MANCHESTER City have sacked Mark Hughes and installed Italian Roberto Mancini as the club's new manager.
City beat Sunderland 4-3 at Eastlands but it seems Hughes' fate was already sealed. Fellow coaches Mark Bowen, Eddie Niedzwiecki, Kevin Hitchcock and Glyn Hodges will also leave the club.
Mancini joins on a permanent contract and his assistant will be Brian Kidd.
The development comes despite Hughes’ team suffering only two defeats this season. But it was the second - a three-goal hammering by Tottenham on Wednesday - which seems to have triggered an immediate response from owner Sheikh Mansour and chairman Khaldoon al-Mubarak.
Mubarak statement
A statement from al-Mubarak on City's official website,
www.mcfc.co.uk read: “Prior to the current season beginning, with significant investment in players and infrastructure in place, the consensus between the Board and coaching staff was that appropriate agreed targets should be set for the 2009/2010 season.
“The targets were agreed as a result of the player acquisition strategy of the club being radically accelerated in the summer as a result of very favourable conditions for any buying club. It was also based on the fact that the infrastructure of the club had been overhauled completely at great cost in order to create the best possible environment for the team.
“A return of two wins in 11 Premier League games is clearly not in line with the targets that were agreed and set. Sheikh Mansour and the Board felt that there was no evidence that the situation would fundamentally change. This is a particularly difficult announcement given the personal investment over the past 15 months on all sides and we would like to put on record our respect for and thanks to Mark Hughes and we wish him the best in his future career.”
On new boss Mancini, Mubarak added: "Roberto is a hugely experienced manager with a proven track record of winning trophies and championships.
"His experience and track record speak for themselves. What is absolutely clear is that Roberto believes in Manchester City’s potential to achieve at the highest level and importantly in his own ability to make this happen. My hope is that our incredible fans will join us in welcoming Roberto to the football club.”
Mancini deal
Mancini will probably be unveiled early next week, by which time the dust will have settled on an extraordinary game, which was noteworthy enough before kick-off when Robinho and Emmanuel Adebayor were axed.
The £67.5million pair were singled out for their poor efforts in midweek and Hughes last selection was to leave them out in favour of Craig Bellamy and Roque Santa Cruz.
That pair combined to give City a third minute lead and when Carlos Tevez drilled home a penalty shortly afterwards, it seemed the Blues hierarchy would be facing an uncomfortable decision.
Yet the defensive failings that have undermined the Blues all season quickly reared their head, with skipper Kolo Toure culpable on both occasions as John Mensah and Jordan Henderson levelled.
However, with Bellamy in particular fighting his manager’s cause, City were back in front before the break.
Santa Cruz let Wright-Phillips’ cross run and Bellamy curled a brilliant effort into the far corner.
But when Kenwyne Jones nodded home Henderson’s cross midway through the second half, City’s defences were again all at sea.
It presumably just emphasised to the watching Khaldoon that a change had to be made, even though his team are sixth in the table, two points in front of Liverpool with a game in hand, following Santa Cruz’s late winner.
Get Monday's M.E.N. for an 8-page special on the Hughes sacking and the appointment of Mancini.
What do you think? Have your say.
Tweet
Showing comments 1 to 25 and replies | View All
alan who, ancoats (19/12/2009 at 18:09)
Barney Daniels Shooting Boots (19/12/2009 at 18:11)
HUGHES MUST STAY. COOK OUT.
Gary Williams (19/12/2009 at 18:11)
billy herring (19/12/2009 at 18:12)
black and blue, manchester, where else? (19/12/2009 at 18:13)
city4life, Kinnegad Co Westmeath[ex failsworth] (19/12/2009 at 18:16)
daz fox, mansfield (19/12/2009 at 18:16)
Timmy nuts, Notts (19/12/2009 at 18:17)
Also, not in a million years did I see this coming given the owner's honourable way of dealing with things to date. Strange and a bit savage.
As for MH, I was rooting for him to succeed, in part because of all the stick he got and bad predictions about how he would deal with City and what we're about. I'd like to thank him for his efforts and am sure he'll be a success elsewhere - what odds his new team dumping city out of a cup quarter final in the future?!!
Bernard Finnigan (19/12/2009 at 18:17)
Mancini! oh my god help us.
trueblue, manchester (19/12/2009 at 18:17)
He did'nt help himself by failing to shore up an obviously dodgy defence and to whoever takes over the challenge will be to sort us out at the back. Get our big name players performing ,and find a leader on the pitch.
I don't blame our owners to replace him. I would'nt have entrusted more money to him in January.
LOOK the title is still wide open and given a competent manager we could ,with our squad, go and grab it. The Premiership has never been more wide open. Come on City...
Sam Haggar-Lowestoft-MCFC4LIFE (19/12/2009 at 18:18)
COOK OUT!!!!
Esso Blue In the CITY, Manchester (19/12/2009 at 18:19)
Ahoyskin, Philadelphia, PA USA (19/12/2009 at 18:19)
Elano's PR Manager, Gorton (19/12/2009 at 18:19)
Howard Stansfield (19/12/2009 at 18:20)
In it for the money, we have been "conned" my fellow Blues, and not for the first time.
allenjames-tong, stretford now cornwall (19/12/2009 at 18:20)
If it is your last game Mr Hughes, then good bye and thank you. I truly believe you wanted the best for the club despite your allegiance to united, and I wish you well. Also well done for dropping Robinho and Ade. Slap their names on the transfer list as you leave please.
ethan, Gloucester (19/12/2009 at 18:21)
But Machini will attract bigger players and get the best out of the likes of Robinho..
I thank hughes as he took us forward but now we can move to the final steps what will make city champions!!
Bernadette Smallwood (19/12/2009 at 18:21)
It is unfortunate that he wasn't able to turn things around quicker - but with the amount of money spent it is understandable that Sheikh Mansour demands more wins that we have had this season.
CTID
Enzie, Red Heaven (19/12/2009 at 18:21)
One of the best young managers in the game, well done...
Nick The Voice of Reason,, Surrey Hills,( Blackley Born and Bred.) (19/12/2009 at 18:22)
The Kippax Kid, Irlam (now West Sussex) (19/12/2009 at 18:22)
Blue Jonesy, M20 (19/12/2009 at 18:23)
Anyway, here we go again. 12 months from now, no doubt I'll be reading all the tactical geniuses on here calling for mancini's head when he hits a bad spell.
This is the life of a City fan. I'm going to bed.
Malc, oldham (19/12/2009 at 18:23)
TrooBloo, Mottram Hyde (19/12/2009 at 18:23)
blue t, Radcliffe (19/12/2009 at 18:23)
However, I can see the other side of it as well. The owners have spent big. Maybe bigger than they were intending to. Hughes hasn't been able to get the best out of Robinho or build a good defence. He persists in trying to use Adebayor as a target man, when he is not a target man. Far too often in the past 18 months, we have seen Manchester City resorting to the long-ball game. It doesn't sit well at all. And I think that is the big problem. The way we have failed to shine against teams like Hull and Burnley and Bolton. To look at those games, an uninformed observer would never have been able to tell which was the team that cost £200million. If I had spent that money, I would be furious with the way we are playing. There have been flashes of brilliance, but you expect that from the individuals in the team. But what has been frustrating is that too often we have not even tried to play football. Fair enough, the odd draw, the odd defeat. But if we had played really well in those games I'm sure Hughes' job would not be under threat. But the truth is, we are usually playing terrible football this season. And it has to stop one way or another.