Manchester City And Jorginho – 2012 All Over Again?

Just a few weeks ago, it seemed inevitable that Napoli midfielder Jorginho would sign for City, yet here we are watching the Italian international sign for Chelsea. The same sort of thing happened in 2012, so are the blues experiencing de ja vu?

When City won the Premier League on that dramatic day against QPR, many said the blues could go on and dominate the English game. But City needed to strengthen their squad and highlighted players such as Eden Hazard and Robin van Persie to spearhead the defence of their title.

But it took the blues until 12^th August to make their first signing. It wasn’t Hazard or van Persie; it was Jack Rodwell from Everton. It wasn’t exactly the marquee signing blues fans were hoping for, with Hazard already a Chelsea player but at least van Persie may still sign. Three days later, the Dutchman signed for United, and City had to wait until transfer deadline day before making further signings.

In came Maicon from Inter Milan for £5m, Matija Nastasic from Fiorentina for £12m and Scott Sinclair for £6m from Swansea. Then, just before the deadline, Javi Garcia arrived from Benfica for £17m. And with the release of Nigel de Jong to AC Milan, it seemed City had weakened, not strengthened, and the new signings didn’t exactly make an impact.

So is the same thing happening now? Riyad Mahrez has signed, but Jorginho has chosen Chelsea over City. And with the length of time it is taking for the blues to announce any further strength to the squad, one could be forgiven for feeling 2012 is repeating itself.

Manager Pep Guardiola is rumoured to have identified Mateo Kovacic from Real Madrid, but could face competition from Inter Milan for the Croatian’s signature, according to Corriere dello Sport. Should the midfielder become the second to choose elsewhere over Manchester, would it put question marks over City’s pulling power, even with Pep in charge?

Time will, of course tell as to whether the blues will make another signing before the start of the new season, but supporters get easily restless, especially when they see their rivals making signings and the blues seemingly standing still.

Now Jorginho has gone, should the blues go for Kovacic? Who else should City target?