The Chilean is a wise and astute tactician who will bring a sophisticated method to his work as coach of the 2012 champions.
Whilst the other billionaire backed side in the league, Chelsea, go from manager to manager and then back to where they started, City seem to be developing with real method. There were reports earlier in the season that Chelsea had looked at Pellegrini, and you can understand why. They may well be rueing the fact, privately, that they missed out on the former Malaga coach. He seems the steal of the summer for the blue side of Manchester.
Txiki Begiristain and Ferran Soriano are the men in charge at Eastlands now when it comes to football matters, directing the operations and ensuring that the playing staff fit into their vision for the club’s new 4-3-3 system. The signings of Fernandinho and Jesus Navas are savvy. City now have a front three that will consist of Navas, David Silva and Sergio Aguero from next season. Behind them Fernandinho, Yaya Toure and Javi Garcia can form an impressive trio. Pace and skill in abundance, with technical quality to spare, City should be an irresistible force if Pellegrini can get them going.
History suggests he will, too. He got the best out of a Malaga team featuring the likes of Joaquin, Isco, Eliseu, Javier Saviola and Julio Baptista. Saviola and Joaquin in particular are players who had waned away after showing immense promise early in their careers, so that Pellegrini resurrected their fortunes says much for the man. His ability to build a team is extremely impressive. Who can forget what he did with Villarreal, turning them into a real force not just in Spain, breaking the Real Madrid-Barcelona duopoly at the top, but in Europe too, reaching the semi finals in 2006. Having reached the last eight with Malaga last year, you wonder how far he’d take Manchester City with their array of stars.
There is a real sense now that City are not just embarking on a Chelsea style spree for the best players around and then looking to somehow meld them together into a team. Unlike under Mark Hughes, they aren’t signing anyone interested – remember the days when any good player fluttering his eyelashes at City would be signed? Robinho, Martin Petrov, Roque Santa Cruz, Shaun Wright Phillips, Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure all arrived. Players to follow include Joleon Lescott, Samir Nasri, Mario Balotelli and Edin Dzeko, none of whom can be considered a success.
City now appear to be crafting a genuine team, a side that can bond together and lacks the egos of years gone by. Aguero, Silva and Navas are humble figures, real team players who don’t play football just for the money. With the likes of them in his squad, Pellegrini can once again find the formula to get City winning and in style. Their methods may be watched enviously over at Stamford Bridge in the months and years to come – they may consider that they missed out on the best manager on the market this summer when they opted for Jose Mourinho over Pellegrini.
