Sport

Kevin de Bruyne’s comeback sparks Manchester City’s return to winning ways

The title race isn't over so long as 'King Kev' has a say...

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 4th December 2024

Manchester City got back to winning ways on Wednesday night with a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest to end their winless streak, and it looked seemingly to be down to the return of one man: Kevin De Bruyne.

Pep Guardiola has been keeping careful with the Belgian’s fitness in recent weeks, only risking him from the bench of late, but De Bruyne’s long-awaited restoration to the matchday XI appeared to have achieved the desired effect as Man City looked much more like their dominant selves.

Starting his first game in nearly three months, the midfield maestro created Bernardo Silva’s opening goal in just the eighth minute and scored a powerful strike for the second around the half-hour mark, as well as helping keep the tempo ticking throughout the game.

The 33-year-old unsurprisingly picked up the Man of the Match award following his impressive return to the starting lineup, being met with a standing ovation when was taken off in the 74th minute. You watch back his emphatic moment of the night here:

Netting not only his first goal since August but helping finally break the Blues’ winless run (seven losses, one draw prior to the Forest win), De Bruyne‘s full return was desperately needed both for the team and the fans.

For all the talk of Rodri’s injury having killed City’s form, and the 2024 Ballon D’or winner’s absence has certainly been felt immensely by those around the club, KDB’s contribution came as the right tonic and just at the right time.

The increase in creativity and goal threat also looked to translate to the forwards, with a total of 17 shots created and Jérémy Doku getting himself on the scoresheet for the third and final finish at the death.

At the other end of the pitch, Guardiola‘s men also managed to keep their first clean sheet since 26 October and with every game now a must-win if they are to stand even the slimmest chance of catching Arne Slot’s high-flying Scousers, regaining their levels at both ends of the pitch is crucial.

Speaking after the game, the number 17 thanked the fan for turning up to the Etihad Stadium on what was a very grim and rainy night in Manchester; he also went to confess that whilst it’s been a difficult period for him personally, he was just happy to get past 70 minutes and hopefully shift the “momentum”.

De Bruyne gave an uplifted but honest interview after ending a seven-game streak without a win for City.

Read more:

De Bruyne’s performance saw plenty hopping on social media to once again proclaim not just the best midfielder in English football but “the greatest player” full stop and perhaps even the greatest the Premier League has ever seen. It’s getting hard to argue otherwise at this point. We’re getting déjà vu…

Be it the hamstring injury that’s been keeping him out most, or the abdominal issues that have held him back from being a regular starter most recently, neither his quality, age nor his relationship with Pep come into it – if/when he can play, he’s simply phenomenal.

With title rivals Liverpool having dropped points for just the third time all season with a dramatic 3-3 draw against Newcastle, it was pretty much a perfect night for Man City, though they still have a mountain to climb and can’t afford to make any slip-ups if they want to be in the conversation come May.

One thing is for sure, since it looks as though Rodri is very unlikely to make an appearance before the end of the season – no matter how determined he might be to make a comeback – the four-time consecutive champions will surely need to Kev to stay fit even if they want to close that nine-point gap.

You can see the highlights from Man City’s 3-0 home win over Nottingham Forest down below:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Sky Sports (screenshot via YouTube)

Sport

Pep Guardiola aims not-so-subtle dig at ‘destructive’ FIFA Club World Cup

Danny Jones Danny Jones Pep Guardiola Club World Cup comments

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is the latest to voice his concerns surrounding the ongoing 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, delivering a not-so-subtle dig at the competition.

Ahead of Man City‘s round of 16 match against Al Hilal in this year’s Club World Cup, of which they won all their group stage games, the Catalan head coach has once again come out to criticise the increasingly congested fixture calendar.

His comments come after former Liverpool manager and now Head of Global Soccer for Red Bull, Jürgen Klopp, labelled the current off-season summer run of matches “the worst idea ever.”

Somewhat echoing his statement – or at the very least aligning with it (albeit indirectly) – Pep Guardiola gave his two cents also, claiming that the now extended, 32-team tournament could “destroy” his squad and their fortunes in the next campaign.

Clearly, Pep is far from the biggest of fan of the recently refreshed format, even despite having won the thing on four occasions in the past – the most recent being with Manchester City back in 2023.

Reflecting on what impact he fears the Club World Cup may have on his team next season, Guardiola said: “I try not to think about it, otherwise I will be so anxious. We will rest [for as much time as] the Premier League allows us to.

“And game by game, month by month, we will see. And maybe in November, December, January, ask me, Pep. I may say: ‘So listen, we are a disaster. We are exhausted. The World Cup destroyed us.’ I don’t know, but it’s the first time in our [lives] that that’s happened [a 32-team CWC]. So we will see…”

Unpredictable weather in the United States, where the action is being hosted, has also been the subject of outrage in some cases, with Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca stating, “It’s a joke! It’s not football”, after a major storm delay mid-game pushed meant that one of their games took five hours to finish.

The 54-year-old also insisted that those who were against the tweaked concept “fought a lot” here in England, in UEFA meetings and so on, as was the case with the revision of the new layout of the Champions League, but to no avail.

