Txiki Begiristain

[Bluemoon]

Manchester City Poised to Bring in Former Barcelona Deal-Maker

Manchester City have lined up a deal to bring former Barcelona wheeler and dealer Txiki Begiristain to the club next week, according to reports from Spain.

Catalunya Radio suggests the man who oversaw the development of Barca’s academy, and helped to establish the club as the best in Europe, will become City’s sporting director next week.

Begiristain, himself a former Barcelona and Spain star, was a Nou Camp ally of current City chief executive Ferran Soriano, and his appointment would call into question Brian Marwood’s future with the Blues.

One Spanish newspaper has suggested the move is just part of an influx of ex-Barcelona officials, with marketing experts Esteve Calzada and Marc Boixassa already working for City.

It even speculates that Soriano is plotting to bring in ex-Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola this summer, in place of Roberto Mancini.

[trautmansdropkick]

Marwood to become Director of the Academy.
It seems to me that Mancini has engineered the Marwood move and Al Mubarak and his chums have handled the situation very cleverly in that they have avoided any 'x has been fired and City are collapsing' headlines which are to be expected from the Murdoch-inspired Sun and Sky TV
Asw an added bonus we now have some of the most successful administrators ever to be involved in world football at our club. We have Birgiristain spotting players for recruitment the rags have Fergarsole's brother. I know where I'd rather be.

[eaststand]

The problem for me was highlighted in the game yesterday. Perfect chance to give Sinclair a run out, instead he played a left back on the flanks and it was almost as awful as the performance overall. It screamed to me that Mancini just will not play players that he didn't sign, that Sinclair was a Marwood signing and i hope that that is taken into account with his relationship with TB. I do hope that this Serrano plan to reduce the wage bill when re-negotiating deals with 30+'s and his preference to basic pay with large performance related bonuses, which i think is the way it should be done, doesn't cause too much of a problem and that in the cases where it does, we move these players on and replace them quickly and adequately.

[trautmansdropkick]

Sorry M8 but I'd rather have Suarez than Sinclair - a complete no-mark IMO.
I think he deserves credit for remembering to line up on the correct side of the half way line at the kick off. Total waste of space.

[eaststand]

Maybe, but the fact remains Sinclair is a far better left winger than kolarov and he didn't get a game. He's one of those players the rags have had fluttering on the edges of their squads for years, making a good 80-90% of their very limited appearances at home, when the team needs them and they can afford to play average players alongside the class, Swansea was that time for us to throw in Sinclair. Had Sinclair been a RM signing he'd have started IMO.

[trautmansdropkick]

I like the way that Mancini was wholesome in stating his regard and respect for Bergiristain at yesterday's conference. He certainly came across as very positive, which is unusual for Bobby Manc.
I must say that I'd always understood that Sinclair was a Mancini choice, particularly after Johnson's transfer to Sunderland when Mancini stated (on camera on the MCFC web site) that, good player that Johnson was, that he was the type of player who kept the ball and slowed the game down and that we had now got a player who could play much quicker, in keeping with City's style of play.
Those comments make me feel that he WAS a Mancini choice.

[Bluemoon]

All seems to have gone quiet with this guy at the moment.

I'm wondering what he/others are currently planning ?