City counting cost of strikers

Chris Bailey

July 08, 2008

Rolando Bianchi

CITY are facing a financial crunch on £16m-worth of recent signings.

The Blues are bracing themselves to withstand a blow to their wallet as they look to ship out Italians Rolando Bianchi and Bernardo Corradi and Greek international Georgios Samaras.

The attacking trio have all returned to the club after loan spells but their temporary clubs have stalled at making the moves permanent.

Bianchi, at £9m Sven-Goran Eriksson's most expensive summer signing, and Corradi are with the squad at the training camp in Germany but Samaras is on extended leave following Euro 2008.

Italian sides Torino and Genoa are reportedly interested in 25-year-old Bianchi who spent the second half of last season at Lazio having played just 19 games for City.

They had the option to buy Bianchi at the same price City paid but have not made any bid, leaving new boss Mark Hughes to decide whether to give the former under-21 international another chance, sell him at cost or loan him out.

Corradi, who is in the last season of his three-year deal, is most likely to be allowed to go back to Italy on loan. The 32-year-old was at Parma last term.

Samaras, who cost the Blues £5.5m, has said he doesn't want to return to Manchester but Celtic, where he played 16 times on loan last season, do not want to pay the £3m stated in the original agreement between the clubs.

CITY have parted company with first-team coach Derek Fazackerley, who joined the Blues in 2001 and worked under Kevin Keegan, Stuart Pearce and Sven-Goran Eriksson.

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42andnotseenowtreally, Heaton Misery (08/07/2008 at 08:32)

Getting all this dead wood off the pay roll is enough. Anything else is a bonus.

bluepeteruk, Manchester (08/07/2008 at 08:36)

I am over the moon that Fazackerly has gone....what a complete waste of space he was !!

Lancs Blue (08/07/2008 at 08:38)

So what is new about this story? lazy journalism.

Steve - Chorley (08/07/2008 at 08:39)

This is were City have to change we make far to many big losses on our signings. Samaras is still a young international forward City should get at least 3 mill back for him. Average championship strikers sell for 3 mill.

Bianchi must not be sold for less than 5 mill, he he still young and could still offer us something, if hughes doesn't want him let him out on loan.

Jo is off to the Olympics so we will need cover for first few games.

bailsy, Tokyo (08/07/2008 at 08:43)

it shoulodnt affect our spending power, as all 3 purchases were made b4 Sparky arrived!!

proudtobeblue (08/07/2008 at 08:51)

Personally,I'd like to see what Bianchi can do alongside another striker, I don't think the lone frontman role suited him,but I have a feeling with someone alongside him and 2 attacking wingers he could be far more effective. It will be interesting to see what MH thinks, I'm sure he will be trying out different combinations of strikers pairing them together whilst in Germany.I think with a bit of confidence regained he could get back to being the goal poacher Sven paid £9 million for.

HongKongPhooey, Filing Cabinet, NUNEATON (08/07/2008 at 08:53)

surely getting shot at a fraction of the cost city paid would be better than paying their inflated wages?

Bristol Blue, Bristol (08/07/2008 at 08:53)

I'd be inclined to keep Bianchi - he's a good striker who reads the game well. Both Corradi and Samaras can go. I'd also add Caicedo as well - I don't think he's as good as Sturridge. We need to keep a hold on Ched Evans as well.

Dave 74 (08/07/2008 at 09:07)

i would also like to keep Bianchi, i think given the chance he could do a decent job in the premier league. playing him up front with a partner will obviously take the pressure of him a bit. with Jo at the olympics for the start of the season, i think we could do with a big guy like Bianchi, to partner either Bojinov, Evans or Sturridge. i know we still have Benjani, but i get the impression he would rather be at any other club than city, he just does'nt look a happy chappy....

The Original Blue John (08/07/2008 at 09:09)

I'm afraid we're just going to have to take the financial hit. These players are hopeless and they're never going to increase in value. It's imperative that we get them off the books now, rather than carry on paying their wages. I'd take 5m for Bianchi, 2m for Samaras and let Corradi go on a free quite happily. Caceido should be shown the door as well, before other clubs twig that he's a non-scoring no hoper as well, and once Castillo's loan period is up we should let him go too.

neil (08/07/2008 at 09:10)

Steve - Chorley. It's all very well saying we should get £3 million for Samaras, but the fact is there are no bidders. He's only worth what other teams are willing to pay. People may take a risk on Championship players because they are untried at Prem level. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. However, Samaras has played in the Prem and he has showed himself to be woefully inadequate. In this way, the best you might get is a one year loan deal to Hull, which has been touted. No other Prem teams are interested, and its the Prem, and La Liga, where the money is.

