Europa League preview: Lech Poznan v Manchester City
Whether or not they have Polish television in Argentina is doubtful.
Manchester City captain Carlos Tévez might have to explore different avenues to keep up to date with his side’s progress in Poznan tonight, but as the Argentina ace continues to stay in his homeland whilst recovering from injury, his boots are filled by a player with plenty of points to prove to his new club’s followers. Self-confidence isn’t one of them.
“I want to be the best player in the world,” said a beaming Mario Balotelli. “It is good to have ambition. I’ve said in the past that I don’t care what other people want or expect of me because I know what I want.
“I will always give everything because I want to become the best. That is my aim and I am determined to make it happen.”
It didn’t happen on his first start for the club.
Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Wolves at Molineux simply wasn’t on the City agenda. As their £24million Italian forward made his Premier League bow, he often struggled against Mick McCarthy’s battling side. You’d think he’d want to forget all about it then, but no.
“It was difficult for me on Saturday because it was my first full game after all the injuries,” he said.
“The tackles are harder here, and the referees don’t seem to blow very often for fouls – in Italy, when someone makes contact with you, it’s a foul, but that’s not the case in England.
“It was my first game and it wasn’t easy for me because I need to get to know my teammates on the pitch and understand their movement and that comes with time.”
Time, it seems, isn’t on Roberto Mancini’s side.
City’s bosses want success yesterday, and after patchy league form has seen the club lose their last two games and raise doubts about Mancini’s future, Europe is becoming more and more important for the Italian boss. His compatriot upfront agrees.
“It is important we progress to the next stage,” continued Balotelli. “We are going to Poznan to win – but that is normal. We want to win every game we play. The quicker we guarantee a place in the round of 32 the better.”
A win here would all but certainly do that, while should Juventus fail to beat Red Bull Salzburg in Turin, it could go a long way towards earning top spot.
Things won’t be simple in Poznan though. Lech showed enough quality in last month’s 3-1 defeat at City to suggest that they are no pushovers, and the Europa League is still shaking from the shockwaves created by their 3-3 draw with Juve on the competition’s opening night.
Joel Tshibamba scored Lech’s goal at Eastlands, and he could be partnered up top by Artjoms Rudnevs, who scored a hat-trick in that draw in Turin. The club is in turmoil though, with coach Jacek Zielinski sacked earlier this week, and replaced by former Barcelona midfielder José Maria Bakero, who played in Barça’s 1992 European Cup final victory over a Sampdoria side captained by – you guessed it – Mancini.
The Italian might be thinking of revenge then, and he is likely to partner Balotelli with Emmanuel Adebayor in attack, with the big Togolese no doubt hoping for a repeat of the treble that he scored against the Poles two weeks ago.
Whether or not Tévez will catch the game is doubtful then, but by the time he returns to Manchester he should be rejoining a squad that have one foot in the knockout stages of the Europa League.
He might find it tough to win back his place in the team though, if Balotelli starts talking with his feet as much as he does with his mouth.
Prediction: Lech Poznan 1 Manchester City 3
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