MANCHESTER City manager Mark Hughes is delighted to have Nedum Onouha back to full fitness again after two months out with a niggling thigh strain.
The defender impressed during last week's friendly against the UAE in Abu Dhabi, managing the full 90 minutes for the first time since he was injured in a pre-season match at Wigan in September.
It's been a frustrating period for the 23-year-old former Academy player, who enhanced his reputation with an extended run in the side in the latter part of last season.
With the City defence struggling to gel at present, Hughes is delighted to have Onouha back.
"Nedum's doing very well. He had about 30 minutes for the reserves just prior to the trip away, and then he backed that up with the full game in Abu Dhabi,' said the Blues boss told mcfc.co.uk.
"Time on the training ground and time out on the pitch is exactly what he needs now to get him up to the level he was at the back-end of last season, because he was playing exceptionally well until then. He's fit now, but the key thing is to maintain that level of fitness and strength.
"It helps when Nedum trains and plays regularly, if he misses a game or a day's training he can get little niggles so the important thing for him is that he gets a good run of regular training, maybe the odd reserve game and then we hope, at the end of all this, first team games."
"Last season he was able to maintain his fitness and he got a longer run of games than he had been able to before, and he looked all the better for it.. We've got to get him back to that level, back to a point where he can sustain the intensity of his training and cope with games at the same time."
Hughes is also confident that the whole squad will have benefited from the trip to Abu Dhabi, where billionaire owner Sheikh Mansour met them for the first time.
"It was important to go out there and get some good work under our belts, which we did," added Hughes.
"We'll benefit from getting a bit of sun, recharging the batteries a little bit and training in a warmer climate as we go into winter and an important part of the season."
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Andrew Shaw (18/11/2009 at 15:52)
crazy p, sheffield (18/11/2009 at 15:54)
Blue Jazzman, Marple (18/11/2009 at 15:56)
he is our best natural defender - and he is of our own
cant wait to see you starting a PL match again, Ned
Captain Underpants is a BLUE!, Kent (18/11/2009 at 16:44)
bluemoon exiled to the toon, Whitley Bay (18/11/2009 at 17:08)
Alf (18/11/2009 at 17:29)
Jack Thorley Trafford, Timperley (18/11/2009 at 17:51)
James Yates, Hyde, Cheshire (18/11/2009 at 17:59)
Batmanho, Robinhos big brother, Bat Cave, Brazil (18/11/2009 at 18:01)
Yashin, Manchester (18/11/2009 at 18:04)
Still I am going to Liverpool and we dont have too bad a record of late...early goal for City and bite my nails for the rest of the game will do........
Richard Mottershead, Worcestershire (18/11/2009 at 18:20)
Masta, London (18/11/2009 at 20:08)
The boy is an excellent defender and the best defender we have at the club. All the others are very attack minded and as MOTD showed last week, are very reluctant to track back and help out with the defending. Most of the second half of last season, we usually have just Ned in our half whilst attacking the opposition. He has pace in abundance and is as strong as an ox. I think Hughes will start him at Anfield simply because the other defenders have been found wanting. We need to plug the defensive sieve at the back.
Oultonblue (18/11/2009 at 21:03)
It's all turning blue, Urmston (18/11/2009 at 21:59)
Norvaner, Vancouver (18/11/2009 at 23:39)
Gerry Gow's jockstrap (19/11/2009 at 00:26)
ChicagoBlue, USofA (19/11/2009 at 01:54)
James,
Yep, they are supposed to run about for 16 hours per day and sleep for the other eight, right?!
Come on, mate! Getting in some fair weather training, in a more relaxed atmosphere away from the distractions of home, a few hours at the pool, getting massage, golf, track, and a few good PR stunts......what EXACTLY is wrong with ANY of that?
These guys are fitter than you or I will ever be. They are highly strung athletes, who NEED some relaxing down time after putting in the work on the pitch. Now, were this pre-season, I MIGHT agree. However, we have just finished the first phase of the season (listen to Hughes talk about the way the club has sectioned up the season!) and it is a time to relax, recharge and rest.....while getting some work done. Should be simple enough to understand if you know anything about football and footballers.
Oh wait....my bad!
Bobby Johnstone's left kneecap, Hong Kong (19/11/2009 at 03:35)
On another topic, raised by Jack Thorley, on whether City's Academy is worth the 2M paid out each season. I always read Jack's posts with interest, but on this topic I disagree with what he stated. City's Academy has not cost the club much of an outlay. In fact, it just might have made some cash with the following transfer fees: SWP 21M; Croft 600K; BWP 850K; Mears 200K; Flood 200K; Schmeichel 1M; the lad we sold to Sheffield Utd whose name escapes me at present 3M; not to mention the fee we will receive from Chelsea for Sturridge. I know that there are others that I have failed to remember, who have also brought in fees. By my reckoning we have received over 27M (not counting anything yet for Sturridge) and if the expenditure is 2M per season since 1996, income exceeds the expenditure of 26M. Of course, those figures do not take into account the value of players in our squad who have come through the Academy: Ned; Micah; Johnson; Ireland; Weiss - even if you exclude SWP as a "buy." (Who have I missed out on?)
Rick Jenks, Bury (19/11/2009 at 08:09)
Bredbury Blue, Bangkok (19/11/2009 at 08:12)
Best defender in the club...no, that would be Kolo.
A combination of Kolo and Ned is worth a try (as is Kolo and Kompany) but i can't see Hudhes eating humble pie and dropping Lescott even though he could do with a time on the bench (or at leftback).
Good to see Ned back though - he definitely was the best player in the seond half of last season even though Stevie Ireland had the best whole season.
The Colin - Leeds, Over the hills and far away (Mancunian Reject) (19/11/2009 at 09:22)
Nana Hughes (19/11/2009 at 09:44)
Second, Nedum is injury prone, and third VK was playing through injury at the end of last season and was going to need surgery.
So we needed cover for injuries and players out - simples!
Farawayblue, West Sussex (19/11/2009 at 12:21)
Tommyducks Blue (19/11/2009 at 15:19)
Bobby Johnstone's left kneecap, Hong Kong (20/11/2009 at 05:45)