Regarding Klopp, who set this latest chain of criticism, he claims that whoever wins the 2025 Club World Cup is ultimately “pointless” and will be “the worst winner of all time because they’ll have played all summer and then gone straight back into the league.”

In his eyes, the decisions are being made by people who have “never been involved” with the pressure of day-to-day life in professional football and the physical toll of multiple competitions, in particular.

As for who might win the 2025 CWC, it could very well be Man City for a second time, as the Blues are the only team remaining that has a 100% win ratio this year, having most recently thrashed Juventus 5-2 in their last game.

Nevertheless, it seems that the stance of Klopp, Guardiola, Maresca and more is pretty plain: this particular tournament will go down in the record books for the wrong reasons, and they won’t be happy until the format is revisited.

Do you agree with Pep and co. on the Club World Cup controversy?

Read more:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Man City (screenshot via YouTube)

Sport

The latest on Salford Red Devils financial situation as ‘winding-up’ petition is adjourned

Danny Jones Danny Jones Salford Red Devils finances problems explained

The current situation at Salford Red Devils is far from ideal, with the rugby league team currently owing hundreds of thousands of pounds in debt, not to mention facing further stress over finances with players owed wages, key personnel leaving and remaining uncertainty over future ownership.

So, why is the board expressing reassurance among supporters following the recent adjournment of a ‘winding-up’ petition, and what exactly does this mean?

It is no doubt a complex issue, but with the season concluding in October and the Greater Manchester club essentially being given a stay of execution, for lack of a better phrase, it’s possible that a corner could hopefully be turned soon.

Here’s everything we know so far about the situation in Salford and where the Red Devils’ finances are currently at.

Salford Red Devils’ finances and more – explained

For a start, they’re late on payroll again this month.

How much do Salford Red Devils owe and why?

According to recent reports, Salford Red Devils owe more than half a million pounds to His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) at present, with current estimates said to be in the region of £600,000.

The Super League side has fallen into debt due to a number of factors: their own performance as a business, cuts to local funding and a period of spending in terms of recruitment and pre-season preparation under the assumption of a subsidy from Salford City Council (SCC).

However, this would-be uplift – despite it being promised late last year – never came as the Council (having already provided £315k in ‘immediate’ financial aid back in March 2024) U-turned on the decision after it was revealed further backing was not in the budget.

SCC ended up owing around £2 million itself after stepping in to save both SRD and fellow rugby league outfit Swinton Lions, handing out loans to both clubs even prior to purchasing Salford Community Stadium and the surrounding area.

The Council ultimately shelled out north of £7.7m to buy the ground and sever commercial ties with previous owners, Peel. They had hoped to further alleviate pressure on the club, but Salford Red Devils (SRD) had already spent the money they were expecting to receive on new players, training and more.

SRD were then told to sell off a number of players by the league.

Salford Red Devils issue statement after being ordered to sell players by Rugby Football League
Former CEO Paul King was also parachuted back in to try and save the club after his predecessor left almost as quickly as he came.

What is the ‘winding-up’ petition?

With all this in mind, something called a ‘winding-up’ petition – basically a document sent by creditors that demands the immediate liquidation of a company/organisation that owes them money – was filed by HMRC back in May, with the tax authorities demanding payment of the outstanding sum.

However, special dispensation appears to have been made not only due to the complicated and unforeseen circumstances Salford have faced along the way, but also for the sake of the Rugby Football League (RFL) itself, with the Red Devils still seen as a valuable sporting and community asset.

One of those unexpected twists was the takeover by a new consortium led by Dario Berta, whose investment failed to clear in time and resulted in the club being hit with the financial sustainability problem that saw them cutbacks.

In a small bit of good fortune, it has now been decided that the petition to liquidate the SRD has been postponed, though not indefinitely.

What could happen next?

The date for coughing up what debt they owe to the tax authorities has now been pushed back to September, meaning they have until then to find the finances, or else they could very well be made insolvent in a matter of months.

However, as per BBC Radio Manchester, those involved in the ongoing process are “confident” that bridging loans will be put in place over the coming days to keep HMRC at bay.

And, nevertheless, head coach Paul Rowley has insisted that he can see “green shoots” starting to emerge around the club, despite still sitting bottom of the table with just one win to their name.

What’s for sure is that the local area isn’t giving up on them, with numerous fundraisers and charity events being set up to help support the club via the official Salford Red Devils Foundation.

Fingers firmly crossed that there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Read more:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Antony Parkes (via Geograph)/Salford Red Devils (via website)

More Sport

new Wigan Athletic signing Dara Costelloe

Sport

Wigan Athletic sign third forward of the summer window so far

Jonny Evans is staying on at Manchester United in a youth staff role

Sport

Jonny Evans is staying at Manchester United after retirement

Paul Mullin joins Wigan Athletic on loan

Sport

Wigan Athletic make statement signing after grabbing Wrexham’s Paul Mullin on loan

Audio

Clint Boon takes us around Manchester's iconic Deaf Institute

Eats

We go meatballs deep with Mira's traditional Neapolitan sandwiches