But the man with the golden touch is not heading into the sunset - he has a new job heading up a bold initiative to roll out the City academy around the world.
In December, the Blues are plotting to open up a parallel academy in Abu Dhabi, based at the Al Jazeera club, of which City owner Sheikh Mansour is president.
And next year they are expected to forge ahead with another academy system in North America.
The club has turned to Cassell, revered by the fans for turning the club's academy into one of the most successful in the country, to head up their international expansion plans.
A new academy director will be appointed, but Cassell will still have plenty of involvement with Platt Lane.
The expansion of the academy idea is about more than simply garnering the best players from other parts of the world and turning them into City first-teamers.
The international academies will also be bases from which to increase City's worldwide support, and to extend the club's community work to other countries.
The expansion begins with the opening of the academy in Abu Dhabi in December, when the world of football will be focused on the area for the FIFA World Club Championships.
Said chief executive Garry Cook: "It's a natural fit and a manifestation of his intention. When the owners visited the football club for the first time, the first stop was Platt Lane.
"Their commitment to the academy has been well-documented, and is in equal proportion to everything else we do.
"Sheikh Mansour wants to emulate our academy within his own football club Al Jazeera. Equally our guys can learn from what goes on overseas, so it's a two-way proposition."
He stressed that Cassell's role switch will enhance the academy rather than take from it.
"We have one of the greatest talents in youth development in the world in our opinion, but Jim wants a challenge and is a leader," he said. "He came to us and told us how much he believes in the football club.
"His football talent, knowledge of the game and of youth development, is unbelievable. But he wants something to get his teeth into, in the same way as he redeveloped our youth programme.
"At the same time, we don't want to lose what Jim brings to the club, and he will be higly responsible in helping us find someone who can take on the job he has done.
"We will always be looking to Jim for advice in this area, but it's not about him walking away to a different area, but about him adding value to the football club on a much larger stage."
Cassell, under whose guidance the academy has produced 27 first-team players and won the FA Youth Cup in 2008, says he is enthused by the new role.
"The attraction of going international with the academy to me is that we will have to come out of our comfort zone, and compete with the best," he said.
"Big clubs often go into these areas, stay for two weeks and then hop out. We want to be different. Other clubs don't send their best staff, which we will do because we want to look at the whole structure.
"There is bound to be enthusiasm there which we can tap into. It is a different challenge for us because we will be working within a culture which is quite affluent.
"From working with kids from deprived areas who can't wait to get to Platt Lane, we are going to a club with enormous potential for development.
"The key to it is training up the coaches who will work over there. There is no secret about Platt Lane - it is all about the people down there, and we have to re-create that in other parts of the world."
Cook says that the new initiative is all part of the plan to make the club more dynamic, and reinforces the new owners' belief in the academy.
He said: "We don't want to let this thing we have get off track. Back in October we sat down and talked about what we would need to really be a top-four Premier League team. To answer that question, you need to make sure you have players of the highest quality, who have played at the highest level, to be able to carry that experience through.
"In turn, they tend to lead the next level, which is that up-and-coming future international star, so you balance it out with a fabulous academy.
"We have players who have come up through our home-grown process and if we go into next season with our plans intact, about 36 per cent of our playing squad registered to play in the Premier League will be home-grown.
"That shows you what Jim has built over 10 years."
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abu dhabi city group (05/07/2009 at 14:56)
Bring it on. This club is going to be huge and known throughout the world, and if by putting back into the communities of the countries we're branching out into...loved also.
It's all good.
Good luck jc
Captain Capricorn is a Blue, The Isle of Everywhere (05/07/2009 at 15:00)
I hope he enjoys his new challenge and he brings as much success to Our World Academy as he has to Our Manchester Academy! His Manchester successor has got big shoes to fill, I hope Jim chooses him well.
Good Luck in your new roll Sir Jim!
CTID and Beyond
jackblue, Prescot (05/07/2009 at 15:50)
Colinski no.8, In the rain. England (05/07/2009 at 16:20)
It`s of no surprise to City supporters that his sights would settle upon City and particularly Jim, because his record for spotting and nurturing talent is second to none. It will be interesting to see how many years this reported academy in Abu Dhabi has Jim at their disposal before the next one emerges. That is of course working upon the assumption that further academies will emerge. Don`t get me wrong, to date Sheikh Mansour has been a man of his word, and I don`t expect that to change, but is his 10 year plan for City, or for Abu Dhabi?
