Papers speculate on Johnno's future |
 |  | | |
| |||
The Guardian
"Johnson considering City future after missing Newcastle move"
Michael
Johnson is giving serious consideration to his future at Manchester
City only five months after signing a new five-year contract. Johnson,
regarded as one of England's most promising footballers, would
willingly have moved to Newcastle United on transfer-deadline day had
an £8m bid not been turned down, and he is open to the idea of a deal
being resurrected at the end of the season.
The likelihood of
that happening is complicated by the current instability at St James'
Park and the persistent doubts about who will be managing them next
season, who will own the club and, first of all, whether they will
still be part of the Premier League. Johnson, however, has other
admirers in England's top division, predominantly Liverpool, Everton
and Arsenal, even though the interest in him has waned during a
challenging season in which he has been restricted to only three league
appearances because of a persistent groin problem.
Johnson, who
turns 21 later this month, had another injury setback last week and a
frustrated Mark Hughes described the player's rehabilitation as "one
step forward and two steps back". Hughes was instrumental in persuading
Johnson to sign his last contract – Johnson had "wanted out" before
Hughes's appointment as manager, according to the executive chairman,
Garry Cook – but their relationship has been affected since then by a
series of off-field issues.
City's management have become
increasingly concerned about the player's apparent fondness for
Manchester's nightlife and the frequency with which he has been seen in
the city's casinos.
Hughes and his coaches are so concerned they
have had several meetings to discuss how to bring Johnson into line. It
does not reflect well on Johnson either that these issues date back to
Sven Goran Eriksson's time as manager, when club officials let it be
known that the England Under-21 international might be sold because of
his alleged "big-time" attitude.
Johnson, however, believes it
has been badly exaggerated, arguing that he has not broken any club
rules or curfews, and he is alarmed about the way he has been
portrayed. Roy Keane once described Manchester as a "village" because
of its propensity for gossip, and Johnson is wondering whether it would
benefit him to start afresh somewhere else – as one of his associates
put it, to "get out of Manchester."
On a separate issue, he also
has misgivings about the way his rehabilitation has been handled.
Johnson has had pain in his lower abdomen for over a year and the
problem has now been pinpointed to his pubis symphysis, for which there
can be little treatment other than rest.
Whether Hughes would try
to talk Johnson out of leaving for a second time remains to be seen,
but it should not be considered a foregone conclusion.
Johnson's
information is that Newcastle's bid was turned down because it did not
meet City's valuation rather than, as was widely assumed, his current
employers did not want to sell one of their best young players. The
fact City had a valuation in the first place is, perhaps, a critical
clue into the club's thinking.
The City winger Shaun
Wright-Phillips has been charged with violent conduct by the Football
Association for kicking out at Rory Delap in the flashpoint which saw
the Stoke midfielder sent off last Saturday. The offence was missed by
the referee, Martin Atkinson, who has reviewed the incident and decided
it was worthy of a red card. Wright-Phillips faces a three-game ban if
found guilty at a hearing on Friday.
Daily Mail
"Wigan boss Bruce ticked off by chairman Whelan for hitting out at Manchester City"
Wigan
manager Steve Bruce has had his knuckles rapped by chairman Dave Whelan
for labelling Manchester City’s pursuit of Wilson Palacios ‘disgusting’.
The Honduras midfielder went to Tottenham in the end but Whelan said: ‘City were extremely straight with us.
'I was a bit surprised when our manager had a go at them and I told him so.’
ไม่มีความคิดเห็น:
แสดงความคิดเห็น