New Season: blog return!

The season is about to start tomorrow, i have to returned to restart my blog for a very exciting new premier league campaign.

I have been out of the country for most of the summer, so have managed to avoid the hysteria surrounding city's spending. I was in and around South Africa during the Vodacom challenge and wasn't too impressed with city's defensive displays. Our pursuit of Lescott is extremely necessary to stiffen a leaking back line.

I have been impressed with our transfer signing so far. Hughes has gone for Premier league experienced players with the ability and experience of top level sides. There are risks of course, player don't always settle well at new clubs, Robbie Keane is a prime example of that last season, but hopefully we can settle the squad quickly! I won't go through each signing because it's been done by everyone and repeated everyday on Sky sports news when they have nothing new coming in!

Our general aim this season is to finish as high as possible ( like every other season), but of course with new expectation from the owners, management, and squad. We have players that have tasted success at the highest levels and have the desire to continue decorating their careers, so it must translate to how city perform this season. The pressure is enormous on Hughes, the press and opposing managers want to see city fail. Most pundits have sat on the bench and predicted city finishing top 6, this is of course the absolute minimum. We now have a squad with calibre to challenge a champions league spot this season.

We must start well this season, an away win at Blackburn settles the nerves and dismisses the demons from last seasons woeful away record. It's a chance to see what Hughes has planned for this season, tactics wise and personnel wise. It's also a test of character, we lacked leadership and drive last season. Having influential, spirited players up and down the pitch does a team wonders. The top teams like Chelsea have a wealth of experience and strong leadership in their squad which gives them an edge. We are very much an unknown quantity at the moment, with a generally disappointing friendly run in, it's difficult to predict where the squad is in terms of development. We simply can't afford for the team not to gel quickly, Blackburn will be a real test that i hope were ready for!

Can't wait...