Clearly with the reported bids/rumours of recent times, Sheikh Mansour is looking to bring in names that roll off the tongue anywhere in the world with the likes of Eto`o, Terry etc, and the logic behind that is obvious, but where does that leave us down the line if he decides he`s gleaned all the information he needs, and is happy he has covered the bases to push his own national interest to the forefront.
Much as I`m enjoying current times at City, I don`t buy for an instant that suddenly Sheikh Mansour is City daft like us life sentence servers. We have a saying that if it aint broke, don`t try and fix it, but we`re about to witness the effective removal of one of the games unsung masters from our club and City. Undoubtedly, Jim will receive rewards he has probably hardly dared to dream about, and I certainly could not criticise him in any way for securing the future of his loved ones, but in my humble opinion there is an element of spin here that worries me.
In many respects our academy with Jim and co is the last link to proper "City" men making the decisions for our future. Our owner, chairman, chief exec, and manager have no real affinity with our club or even our City. Sure, Hughes played a while over in Salford, so perhaps I`m being a little harsh in his case. I`m sure his experiences of Manchester have always been good, but it`s still not home in his heart is it.
As easily as I might be right, I know I might be wrong. Maybe MCFC academies will start to spring up in different regions of the world, and my fears can evaporate. I`m very interested to know, and notice an answer is missing, whether this first academy will have anything of MCFC in it`s name. The only name mentioned is the Al Jazeera club. What exactly does a "parallel" academy mean anyway. Again, just my opinion, but it means Jim is off to work for Al Jazeera football club, taking all his mastery for the greater interest of Sheikh Mansour and Abu Dhabi. I`m sorry, but am I the only one thinking this?
I have to accept that ultimately it`s Sheikh Mansour`s dollar, and it`s his choice to offer whomever whatever, but I`m looking further down the road here. My only concern is for City and the multiple thousands of us that hold this club so close. Granted some might say just enjoy the ride while it lasts, because without the Sheikh no way would any success be imminent, and that`s a fair point i guess. I certainly don`t envisage us being left completely broken, because that would be a real stain upon Mansour`s reputation, but I do have real reservations on the back of this report.
Thanks for the memories Jim. Best of luck to you.
Noddy (05/07/2009 at 16:59)
Dukinfield Blue, Manchester (05/07/2009 at 17:10)
This announcement is a trade off because Jim Cassell is very very unhappy with Hughes and ultamately the successful future of the Manchester City academy. This decision follows lots of meetings with Jim from Cook and Mubarak in order to stop Jim from walking away from Manchester City altogether. When are you Hughes clapper muppets going to realise that he is a cancer that will destroy our club?, you can forget bringing our own players through from now on, we are just going to waste hundreds of millions on has beens like John Terry instead of bringing through academy talent like Ben Mee (part of the reasons behind why Jim was so unhappy).
What are the odds on Jim being replaced by one of Hughes Blackburn academy yes men now?, extreamely high I think.
Goodbye Jim, you were and always will be the best academy director this club ever had. As for the cancer that is Hughes, get out of my club, now!.
Ps: for all the morons who slagged me off and told me that Jim leaving was fantasy, I will be watching this forum closely to see who has the humility to apologise.
abu dhabi city group (05/07/2009 at 17:14)
I think the bigger picture in a selfish sense would be to get ubu dhabi on the map, rather than their national football team. And the article says that academies will be being set up in numerous places and not just abu dhabi. It's called bringing city to the masses, world recognition equates to potential world revenue. current turnover doesn't cover current signings but current signings bring recognition to the club. the initial outlay will be big, but in time the club will run itself and at a profit. if the plans to open academies and introduce kids from these areas to our club then merchandise sales will undoubtedly increase. Have faith, endemol have absolutely nothing to do with his countries football team, so whats your take on their inclusion in the process?
stick to jfk and diana, this ones a lame duck.
