Queens Park Rangers manager Mark Hughes far from ready to do Manchester United opposite a favour. Such is Mark Hughesâs aversion to being anybodyâs man but his own, his likeliest response to Sir Alex Fergusonâs desperate plea for a favour from 'Sparkyâ and his Queens Park Rangers team this weekend would have been a dismissive roll of the eyes rather than the blushing glow of recognition. 07 May 2012 On the face of it, the dynamic ahead of Sundayâs final day of the league season, when Hughesâ Queens Park Rangers must claim a point at Manchester City to be sure of avoiding relegation, thereby handing Manchester United an unlikely title lifeline, appears straightforward. Hughes, the United legend with an axe to grind against City following, in Fergusonâs words, his âvery unethicalâ sacking in 2009, will be hell-bent on saving his own skin and, at the same time, repaying his former manager for all those glorious years at Old Trafford. That is the theory, anyway. Yet while Hughes will certainly be relishing the prospect of payback against City, and the opportunity to rain on their parade after being turfed out of his job following weeks of the clubâs clandestine negotiations with Roberto Mancini, his connection with Ferguson will not provide even an ounce of motivation. His cool relationship with Ferguson â who he disparagingly referred to as the 'knight of the realmâ during his 18-month reign as City manager â stems from his perception that the Scot would be quick to drop him when results went awry at Old Trafford and that his true value was never fully appreciated by the United manager. Hughes does though still bristle at his dismissal by City 2½ years ago, and does not require Fergusonâs cod psychology to point him in the right direction this weekend. Forever compromised by being appointed as manager prior to Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyanâs takeover in September 2008, Hughes rarely felt anything other than his position being rooted in shifting sands. While Mancini speaks almost daily to Khaldoon, Hughesâ belief in his own methods meant the phone was rarely picked up and a bridge left unbuilt between himself and his boss, despite the chairmanâs numerous declarations of support. In Hughesâ eyes, Khaldoon may have been a graduate of Bostonâs exclusive Tufts University, but when it came to football, having Manchester United, Chelsea, Barcelona and Bayern Munich on your CV carried rather more clout. Hughesâ decision to remain loyal to his trusted assistants â Mark Bowen, Kevin Hitchcock and Eddie Niedzwiecki â angered Abu Dhabi and the dismal performances of £32.5 million record signing Robinho and the failure of subsequent Hughesâ purchases to justify their transfer fees proved the final straw. From Cityâs perspective, however, the fallout from Hughesâs dismissal was a PR disaster. Seemingly the only person in the world unaware of his fate as he patrolled the touchline during a 4-3 home victory against Sunderland, Hughesâ reign was ended with a 'thanks for your effortsâ press release within 90 minutes of the full-time whistle. By that stage, Mancini was already signed up to replace Hughes . Popular with the players and the media, Hughesâ sacking was initially viewed as Abu Dhabi betraying their mission statement, which forever pointed to how they would be 'differentâ and, reading between the lines, not follow Roman Abramovichâs hire-and-fire blueprint at Chelsea. When Garry Cook, Cityâs former gaffe-prone chief executive, talked of Hughes being dismissed because of the âtrajectory of recent resultsâ, the sense of a club being lost amid a fog of jargon and 'projectsâ appeared inescapable. But fast forward to this weekend and few can question Cityâs decision, as they stand on the brink of Premier League glory. Hughes will still believe he could have delivered the success that Mancini since generated, however. âI know I can walk through the doors with my head held high and look everyone in the eye because of the job I did there.â Hughes said prior to his return with Fulham last season. âWhether or not that can be said of some people there, that is for you to decide.â
Look out City, Sparky's got a point to prove... Mancini must beware predecessor By Ian Ladyman PUBLISHED: 22:26, 7 May 2012 | 7 May 2012 One of the first phone calls Mark Hughes received after his sacking by Manchester City two-and-a-half years ago was from Sir Alex Ferguson. The voicemail was short and to the point, expressing sympathy and suggesting Hughes was 'too good' for the club that had just humiliated him. Hughes is not overly emotional but he appreciated the gesture. He had spent the previous two seasons locked in a tetchy fight with his former manager over territory in Manchester. But, with the rivalry ended by Hughes's culling, Ferguson remembered an old bond. Remember me? Mark Hughes takes QPR to Manchester City this weekend 'Mark received lots of calls when he was sacked by City,' said a source close to Hughes this week. 'It's what happens when a manager loses his job. 'Ferguson was one of the first on the phone, though, and that did mean something. The rivalry had been pretty intense over the previous months.' This weekend Hughes is back in town. This time the fight is more fundamental. A point at City's Etihad Stadium would almost certainly guarantee his QPR side Barclays Premier League safety. Once again Ferguson has been vocal but this time his motives are different. Needing a slip-up by the modern City to allow his team back into the title race, the Manchester United manager has suggested Hughes will be driven by memories of his sacking by the City board, described by Fergie on Sunday as 'unethical'. Suffice to say Hughes will have appreciated this message less than the one left at Christmas 2009. Aged 48 now and a manager with 13 years' experience, Hughes does not need motivating by soundbites in the media from his former manager. Hughes has his own career and reputation to think about, not to mention the future of the club he joined after the sacking of Neil Warnock in January. Big signings: Hughes helped shape City's title-chasing side of today It would be wrong to suggest there isn't any residual bitterness over the way City dismissed him. Allowing him to stand on the touchline for a home game against Sunderland having already decided to sack him was wrong. There