MARK Hughes has a number of injury concerns ahead of Manchester City's clash with Blackburn on Saturday.
Roque Santa Cruz and Vincent Kompany - who is a reported target for Barcelona - have already been ruled out and there are also doubts over Carlos Tevez, Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Adebayor and Craig Bellamy, plus Shay Given, who apparently picked up a knock on international duty with the Republic of Ireland this week.
It means of the six new faces Hughes has brought in this summer, only Stuart Taylor, brought in from Aston Villa to be Given’s deputy, and Gareth Barry, who hardly had the best of week’s with England, might be involved for a match given added spice by David Dunn’s inflammatory comments.
Generally though, Hughes is unlikely to be short of options. And he won’t be afraid to use them.
“If things aren’t working then you have to address them,” he said.
“We will take it on a game-to-game basis.
“I would back my staff against any other staff in the Premier League in terms of preparation.
“If the game doesn’t go as we feel we will look to be better for the next one. It is all about learning and being better at what you do.”
Hughes is acutely aware City have suddenly become a big scalp.
From his own experience he knows no club is better at giving clubs with impressive reputations a bloody nose than Blackburn and, in Sam Allardyce, they have a manager famed for doing just that.
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So he knows City must be ready from day one. Yet he senses a positive vibe in the camp, fuelled by the likely presence of a 6,000-strong travelling support, even if he accepts every other top flight club will be feeling much the same way.
“We are just looking forward to the first game of the season,” he said.
“That is the challenge for everyone. We are really chomping at the bit. We are six weeks or so into our pre-season and we just want to get on with it.
“I am sure Blackburn will be thinking in those terms as well. It’s a big game for them as well, they’re at home and will be wanting to put on a good show for their fans.
“But we will be taking a huge number of fans and we want to put on a good show for them.”
Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce has warned Hughes he faces tough challenges ahead after signing so many new players.
"A whole group of new players, or five or six new players, is certainly something that causes you a few problems" said the former Bolton boss.
"I've suffered it in the past myself at previous clubs where nine or 10 new players have come in and we've tried to play them all at the start of the season.
"While they have been very good players, there has been some disruption there.
"I hope that might be the case against City. If it is, then we have to try and take advantage of that.
"Everybody will expect success instantly at City, that's the pressure they have got to live with.
"For us it's about trying to spoil their party, being that they think that they can come to a place like Blackburn and beat us comfortably with that kind of spending.
"We're certainly going to go all out to make sure that's not the case."
Blackburn captain Ryan Nelsen will have a late fitness check.
The New Zealand defender injured his knee in a pre-season match at Dundee United last weekend.
Christopher Samba, who was also taken off in that game, has made a full recovery from his hamstring strain, but Paul Gallagher is likely to miss out due to a similar problem.
New signing Gael Givet has returned to full training as has Vince Grella, but the Australian is unlikely to play due to a lack of match practice, and manager Sam Allardyce will not consider new striker Nikola Kalinic for the same reason.
Steven Reid and Brett Emerton are on the road to recovery from long-term problems, while David Dunn is also still out.
Blackburn Rovers (from): Robinson, Brown, Jacobsen, Samba, Nelsen, Givet, Khizanishvili, Warnock, Olsson, Diouf, Hoilett, van Heerden, Doran, Nzonzi, Andrews, Pedersen, McCarthy, Roberts, Di Santo.
Manchester City (from): Given, Zabaleta, Dunne, Toure, Ben Haim, Onuoha, Bridge, De Jong, Barry, Ireland, Wright-Phillips, Weiss, Robinho, Adebayor, Bellamy, Tevez, Richards, Garrido, Etuhu, Vidal, McGivern, Petrov, Benjani, Taylor.
Key opponent: Benni McCarthy - Striker will pounce on any lapse from the Blues defence
Prediction: Blackburn 1 City 2 - The Blues should have the firepower to beat Rovers
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Comments
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presumably yet more injuries after David Dunn and Blackburn have 'kicked lumps out of City' ... beats me how he can get away with saying such stuff .. and this is just his own plan or is he merely Allardyce's mouthpiece?
"fuelled by the likely presence of a 6,000-strong travelling support"
What sort of a Statement is that MEN???....... the fact is quite clear that we have sold 7,000 tickets, so why not report that like you have in other articles. Also 'likely presence'...... can't see 7,000 City fans buying tickets if they didn't want to go to the game!
2- 0 city..........................................................................................
and Vincent Kompany - who is a reported target for Barcelona
where does this story come from.it's the first i've heard.no way is he going if it's true!!!!!even for kolo's brother.
Regardless of the personnel available to us, we need to set a marker with this game. We are so much in the spotlight now that defeat will have the media vultures circling overhead as soon as the final whistle has blown. A win would shut them all up, give the rest of the premiership something to think about, and give us some vital breathing space and confidence.