Farawayblue, West Sussex (05/07/2009 at 17:39)
asa hartfords heart, eccles (05/07/2009 at 18:02)
Dukinfield Blue, Manchester
5/07/2009 at 17:10
Don't know about apologise mate, you sound like a proper tool. Why is it that out of all the players Hughes has bought or is associated with buying you mention Terry who is the only one some people are questioning, but if he wants to leave(and we don't know what is going on behind the scenes) where would you find a better ch. So get off Hughes back, give him a chance and crawl back under your rock.
Dukinfield Blue, Manchester (05/07/2009 at 18:02)
No celebrating, no kidding ourselves that its part of a massive masterplan, just sadness that Hughes has won and the casulty is Jim Cassell and Manchester Citys academy.
Where are my apologies - Im waiting.
bernie , manchester (05/07/2009 at 18:57)
KiteSurfer Gal, Cheshire/Barcelona (05/07/2009 at 19:11)
If that was the case and they just wanted our youth development expertise, they would be far better served going to Barcelona and employing the director of La Masia with some coaching staff. A much cheaper option to buying Man City.
As much as I love seeing our own players coming through, Barcelona produce real world class stars (Xavi, Iniesta, Reina, Fabregas, Messi, Puyol etc). Though, Jim Cassell has done a brilliant job for us on a paper thin budget and who knows what he could have done with more money for scouts etc.
We are at the start of an amazing adventure and Jim is off to Abu Dhabi to live like a King and do a job he loves.
Let's look forward to the future with the knowledge that we can buy the best replacement Academy Director and coaching staff on earth. Guess where I would go recruiting?
Duckinfield Blue: I was not one of your detractors but I did remember you mentioning it as I read the announcement on the club website. I unfortunately remember the insults you endured, it did cross the line. I am sorry for that as we all should be able to air our views, disagree and argue without it getting personal. I do hope you are wrong on the coaching front as that would be a mistake to allow any manager to control it. It would give the club no continuity every time we changed manager and would not be allowed in any major club in Europe.
Alphred Ball (05/07/2009 at 19:19)
Alphie Izzet
OB1 (05/07/2009 at 19:32)
I with Farawayblue: there's no way Mansour's prime reason for buying City was the Academy.
Whether there's some truth in what Dunkinfield Blue says is another matter: rumours of tension between Cassell and Hughes have been plentiful.
Bristol Blue, Bristol (05/07/2009 at 19:32)
Niall Quinn's Disco Pants, Ashton (05/07/2009 at 19:33)
Home grown players will come through when the team is crap, but not when competing higher up the league. If you can name me a player Hughes has bought that is not as good as an academy player he is keeping out, then I will hold my hands up, but I'm not holding my breath! He even played, and stayed loyal to Onuoha after he came into the team. He also played Richards for longer than he should have done, so how does that signify that he is destroying the home grown players????
mr bump, badlands (05/07/2009 at 19:34)
hmmm, here (05/07/2009 at 19:41)
Remember, you heard it hear first.
Colinski no.8, In the rain. England (05/07/2009 at 20:03)
abu dhabi city group, thanks for the advice, but I`ve absolutely no interest in JFK or Diana. Endemol, imo, are on board due to their reputation for contemporary marketing, and it`s hoped they will work some magic getting City/Abu Dhabi/Sheikh Mansour`s name to stick around the world of football. Incidentally, I think bringing them in is a very sound move for City. I fully grasp the economics potential, but let me ask you this. Where does it say MCFC academies? It will be interesting to indeed see if next year an academy in America does in fact open, and if Jim then goes there.
Farawayblue, is it paranoia?
All I`ve read is Cook saying things like, "Sheikh Mansour wants to emulate our academy within his own football club Al Jazeera". Q: How does that benefit City? Sure eventually these multiple academies could finance each other through player movements, but did Sheikh Mansour come half way around the world to make City self sufficient ultimately?
"Big clubs often go into these areas, stay for two weeks and then hop out. We want to be different. Other clubs don't send their best staff, which we will do because we want to look at the whole structure". Q: Does this actually mean our best academy staff are all going to work for Al Jazeera? Our academy is what it is due to the personalities and drive of people like JC. Maybe we`re going to clone them all? Factitious I know, but some components can`t be duplicated, and it IS people that make things work or fail. How many staff exactly are we talking here...
