what the papers say

Manager meets Club's owner

The Daily Mirror say...

'Manchester City money men give manager Mark Hughes full backing'

Mark Hughes was given the full support of the Manchester City board last night to continue his "compelling" leadership.

Hughes flew to Abu Dhabi with speculation hanging over his future following an inconsistent start to the season which has seen them collect just 13 points from 12 matches.

But after a two-hour meeting between Hughes, City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak and executive chairman Garry Cook, the club's owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan said: "Mark has my absolute mandate to implement his plans in the short, medium and long term. His strategy is compelling and I'm delighted at the potential he shows."

And Hughes has also come out fighting, describing as "hysterical" the suggestions he could be sacked after three straight Premier League defeats.

Sparky admits he is unhappy with City's recent results, which have left the supposed 'world's richest club' just a point above the drop zone.

But Hughes, who discussed January transfer targets in Abu Dhabi, is adamant results will improve once he is able to reshape the squad.

The Welshman said: "At the moment you have to say that things are a little bit hysterical. People need to calm down a little bit and we'll get points on the board.

"That's a given with the quality of players we have, but we're calm and positive. The chairman has an understanding of how it works. He'll see that there are issues outside of the team that can have a negative effect. He's aware of that, the owner is aware of that and so are we.

"We just have to concentrate on what goes on out on the pitch and get results. We have good players, collectively and individually we've ourselves down on occasions conceded goals. It's been difficult we'll turn it around."

While in Abu Dhabi, Hughes set his list of January targets to Mansour and his team, among Blackburn striker Roque Santa Chelsea defender Wayne Bridge Valencia forward David Villa.

City's hierarchy are confident audacious transfer deadline-capture of Robinho from Real for a British record fee of £32m will persuade many of Europe's players to join them.

Hughes, who has already had meetings with City chairman Mubarak, said: " I had the Chairman come over to my house for dinner with my family, and it was really positive.

"We had some good and we just relaxed in other's company.

"The meeting went positively, and I met the other members of the board. Everybody understands that this is a very exciting time for us, we're all giving our input and we know what positive things need to be done to make things happen.

"The chairman understands where we are, and ideally we'd prefer to have positive results at the moment.

"The quality of our football has been good, although there have been a few occasions when I've been disappointed with what we've produced.

"The chairman and everybody at the club understands where we are and that things won't happen overnight.

"We'll address things and get more quality into the squad, because that's what we need to do to move forward." Sheikh Mansour added: "Both Mark and Garry share an ambition for success, and the enthusiasm and capability to deliver on that ambition.

"I'm delighted at the potential for both men to positively impact the evolution of Manchester City.

"They reflect our shared aim of seeing Manchester City evolve to become a significant force in the world of football.

"Importantly, we see that evolution being on every level and borne out of a sustainable approach that has its foundations in the club's academy, its fans and the relationship with the Manchester community."

Meanwhile, the Daily Telegraph look at goings on at Platt Lane...

'Manchester City academy still churning out talent despite new-found wealth'

Since Manchester City became the richest club at the start of September, they have been linked with one multi-million transfer after another, but the director of their much-celebrated academy, Jim Cassell, is sure his staff will continue to churn out players for the first team.

While Mark Hughes has been assured that new chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak wants to bring stability and sustained success to Manchester City, Cassell and his lieutenants Alex Gibson and Paul Power have been given the same guarantees.

Despite admitting initial caution in the wake of Abu Dhabi United Group's takeover, Cassell, whose academy has produced 26 first-team players and won last season's FA Youth Cup, was immediately impressed with Al Mubarak's attitude to the club's youth set-up.

"Any fears that we had were put to bed very early on when the new chairman Khaldoon Al Mabarak came to see me and I put a presentation on to show him exactly what the academy is about," Cassell said.

"That was on a Sunday morning and he was so enthused that he insisted on going straight from there to watch the under-10s, 12s and 14s games and he was very kind in his words afterwards.

"All the indications so far are that we're going to get the support and the new owners are very keen for us to tell them about any additional support that we want. We just want to take it step by step because what we've got at the moment, works."

The takeover on Sept 1 was immediately followed by the arrival of Robinho at a cost of £32.5 million and while Cassell acknowledges that the standard of City's first team is set to improve, he is confident that the academy will stick with the pace.

City's ability to pick up the best of the local area's young talent has been part of its identity but Cassell concedes they need to keep casting the net wider. He said: "The target is to keep working at the level that we've been working and if we can attract a better raw product and give them longer to develop, I see no reason why we shouldn't continue to produce players.

"Of course we've still got a role to play. In a sense, we've underpinned the club for a number of years and we've helped get them to the stage where they have been invested in very heavily now. We've already played a big part in the club and we can't be afraid of the additional support, but take advantage of it."

Retaining the FA Youth Cup may mean having to negotiate a way past Arsenal, whose youngsters beat Wigan's first team 3-0 in the Carling Cup, but Cassell sees the Gunners' current crop as further evidence that youth football is in good health in this country.

He said: "It's great and I'd never be jealous of anyone else getting publicity because it's good for the game. Maybe we might get drawn against each other in the Youth Cup but I hope it's not too early in the tournament."