I somehow think this has draw written all over it though. I feel we will start to gel over the next few games, and will win this type game regularly as the season progresses, but the bedding in process of new players is still under way. I think we’re maybe a few games off being that cohesive just yet.
But I’d love to be proven wrong.
Come on ye mighty blues!
3-1 city,Robinho,Tevez and Ireland scoring the goals.
I think this will probably be a hard-fought victory to the blues: Blackburn 0 City 10 (ten)...
been loooking forward to a 1-3 scoreline for the last few weeks
but looking at our injury list we could field a team that has the same
9nine players that couldnt win away last season only barry and toure
makin there debuts tommorow will these 2 transform us tomorrow??
Tomorrows game will be a good indicator as to whether we are still the pathetic gutless away day wasters, or a unit prepared to dig in and match the opposition for effort. Blackburn are just about as physical as they come so it will be interesting to see how we shape up. If we don't have our strongest line up (apart from RSC) I can see us struggling, as for as good a player as Gareth Barry is, he alone will not make us a stronger team. If I was Hughes I would be trying to secure another four or five deals before the end of the month as at this moment in time we are the same team as last season.
Dunn spouts his mouth off about kicking lumps out of us and hè's not even fit to make the bench! Will be a tight game & although happy if we get a draw think it will be 1-0 with a Tevez blinder! CTID
6000 tickets?
We have sold out 7100 tickets and could easily have doubled that.
This site has not been the same since Chris Bailey left.
About time we got him back or someone who is actually a fan of the club!
As for the 'injuries', we all know that Santa and komps are injured, but i hope Hughes can hoodwink pie faced sam mullerice into thinking we have key players out, and play the so called 'doubts' tomorrow.
Blackburn 1 - City 2.
this will be my team
GK Given
RB Zabelta CB Toure CB Onouha LB Bridge
RM SWP CM Barry CM Ireland LM Robinho
CF Tevez CF Adebayor
Subs Taylor Dunne Richards De Jong Petrov Weiss Bellemy
3-1 City
Re Shoota
Its Big Sams new stratagy, -If we can't win, clog them off the park! with strict instructions to only do it fairly.
How wise City were not to consider Allardice for manager.
It will be interesting to observe how this incitement by Dunn is reflected in the home fans behaviour, the referee reaction to any injuries and in the event of incidents, the actions of the FA.
Perhaps this is what City will have to face at all away matches, so perhaps MH should sign a full new additional shadow squad of players to cover injuries. Amongst new signings should be one or two players of the Tommy Smith, Billy Bremner, Norman Hunter style. Its fine having touch players but a team also has to look after itself on the field.
Blackburn 1-3 City and Dunn in Casualty put there by all his team mates, for opening his loud mouth...!!!
Come On City!!
p.s Barca listen very closely I shall "zay zis onlee wonce" hands off our Kompany!! Get your own Kompany. I'm sure some of those Barca players have mates eh...?
2-1 to blackburn.
a big turnover in the squad takes time to knit together and given how uninspiring our pre-season was, i'm not expecting it to start tomorrow.
It WILL come together though.... in time.
Funny how Dunn is so mouthy when he hasn't got to go out there and mix it himself.
Interesting debate on Lancashire Evening Telegraph website. Seems like the Hill Dwellers are none to happy with Dunn's comment about kicking lumps out of City
http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/4543741.Dunny__Blackburn_Rovers_must_kick_lumps_out_of_Manchester_City/?ref=mr
How we manage to have so many injuries before a ball has been kicked in anger is utterly beyond me.
Can anybody translate Hughes' verbiage ? For example what does "we're chomping at the bit" mean ? or "we're in the mix" ? and the latest confustication "If we don't win this one, we'll try harder to win the next one" Does that translate to 'if we don't beat crappy blackburn don't be surprised'. What a hapless moron ! Please ADUG, get us a manager who is at least good at bullshopping (a la Sven) even if he was tactically inept as well. Tactical ineptitude I can forgive; tactical ineptitude and moronically bereft of any sense of style or panache will not do at all ! Hughes out ! There. I've said it before we even kick a ball. And who's idea was it to buy a player with a boat-race that resembles a bulldog chewing a nest of hornets ? Blackburn will beat city tomorrow as Hughes hasn't a clue.
Alan S, Northwich
14/08/2009 at 15:12. Six pre-season and one international game: seven altogether. Does that answer your question?
What a shocking comment from a professional player! I hope the referee has already noted these comments, and I would certainly like to se Allardyce come out and say that Dunn has received a damn good ear bashing. It does show that Blackburn are frightened to death of us and know they cannot compete without resorting to crudities, also it has tipped the ref off, so perhaps a couple of red cards for the cloggers. 3-0 City!
Kompany dont leave us! Great attitude, great player, great profesional and still young! Dont sell him sparky!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And so it begins again...
A moment of truth?
1-0 Blackburn
City are like Lottery Lout Michael Carroll, lots a money, still a chav!
Heart says 1-2
Head says 1-1