Dibble (08/07/2008 at 09:20)

If we have a good cup run and do well in the UEFA cup we could be playing 60+ games this season, therefore we need a big squad also you get 7 subs.
Corradi and Samaras can go what every the price just get rid. If a bid of £6+ mil comes in for Bianchi then let him go. If not keep him I think he will score goals given more support of another striker and a right winger. I can't remember him missing may sitters. As for the others I would keep Boj as we wouldn't get much for him until he proves his fitness and he looked as if he could handle the PL better physically (other than his knee). I would defo keep sturidge and Evans and maybe loan one out till christmas and the other after. I would also keep caceido for at least 6 months and play him in the cup games etc and see how he developes

Jos Parlby (08/07/2008 at 09:26)

It's not my money at risk any more, so I don't care what we get for any of them. Let Cooky worry about that.

Jack Thorley Trafford, Trafford (08/07/2008 at 09:30)

Thanks for your legacy Sven, £9million for a Championship standard striker. I can not believe that there are still fan's wishing to see him our team. They are all so bad that we may have to give them away or even pay half their wages to any team wishing to take them off our payroll.

Bandolero (08/07/2008 at 09:35)

I think we all know how we feel about Corradi and Samaras.

However, I think this is another column filler for the MUEN. At the moment Hughes has got the players in Germany to have a good luck at them all, and he's not talking to the press.

I think we just have to wait until they come back and I'm sure he will have made the right decisions by then.

In the meantime, hopefully, GC is working on his list of incomings and as with all great teams, we won't be sure who they are until he parades them before us. Remember the Jo and Bugsy show had started before he arrived.

CTID

Charles Light (08/07/2008 at 09:35)

Lets see what Sparky makes of Bianchi and Caiecedo before we jump to any conclusions. Bianchi can play as a 2 up front and Caicedo is only 19 and with the right support could improve.

DUBLIN BLUE (08/07/2008 at 09:42)

just get rid take it on the chin and move on

Raindazed (08/07/2008 at 09:43)

I think Hughes will keep Bianchi. He is clearly a good player. It will be interesting to see him line up with Jo. He was not exactly poor for us last season and got a couple of goals. Give him a chance. Sven would not pay £9mil if he was no good.

albatross, bury (08/07/2008 at 09:43)

I agree with most that we have to trim the wage bill. Samaras and Corradi will have to go on any deal we can get. It seems laughably soon to be dismissing Caicedo after a handful of games, but boy does he look a dud so far - Castillo likewise.

Jo will obviously start and says that he is a deep, late arriving striker; so I'm thinking he will need a fox-in-the-box partner, who can either score himself, or supply Jo like Vagner Love did in Moscow. Could Bianchi do this? He can score, as he did in Italy, and he has good technique, but could he keep up with Jo - I doubt it. I'm sure there are quicker strikers out there who have Bianchi's other attributes...Daniel Sturridge for one.

Ste (08/07/2008 at 09:44)

Why have we only just announced that FAZ is leaving? Was he hiding in a cupboard or something?

As for those three, none of them are any good. Samaras probably wont fetch any transfer fee, Corradi will be lucky to get a club who wants him on loan and Bianchi has to be the slowest forward I have ever seen. He only ever scored for us from 3 yards out. I still remember his miss from a yard against Blackburn with the goal gaping for him!

Jo missing for first god knows how many games doesnt help either. Looks like it will be Benjani and Elano again then!

The transfer market is so quiet this year. We really need at least two more decent players to compete for top 6. A midfielder and a left back are musts.

Rice10, Bristol (08/07/2008 at 09:44)

can someone tell me how many games Jo will miss now he is at the olympics?

also i thought him and Dunga didnt like each other and it is Dunga who is coaching the Brazil U23's so is it cut and dry he is going?

Knutsford Massive (08/07/2008 at 09:52)

I tend to agree with the majority on here and think that given the chance Bianchi could do the job for us, the few games I saw him play he looked like he had somthing, but always looked uncomfortable. BG and GS should be allowed to leave, at least we would get trhem off our books.
CTID

albatross, bury (08/07/2008 at 09:55)

Original Blue John: I liked your prospective signings yesterday. Shorey and Petrov/Podolski on the left would give us great delivery and SWP abd Micah/Corluka would give us pace and strength on the right added to more steel...AND all the players you mentioned were vaguely attainable/affordable.Nice.

timmy, manchester (08/07/2008 at 09:57)

While we'd all like to see Samaras and Corradi shipped out, I fail to understand the anti-Cadiedo crew on here. The lad is 19-20 and is still raw. he may have been a bit over-priced but to call him poor after a few substitute appearances is bonkers. Give the lad a chance! And Bianchi is far too slow for the Prem. End of.

BarrattOZ (08/07/2008 at 10:01)

Bianchi has a real chance to ressurect his career at City he should be a man and ditch the scarf and learn English, play some football and pay back the faith we put in him.

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