Manchester City have received a blow in their reported pursuit of Bayern Munich’s talented full back David Alaba.
Pep Guardiola’s side finished a long way behind Liverpool in the Premier League this season and are looking to close the gap when play finally resumes in 2020/21. One player they are reported to have targeted is Alaba, a 28-year-old who can play at left back and in the centre of defence.
Alaba is no stranger to Pep, having played under the 49-year-old at Bayern between 2013 and 2016. The Austrian international has been at Bayern for almost all his senior career, racking up close to 400 games and winning nine Bundesliga titles, plus a Champions League.
Guardiola’s pursuit of his former player has taken a blow though, as former Manchester City man Leroy Sane urged his new teammate to remain with Bayern and target Champions league success, as reported by The Independent.
“I really hope David stays,” the 24-year-old said after recently completing his own £54m move to Bayern.
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“I would like to play with him. He is a good guy, a great footballer, and we like each other privately. David has proven that he is not only one of the world’s best left-backs, but also exceptional in the centre.”
Real Madrid have also been linked with Alaba, but the Premier League has been a happy hunting ground for Bundesliga players in recent years and could make an attractive prospect for a player looking for a new challenge. Bwin’s post on which Bundesliga players could move this summer, details that Sane is one of three Bundesliga players signed by Manchester City and given a Champions League debut recent years, with Edin Dzeko and Ilkay Gungodan being the other two. In addition to that Kevin De Bruyne left Wolfsburg for the Etihad in 2015 and has won two Premier League titles, as well as five domestic trophies.
However, the chances of adding Alaba to that contingent may now have been significantly decreased as Guardiola looks to rebuild his squad. The 2019/20 season was something of a disaster for City, who failed to challenge Liverpool and retain the Premier League title. They did manage to get their Champions League ban overturned and are still hunting success on that front, carrying a 2-1 lead into their home fixture with Real Madrid in August.
The lure of Champions League football next season should ensure Pep remains in Manchester and it will allow them to expand their hunt for players as well. The 29-year-old Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly is another possible target, but with city rivals Manchester United also interested, there could be a battle for his services.
There’s little doubt Pep needs to strengthen at the back, with City leaking goals at crucial stages this season. The 2-0 defeat against Arsenal in the FA Cup typifies their porous back four, but defeats against Manchester United twice (2-1, 2-0), Tottenham (2-0) and Wolves (3-2), as well as draws with Crystal Palace (2-2) and Newcastle (2-2), truly dented their hopes of a third successive title.
With Manchester United in the ascendency and Liverpool looking for back-to-back wins, the club are facing the most important period in their recent Premier League history, with a rebuild necessary to remain in touch with their rivals.
Sport
Details released of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners while Mayor
Emily Sergeant
Details of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners during his tenure as Mayor of Greater Manchester have been released.
In case you need bringing up to speed on the situation a little first, Manchester City was found guilty back in September all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and on top of that, was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors.
These were part of a disguised funding scheme – with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.
Within the past week or so, it has since come to light that now-Prime Minister Andy Burnham had dealings with Manchester City during his tenure as Greater Manchester Mayor, and Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has now issued a public statement, giving details on the matter and what these ‘dealings’ entailed.
A spokesperson for GMCA confirmed that Burnham had a ‘formal meeting’ with Man City Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, back in October 2021.
The statement reads in full: “In October 2021, Andy Burnham, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, had a formal meeting with Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the UK Government’s Global Investment Summit arranged by the Department for International Trade.
“In his capacity as Mayor, he was a guest of Manchester City FC at home matches on a small number of occasions, including attending Vincent Kompany’s testimonial match in September 2019, where he met the Chairman informally in the stands. These have been declared in the usual way.
“Also during his time as Mayor, representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would routinely join business delegations as part of Mayoral international visits.
“This included representatives from Manchester United travelling to Austin and Dublin, Lancashire Cricket Club joining a delegation to India, and Manchester City FC staff supporting visits to China and Japan.”
Featured Image – Lauren Hurley / Number 10 Downing Street (Press Image via Flickr)
Sport
Multiple arrests made for ‘tragedy chanting’ and police officer assault as Man City defeated Liverpool
Emily Sergeant
Multiple people were arrested over the weekend as Manchester City defeated Liverpool in a Premier League clash.
Merseyside Police have confirmed that a total of 10 people were arrested during the policing operation at Liverpool’s home ground of Anfield as they hosted Manchester City on Sunday 11 October.
One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police constable, five were on suspicion of tragedy chanting, one on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, two for affray, and one on suspicion of throwing items onto the pitch.
Police are now appealing to the public, and are particularly looking to speak to witnesses of the assault of the officer.
At around 6:35pm, as fans left the stadium, a police officer sustained a ‘serious facial injury’ during the arrest of a man on Anfield Road, and was subsequently taken to hospital for treatment but is now recovering at home.
Investigating officers are now conducting enquiries, speaking to witnesses, and analysing CCTV and camera phone footage.
Chief Inspector Leanne Hobin said it’s ‘extremely disappointing’ that an officer has sustained a serious injury while carrying out their duty.
“I hope the arrests send a clear message and act as a deterrent to others,” Chief Inspector Hobin continued. “Anyone who engages in this abhorrent behaviour risks ending up in custody and getting a criminal record.
“Despite the actions of a few, the overwhelming majority of the 60,000 fans in attendance behaved well and I want to thank them for their co-operation.”
Manchester City ended up defeated Liverpool 3-0 during the Premier League clash at Anfield.
The Manc -
28th July 2020 
