performance in Barcelona — other than the heroics of goalkeeper Joe Hart — to suggest City are likely to collect silverware this season. Make no mistake, no matter how many times he tells otherwise, Pellegrini’s future is now on the line.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
