On Saturday,before the start of the FA Cup final between Manchester City and Wigan Athletic at Wembley,Roberto Mancini was already skating on thin ice. The defeat against a team that has been fighting to save the drop in the Premiership came as the last straw.
It is saying something that even winning the FA Cup win wouldnt have saved the Italian. The big money pumped into the club after take-over by Abu Dhabi United Group in 2008 has changed the clubs priorities and ambition. Success in the Premier League and in Europe was considered essential and Mancini failed on both counts this season.
While the lack of performance this season was an immediate reason,Mancini had lost his job for losing the dressing room too. Mancinis very public broadsides at Joe Hart,Micah Richards,Samir Nasri and Joleon Lescott,arrived through the season.
Mario Balotelli headed to Milan after a training ground bust-up. Carlos Tevez never saw eye-to-eye with his manager. Mancini also ruffled feathers in the boardroom by publicly questioning the clubs transfer policy before the start of the season. He has repeatedly said that losing Arsenal striker Robin Van Persie to Manchester United for the current season was why City could not mount a challenge for the title.
The arrival of Txiki Begiristain as the clubs sporting director created a parallel power centre. Barcelonas former football director wanted to mould City the Catalan way. He soon went past the manager in the pecking order.
The results then perhaps gave the owners a convenient reason to sack a manager who had already losing the trust of the players and the management.
Shamik is principal correspondent,based out of Kolkata.
shamik.chakrabarty @expressindia.com