"From working with kids from deprived areas who can't wait to get to Platt Lane, we are going to a club with enormous potential for development". Q: Which club is referred to here? I would have thought it would read "From working with kids from deprived areas who can't wait to get to Platt Lane, City are now a club with enormous global potential for development".
Do we know Sheikh Mansour`s ultimate motivation in all this? No we don`t. Is it inconceivable that Sheikh Mansour wants an Abu Dhabi league to be the most prominent in the middle east, and the national side also the best? In recent times Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, and Egypt have taken all the headlines for the region league wise or internationally so fill in your own answer. Credit to Sheikh Mansour if these are his ambitions for his homeland, but I only care about City.
There is also the possibility that Sheikh Mansour is taking a purely business decision due to the growing value the commodity footballers have become. I know the middle east take great sporting pride from development of whatever, but again, is this for City`s benefit or an ego massage? I can`t imagine Mansour needs his bank account massaging, but this is a lucrative business these days.
With the greatest of respect to Abu Dhabi, who could they attract in the short/medium term to an academy without a big name from the worlds best league behind them? MCFC with the likes of Robinho etc is a far more effective advertisement isn`t it? I mean come on. Come to Abu Dhabi/ANOther and have the chance to play for Al Jazeera, or come and have the chance to end up in the prem with Robbie/Tevez/Eto`o/Terry etc. Yes I know we haven`t yet signed them all, but catch my drift?
The City blueprint goes with Jim because it is Jim, but read the very first sentence of the article again. Sure the next says "rolling out the City academy around the world, but in whose name when it gets there?
As stated, I`m fully prepared to be wrong, and I hope to God I am, but where is the forecast of developing the worlds talent in order that they eventually come to City? No mention is given to any of the fruits of these academies ending up in sky blue. Not one mention.
coleraine true blue, coleraine n, ireland (05/07/2009 at 20:27)
Chapman (05/07/2009 at 20:32)
If one of the existing coaches at the academy takes over then great.If they are from another club then again great.I see the top guy at Liverpool's academy has just left( Elias?) and they have an excellent setup as well.
All I can add is Good Luck in your new venture, Jim, and thanks for the marvellous job you have done over the years for our club.
Dukinfield Blue, Manchester (05/07/2009 at 20:52)
5/07/2009 at 18:02 - Oh its another clapper moron who likes finishing 10th and thinks it "progress". Listen you numpty, I predicted this situation weeks ago, several times in fact on these very forums, based on the fact I DID know what was going on behind the scenes and was very unhappy about it. I am proud of our academy and what it has achieved and under Jims tutoridge and it could of continued delivering great players like SWP, Ireland, Nedum and Johnson.
So, Asa Fartford, I guess from your reply that you are very happy to lose Jim, happy to spend ridiculous amounts of money on has-beens rather than develop our own talent,
Yes Asa Fartford, you join the list of clapper chimps who cannot see farther than the next banana they are munching or armpit they are scratching. I am owed a big apology from many people on this forum, the fact that you cant admit what is going on in front of your face never mind have the balls to say something about it, shows your true colours and my guess it is red and comes from stretford.
Portsmouth Blue (05/07/2009 at 21:36)
Paul Power's Tash, Haslingden (05/07/2009 at 22:06)
Obviously, the Sheikh has an interest in his own club, but this has got to benefit the club for many years to come.
To build sustainable success on the pitch with a view to European comination without spending £100m every year, you must put in place a global youth system to capture the best youth early on to feed into the City system.
Imagaine a club with superstar names in the first 11 underpinned with a youth system akin to Arsenal.
It's what Wenger dreams of!
I may be just fantasising, but why can't we dream that the pain and suffering could be near an end?
Come on blues, we've been knocked backed down so many times than I've got fingers and toes, but now is the time to start dreaming.
Those days of a Colin Bell inspired City have a chance of returning again, with names to revere in the same breath.
So give Sheikh Monsour & MH a chance.
Pivo, Manchester (05/07/2009 at 22:41)