BlueSuedeSambas 53,754 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Manchester City boss Mark Hughes will fly out to Abu Dhabi on Tuesday evening for talks with owner Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan. There has been renewed speculation over Hughes' future, despite club denials that he may be replaced. "There is no 'situation' - this meeting was planned weeks ago," an Eastlands spokesperson told BBC Sport. It will be the duo's first meeting and the timing is unfortunate for Hughes, following three straight league losses. City are just one point off the Premier League relegation zone, which is hardly the form the club's owners had hoped for after pumping £76m into transfers in the summer. Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak issued a statement assuring Hughes that his job was safe on Monday. "We are calm and under control and we have the highest regard for Mark," he said. "This is a winning team that is going through a learning curve. While January is going to be an interesting opportunity for Mark to improve the team, this is an exciting 10-year dynasty that we are building and we are only in the first two months." Hughes will fly out to Abu Dhabi with City executive chairman Garry Cook. They will meet Sheikh Mansour on Wednesday, before returning to England so that Hughes can attend training at City on Thursday. Cook dismissed stories questioning Hughes' future at the club when he spoke at Eastlands before flying out to Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. "There is speculation in the newspapers, but that's what they do," he told BBC Sport. "We are building a football club for the future. We have a close-knit group of people at this club." Hughes was appointed City's manager in July, when former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra owned the club. Sheikh Mansour's Abu Dhabi United Group completed its takeover of City on 23 September. City say this is the first opportunity the duo have had to meet, as the club does not have a midweek fixture this week and Sheikh Mansour is not on state business. The Sun newspaper claimed on Tuesday that Inter Milan manager Jose Mourinho had been lined up to replace Hughes, a claim that the club vehemently denies. Hmmm, the dreaded vote of confidence on Mondsay and this on Tuesday. I seriously doubt Hughes has a long term future at Man City, which is a shame because he gave up a job which I think he had only half finished at Blackburn to try his hand there. I predict we will see Hughes to Newcastle. Rijkaard to Man City Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coopermania 1 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 'a learning curve' .... is that what they call struggling now ? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMWWBK 0 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 It's ashame, Hughes is one of the very few EPL managers that i actually feel deserves the hype and back patting that the English media languish upon him. He shows invention in the transfer market and he always comes across as corteous in his post match interviews. The Man City job is probably too big for him at the current time, but i wouldn't be surprised if he managed a top 4 club one day. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kplfishtank 4,656 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 as someone who has a soft spot for city i think he wont see out season i said that to some city fans on sunday and told them this we want mourinho Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLUEDIGNITY 33,638 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 as someone who has a soft spot for city i think he wont see out season i said that to some city fans on sunday and told them this we want mourinho It's a morale certainty, Jose is there, Saviour of the beautiful game, Porto 3 scum fcuked ! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muff 245 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Mediocre manager. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
simplythebest 11,453 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Mediocre manager. Disagree, he did an exellent job at Blackburn, turned them around into a team challenging for european spots when under Souness they were slipping towards relagation battles. Didn't do that badly at Wales either. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Andypendek Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 I agree with Muff, he's a clogger who sends his teams out to kick. Hence his bewilderment at having players with flair at his disposal. They may win some games due to their natural ability, but he'll make sure they revert to a solid 4-1-4-1 to avoid the drop, and probably convert Robinho into a left back. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
fernando0606 565 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 he doesnt play elano which is strange. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Andypendek Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 He's probably got Elano running the rainy streets of Lancashire in a bid to 'toughen him up.' Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMWWBK 0 Posted November 12, 2008 Share Posted November 12, 2008 I agree with Muff, he's a clogger who sends his teams out to kick. Hence his bewilderment at having players with flair at his disposal. They may win some games due to their natural ability, but he'll make sure they revert to a solid 4-1-4-1 to avoid the drop, and probably convert Robinho into a left back. I usually agree with you, Andy, but that's a bit harsh. He had Blackburn playing some absolutely fantastic football and gave them the likes of McCarthy and Santa Cruz. He also moulded Bentley into an international player and discovered gems in Chris Samba, Ryan Nelsen and Aaron Mokoena. he doesnt play elano which is strange. That's because Elano is a whiny, overrated, inconsistant little fuckwit who spits the dummy out when he's asked to fit into an actual footballing system. And please, Rijkaard? There's a saying in Spain about Rijkaard - "He doesn't coach players, he just picks the starting 11." Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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