original:
Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan picked the wrong day to inject realism into his £200m takeover of Manchester City. "We are building a structure for the future, not just a team of all-stars," said the Arab billionaire on completion of the due diligence process yesterday, having heeded the scorn that greeted the transfer wishlist divulged on deadline day. He may be too late, for Mark Hughes' team have already begun to indulge in fantasy.
In contrast to the new owner, City chose the perfect time to impress a gallery with global domination on the mind. Before Khaldoon Al Mubarak, who will become City's new chairman when Sheikh Mansour's takeover is formally concluded tomorrow, and Thaksin Shinawatra, the outgoing owner who will stay on as honorary president, Hughes' team excelled against Portsmouth to record their biggest Premier League win. The men from Abu Dhabi hope to establish a gulf between their new investment and the rest in years to come. But one was very evident here.
Whether it was City's magnificence or Portsmouth's appalling display that produced this mauling divided the respective managers as deeply as the goal count. "That was the best performance I've managed by a country mile," said Hughes. "We were poor. Our defensive play was abysmal," said a shell-shocked Harry Redknapp. The truth, as always, is somewhere in between and yet there was no mistaking the potent cocktail of City's Brazilian technique and home-grown strength and spirit. The result was unbridled joy for the City faithful as Robinho illuminated their afternoon with a performance of technique and no little effort, and Hughes substituted the British record signing, his compatriot Jo and the outstanding Stephen Ireland simply so all three could enjoy standing ovations.
"If ever there was a day to impress people this was the one," remarked the City manager. "We did that and more. From start to finish the desire and determination in our play, the ability to pick the right pass and to create chances was evident. It was a fantastic team performance, with some brilliant individual displays from Stephen Ireland, Robinho, Shaun Wright-Phillips and Vincent Kompany. We have set a high standard with this performance and the aim is to strive to even greater heights." Talk of Champions League qualification will not sound so fanciful if they do.
Portsmouth were 3-0 victors at Everton on their last away trip but were made to look a shambles as City comprehensively clicked for the first time since Abu Dhabi money transformed their bank balance and ambitions. Hughes's side were superior in every department, their defence immune to the errors that swiftly undermined Portsmouth's game plan, the midfield blessed with greater understanding and invention and, as befitted their billing, the Brazilian strike force of Jo and Robinho leading the visitors' rearguard on an irrepressible dance. For David James, Sol Campbell and Sylvain Distin this was 90 minutes on the rack.
Robinho instigated the rout with a delightful pass that released Jo behind the visiting defence, took him around James and saw him convert into an empty net. The England goalkeeper's afternoon plummeted thereafter. James's failure to deal with an Elano corner to his near post enabled Richard Dunne to bundle in a second and the game was effectively up after only 20 minutes. The first "Olés" were heard five minutes later. Portsmouth had their chances either side of the interval, Jermain Defoe squandering a glorious invitation seconds after the restart, but they did not get the run of the ball or display any resilience. City's movement and work ethic produced an exhibition.
Ireland's tenacity and then vision produced Robinho's second successive goal at home for his new club, via Jo, before the midfielder's measured pass enabled Wright-Phillips to beat James at his near post. A backheel from Wright-Phillips gave the young substitute Ched Evans his first goal for the club and the England winger was heavily involved in City's sixth when he challenged James for Javier Garrido's left-wing cross and Gelson Fernandes converted the loose ball. The only problem for Hughes is having to tell his new employers that not every day is like this at City, although Sheikh Mansour appears to be learning fast after announcing to the world that Cristiano Ronaldo et al would be on their way in January.
The sheikh added: "We are ambitious for the club, like you, but not unreasonably so and we understand it takes time to build a team capable of sustaining a presence in the top four of the Premier League and winning European honours." It is performances and victories such as this that bring clarity to such lofty ambitions.
Man of the match Stephen Ireland
City's stand-out summer signings, the Brazilian Robinho and Shaun Wright-Phillips, again impressed but it was the unsung Ireland who dictated the flow of the game with a committed and inventive display
Best moment The Republic of Ireland midfielder's threaded pass that enabled Wright-Phillips to score City's fourth goal
Summary:
Timing is perfect as City's Arab owners thrill to joy of six.
The city’s Arab owners are very happy because the city defeated Portsmouth with a categorical 6-0 at last the impressive inversions nearest to 300 million dollars with players like Robinho, Shaun right-phillips, and the historic Stephen Ireland shows a great performance in attack, the defenders Sol Campbell and Sylvain Distin were outstanding and the goalkeeper David James show his quality looking how robinho and his friends trhashed Portsmouth.
The sheikh added: "We are ambitious for the club, like you, but not unreasonably so and we understand it takes time to build a team capable of sustaining a presence in the top four of the Premier League and winning European honours." If the city shows the same or average performance probably the Manchester united will be in danger…maybe and the sheikh will be very pleased.
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