The Opposition View: Manchester City

Last updated : 29 August 2009 By Jim Bonner
I spoke to Man City fan Danny Lennon ahead of the early kick-off on Sunday in fron of the Sky cameras at Fratton Park. This is what he had to say:

Are you happy with City's transfer activity so far having spent so much money?

I believe any fan in the world would probably be happy with the players we've bought in this summer! We've strengthened every area of the squad and Hughes has brought in proven Premier League players.

With all the cash City have at their disposal, would failing to finish 4th in the league this season be considered a failure?

I believe if we finish lower than 6th then it will be a failure, but not if we fail to break the top 4. We have spent a lot of money but so have all the other "big four" (bar Arsenal), the only difference is that they have spread their spending over four or five seasons whilst we have done it in the last two.

Hughes has said that he has crammed six summers worth of spending into one transfer window and if we can finish in the top 6 this season then the next we should aim for the top 4 and then challenge for the title the season after.

Do you think Mark Hughes is the right man to take City to the next level?

I'm still undecided personally. At one point last season we were struggling near the bottom and I wanted him gone but then I realised we had to give him time. He has brought in the players he wanted now and so he has a lot to prove. The squad he has is pretty spectacular so there are no excuses for failure this time.

What are the strongest areas of your team?

Where do I start? We have so much squad depth now that we can replace most of our first-team players with players of equal ability. For our last two games the bench has consisted of Bellamy, De Jong, Stuart Taylor, Petrov, Onhoua, Weiss and Zabaleta. There are five internationals and two under-21 internationals there!

That bench doesn't include Santa Cruz, Johnson, Kompany, Sylvinho, Garrido, Ben Haim and Benjani although the latter three won't get anywhere near the first team now. We also have Caicedo, Jo and Hart out on loan so we have a massive squad!

Are their any weaknesses in your team that Pompey can exploit?

I don't really think we have a weakness at the moment. We have kept three clean sheets although we still need a "ball winner" away from home, a job that De Jong should do so Ireland and Barry have more license to go forward.

Last season teams exploited us down the left because Robinho isn't the sort of player to track back and help the defence. If Paul Hart has any sense he'll allow your right back to push forward and double up on Wayne Bridge with your right midfielder.

Sylvain Distin has just left us for Everton. What did you think of him when he played for City and do you think that the match will be much easier for your team now Distin is missing from the Pompey defence?

I used to love big Distin. He, Dunne and James formed an immense triangle at the heart of our defence and there weren't many better central defensive partnerships in the league than Dunne and Distin when James was behind them.

He was a big hit at City but he left us in horrible circumstances and so I lost all respect for the man. I enjoyed singing "Sylvain, what's the score?" when he conceded six at Eastlands last season!

David James and Benjani are two players with Pompey and City connections. They are held in high regard in Pompey but what do you think of them?

David James was great for us and I really didn't understand why he left us. I have quite a hate for Pompey because they always steal my favourite players! My favourite was Eyal Berkovic and I couldn't believe it when he left us for you!

On the other hand Benjani is a donkey. He offers nothing to the team but a smile and the fact he scored THAT goal against United on derby day at Old Trafford.

Another man with links to both Pompey and Man City is Sulaiman Al-Fahim. What do City fans think of him after he brokered the deal for your mega rich owners to take over the club?

I thank him for what he did (although I'm not entirely sure what he actually did to be honest!) but all I know about him is that he made us sound like a bit of a joke when he said things like "we will sign Gerrard and Messi" which was a tad humiliation. I'm sure he'll be alright for Pompey.

What do you make of Pompey this season? Do you think we'll get relegated like everyone else?

I see nothing in your team that makes me think you will stay up. I rate two players you own and that is James and Kranjcar. Hart is a good manager but I think he has a lot of work to do to keep you up.

How do you think the game will pan out tomorrow and what will the result be?

I think we will win 3-1 after you get an early goal and shock us. I think we'll make a second half comeback and prove to be too strong for you but I'm hardly ever right so who knows!? I think some of our superstars might be put off by the prehistoric facilities at Fratton Park which may have an effect.