is also no love lost between Hughes and his replacement, Roberto Mancini. Nevertheless, Hughes is driven by more pressing professional concerns. Having taken over at Loftus Road with more than half the season gone, his side have taken a creditable 20 points from 17 games but have yet to shake off 18th-placed Bolton, who are at Stoke on Sunday. Despite persistent rumours he will be sacked if the London club go down, Hughes has been told by chairman Tony Fernandes his job is secure. Furthermore, he has been told Premier League survival will prompt heavy investment in players, and Hughes has already brought in trusted ally Mike Rigg from City to head up QPR's recruitment policy. Against this backdrop, it is easy to see why this Sunday means so much and Djibril Cisse perhaps put his manager's feelings into context when asked about the weekend's game. The scorer of his team's late winner against Stoke on Sunday said: 'Beating City would be sweet revenge for him but I don't think he is thinking about this. His main concern is to keep QPR up.' Some familiar faces will confront Hughes in Manchester. The Welshman's buying policy during his time at City was far from flawless. Signing the likes of Wayne Bridge and Roque Santa Cruz were bad calls. Nearly there: City need to beat QPR to clinch the Premier League title Nevertheless, Hughes did find value in the shape of Vincent Kompany (£6million) and Pablo Zabaleta (£6.5m) - bought before the Abu Dhabi takeover - while City also have him to thank for the presence of Gareth Barry, Joleon Lescott, Nigel de Jong and Carlos Tevez. They all retain a sense of goodwill towards Hughes while the imperious Yaya Toure was also approached under the Hughes regime in December 2008 ahead of a transfer concluded by Mancini 18 months later. City's more militant support believe Hughes was out of his depth at the club. We will never know, but Hughes heads to Manchester fuelled by thoughts of the future more than any regrets about the past. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...--Mark-Hughes-point-prove-.html#ixzz1uEaUeLtf
If sparky can manage to even get half of his pain, emotion, frustration and determination to beat Citeh across to our players then anything is possible.
Nuts, I wonder whether he tried that when we played Fulham aat LR and it backfired? Or was it just Samba Diakite learning the diff between PL footie and Mali??
I'm sure there will be plenty of other threads on this subject but just how does MH set his team up to get anything at the Etihad? From having seen how he works since January my guess is that he will stick to the formation he has started with in the last few games although just how he ignores the implications of the disaster at Stamford Bridge will be interesting. Personally I think the last thing he should do is use that set up. Either go for broke and play an attacking 4-4-2 with Traore and/or Young restored (no way can Mackie be left out) or nail up the goal with Derry, Diakite, Barton and Mackie all playing in front of a back 5. Looking at how we played Arsenal I think we can shut them out in open play. It will be set pieces where we are likely to get undone.
You're exactly right Oslo - Diakite is crucial for us and any slim chances we can possibly entertain - the midfield looks so much stronger for having him in it. Not sure if it's been mentioned, but wasn't there a handshake incident between MH and Mancini last year?
What a load of drivvel. Whilst Hughes appears to be well placed to influence the battle of the Mancs, he hardly holds the cards to make a difference does he? His place in the title fight is a nothing more than a side show at best, albeit one that will explode into the foreground if the impossible of our pulling a point were to materialise. Of course Mark Hughes is his own man. Says as much on the tin. As such there's no denying that he will do all he can to stifle City into a no-score draw, for the sake of his own reputation as much as to keep us up. But will his best efforts be enough to hold City at bay? Can't see it myself. We've choked away recently against lesser lights with Hughes grimacing on the sidelines. More of the same I'd guess. Can we park the bus and maintain that sense of urgency that has seen us secure points against the big hitters but without the LR roar in the background? Again, unlikely - but our half of the Etihad will be our Alamo. He and we have to give it a real go and thank our lucky stars that there's a time limit to this seige!
Whilst there'll be little comfort in the realisation, but if we end up going down at least we'll be able to say we got done by the prem champions - and the FA cup winners! I can't quite remember now but did Rochdale win the other cup?!!
One things an absolute certainty: If he parks the bus we'll get tonked. Its a terrible tactic no matter who you're playing. At least if you push up a little bit you can hold possession and ease the bombardment of your own penalty area. It never works IMO.
It worked for Chelsea against Barca. If we get the same amount of luck they did, and Cisse or someone is as clinical as Ramirez and Drogba, it could just work for us too. I think Cisse and Adel must play. Adel is good enough to hold the ball, and see the the counter openings, and Cisse is quick and clinical enough to exploint and finish them. But now I'm on the office water again!!
Okay Ozzie Osbourne, it doesn't work in 99 out of a 100 games! The gods really have to be smiling on you for it to work.
Our luck changed in the 89th miniute of the Stoke game, as MH seemed to say. Maybe it willl smile on us for one more round of games! Since the home game against Chelsea in October its seemed like we been playing under a bad sign, now we are due!
Worked for us against Arsenal and Tottenham - albeit with huge help from the home crowd. We'll certainly get tonked, as you say, if we open out like we did at the Bridge. Against quick, pass and move, ball-playing teams, our lot would be up against the ropes getting walloped left, right and centre in no time. Fact is we've learned how to get a result by keeping things tight. Just have to apply those lessons away from home - against the current title favourites!!
We didn't park up against Arsenal and Spurs. There's a difference between keeping things tight and parking the bus. Sorry Brix - crossed wires I think.
