35 years Manchester City fans suffered from humiliation when compared to their imminent local rivals. Nevertheless, last week was arguably their best period of time for the last five decades or so. Going up against a battered Spurs team at the City of Manchester Stadium was a tricky tie while their FA Cup final clash against Stoke City was more of a traditional-unpredictable FA Cup pairing. An own goal by Peter Crouch and a typical powerful drive from Yaya Toure was all they needed to craft themselves into the history books of Manchester City.
When Thaksin Shinawatra took over the reigns at Eastlands four years ago, expectations were absolutely towering ahead for the long-suffering fans and the sight of Geovanni smacking in a winner against Manchester United was probably the best tonic needed for their already hiking optimism level. Strangely enough, the Brazilian is being deemed as not good enough for the Premier League standards but can be justified by City's faded season under Sven.
And when the Arabians arrived to take the throne, City fans had enough of promises from the previous reigns to increase their optimism level all over again. Mark Hughes' arrival together with the blockbuster-to-become-failure signing of Robinho perhaps contributed to their early season form. Once again, their hopes faded as the season drew closer to it's ending and at the end of it, 10th placing hardly justified the bombastic long-term targets determined by their rich owners.
Supernova spending followed in the summer with the likes of Adebayor and Carlos Tevez being brought into the reigns. Six months after the season started, Mark Hughes was sacked- a decision which finally provided some ideas of what the Arabians really meant by 'business'. Former Inter manager Roberto Mancini was drafted in and there has been no looking back ever since.
One and a half year since that appointment, Mancini has delivered everything that was expected of him. Better still, the Italian provided all the magic weaving to a very rich but vulnerable City thread despite being under massive pressure from the media and press. Believes me, you would never want to be in his positionn ever.
Frankly speaking, the sight of Carlos Tevez proudly lofting the FA Cup trophy was a historic one indeed as Mike Summerbee would have agreed. After all, it was his pass that allowed the legendary Neil Young to stroke in the winner in City's last FA Cup triumph in 1969. But what we meant by historic is a whole new dimension.
Roberto Mancini's celebratory instincts at Wembley on Saturday virtually speaks for itself. He knows what it all means. The City fans know it. Even a jubilant Khaldoon Al Mubarak understood the impact of last week's actions on the legacy of Manchester City. Countless efforts, massive amount of money and determined owners have finally proved what they promised two years ago. The Citizens have indeed arrived at the biggest stage.
The Class of 69' certainly set the benchmark for all the City players but what Mancini has got under him is a huge pool of talented players capable of emulating all the superlative records set by their predecessors. The Italian manager does have the attitude. I am not making any reference to his exquisitely tailored suits. Roberto Mancini gets the job done for City.
We all speak about how Tottenham Hotspur and Blackpool have been a breath of fresh air in the Champions League and Premier League respectively. But do we realize what teams like Manchester City have achieved this season? Not much of pretty footballers in their team, except for the ever-meticulous David Silva. However, having born fighters like Kompany and Yaya Toure was the element that made the difference for them ultimately. Roberto Mancini might not be a 'Joga Bonito' professor but the Italian is certainly a mastermind of tactics- impeccably proved at Eastlands this season.
But what's next for the blue side of Manchester? Well, there's never a limit when it comes to City right? Mancini was absolutely ecstatic of what the future beholds for his side after they effectively removed one syndicated banner at Old Trafford. Wearing a red scarf in remembrance of Neil Young's legendary status at the club, Mancini ultimately admitted that the Premier League will be their target next season. But what the immediate future holds for City is another summer of massive spending- something that should not be overlooked again for one simple reason. Carlos Tevez and co achieved what they promised last summer.
So while Sir Alex Ferguson has reiterated on numerous occasions that he sees no reason to fear their 'noisy neighbors', we leave you guys with a spellbinding enigma. Should world football fear the Dynasty at Eastlands? As far as i am concerned, yes would be my practical answer. Let's prepare for the arrival of Manchester City in the Champions League next season. Who knows? We could see a huge surprise come May 2012.
