what the papers say

The two Marks

The Times

"Mark Hughes summit talks reveal ambitions for Manchester City"

Guillem Balague

The training ground at Manchester City is not usually open to outsiders, but I have been allowed to eavesdrop on a conversation between Mark Hughes, the manager, and Mark Bowen, his assistant. City have become the richest club in the world and that means extra pressure and scrutiny. Despite losing at home to Liverpool and Chelsea, City have made a promising start to the season and have qualified for the group phase of the Uefa Cup. Hughes has a reputation for being distant, but he opened up when talking to Bowen about the club’s new owners from Abu Dhabi, his style of management and City’s new Brazilian players.

Mark Bowen - People think you are distant and quiet.

Mark Hughes - It’s a consequence of the job I do. I’m not as accessible as you because of the demands on my time. I’m doing other things, so players don’t have that access to me anyway. That’s not artificially created, but on the field of play I think it’s important that you have that distance. You can’t have friendships with players, you need respect and trust. I think I get that trust by making sure the coaches and the people I have working with them are top quality.

MB - A club couldn’t work properly without someone having the overview vision, though.

MH - I’m in charge of the football part of this business. There have been lots of changes and there is going to be more in the future, but the one constant that will always be in place is the manager. I will make decisions and the club will act accordingly - that’s how it should be. It has to be a clear direction to where we are going. That obviously will come from me and the input from my coaches only.

MB - The team we have here works exceptionally well.

MH - You are like a buffer for me. You recognise things that I need to be made aware of but don’t want to be bogged down with, fielding calls or whatever. Everybody knows I am not a lover of the phone, but it’s part and parcel of the job.

MB - The enthralling thing is that the staff is presented every day with new challenges. Having a few Brazilian internationals is a fascinating one.

MH - They have a love of the game and love playing, so it is not hard to prepare them for, say, a cold evening in our stadium for a Uefa Cup game. At the moment everything is positive and there is a real buzz around the place. You notice it, I notice it.

MB - On occasions, irrespective of whom you are playing, it’s hard to get players going.

MH - But that’s why you have a half-time team talk, the opportunity to reaffirm what we are supposed to do from the first half, so they just need reminding now and again.

MB - And once you remind them, more often than not you get a change.

MH - It’s possibly an old-school mentality to say that he is a Brazilian, just send him on the field and go and play.

MB - You just can’t do that.

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Daily Mail

"Former Arsenal star Thierry Henry wants an end to Manchester City rumours"

Barcelona forward Thierry Henry has called for the speculation linking him with a move to Manchester City to stop.

Reports in England and France have claimed the former Arsenal forward is a target for the new owners at Eastlands - the Abu Dhabi United Group - and suggested a deal with Barca will be struck in the January transfer window.

Talk of a move arose after Henry himself hinted in September that he was unhappy in Spain due to a combination of a lack of playing time through injury and new coach Pep Guardiola's insistence of playing the Frenchman on the left wing.

But following France's 2-2 draw with Romania on Saturday, Henry insisted he was happy at the Nou Camp and demanded an end to rumours over his future.

'One thing's for sure, the Manchester City thing and all the things you're talking about need to stop," he told France Football.

'I've played three matches in the league and I've scored twice. So there you go. I missed two (games) because I was ill."

The Mail also links us to a promising England Under 16 prospect......

"Rovers ready to make Arsenal youngster Banton 'the new David Bentley'"

Arsenal’s England youth international striker Jason Banton is a target for Paul Ince at Blackburn and is also being watched by Manchester City.

The feisty 16-year-old had a furious bust-up with the Emirates hierarchy and has decided to leave the club for a second time.

The story has similarities to that which lead winger David Bentley to quit Arsenal for Ewood Park.

The first time Banton left to join Tottenham only to return shortly afterwards.