 Wednesday, 15th Aug 2007 00:39 A new stadium for a sell out crowd of nearly 3000 Rams. The City of Manchester Stadium is one of the latest in a seemingly endless supply. Manchester City v The Rams That's unless the ground is surrounded by a cordon of Thai Police out to arrest the new Manchester City owner. Thaksin Shinawatra, the former Thai Prime Minister is the subject of an arrest warrant over an allegedly dodgy land deal in Bangkok. Shinawatra's background does seem decidedly dodgy. Even the Daily Mail asked if he was a fit person by the standards of the FA. Far more seriously, the group Human Rights Watch allege that Shinawatra is guilty of human rights abuses from his time in office and have written to the FA demanding to know how he passed their test. Shinawatra arrived in the summer and immediately set about attempting to restore City's fortunes by appointing Sven-Göran Eriksson as manager. Eriksson is a controversial figure in his own right and wasted no time in entering the transfer market. In came Geovanni, Rolando Bianchi, Gelson Fernandes, Martin Petrov, Javier Garrido, Vedran Corluka, Elano and Valeri Bojinov. The outlay for these players is in the region of £30m although some of that has been recouped by the sale of Joey Barton to Newcastle for £5.8m. Also out are Sylvain Distin, Trevor Sinclair, Stephen Jordan, Hatem Trabelsi, and Nicky Weaver (Charlton, free). Eriksson was soon being scorned in the media when it transpired he'd not actually seen any of these players play other than on video. Eriksson pointed out that in fact he did know about the players but hadn't seen them play recently. Eriksson must have been happy to see his team comprehensively outplay West Ham on Saturday. The media were probably looking for egg on Sven's face however City look to be a well organised and talented side. This should come as no surprise to people who remember the successful club sides managed by Eriksson before he became England manager. Eighteen trophies won in Italy, Portugal and Sweden shows that Eriksson is no slouch at organising a team. Five of Eriksson's new signings made starts on Saturday however there were four academy graduates on show including Peter Schmeichel's son, Kasper. After the match, Sven told the BBC; "I'm delighted. My first match in the Premier League and three points away - that's really good. We played some really good football - not for 90 minutes because we suffered as well but we started well and the last 15 minutes we did very well again." Sven of course is the master of understatement. He went on; "If we are talking about points then it was the perfect start but we won't get carried away." Current City Squad Last 5 games City had a good pre-season campaign but lost twice, both 1-0 reverses at Charleroi and at home to Valencia. Danger Men A danger man from the past the older Derby & City fans will remember well is on this YouTube clip. The mood on the message board My Uncle Pat says that we're going to get stuffed 3-0. The Rams Mears, Teale and particularly Fagan look like new players at this level and Andy Todd was calm, collected and above all in control in the midfield role. Matt Oakley took his goal well and despite his apparent invisibility on the pitch, he was always there at the right moment. Steve Howard was heavily involved and won a lot in the air. In many ways he reminded me of Everton's Graeme Sharpe as he has a tendency to get the centre half to foul him. Like Sharpe he also seems to get fouled with impunity. Rob Earnshaw was involved and kept the defenders busy but seemed to be a little off the wavelength of his teammates. He's a natural goal scorer however and it may be more a case of his teammates adapting to his pace. Wembley Hero Stephen Pearson flattered to deceive as well. He was playing out on the left and that isn't a natural position for him. It only highlights why Davies has been in the market for a left sided player. Billy Davies was pleased with the performance and after the game said; "I am very proud of the performance. I thought overall we deserved the point, although I am disappointed to have got only the one." Mick's team: Bywater, Mears, Moore, Davis, Griffin, Fagan, Oakley, Todd, Jones, Howard, Earnshaw. However I suspect that Billy may go 4-5-1 for this game in which case Pearson will replace Earnshaw. What the bookies think Information for travelling fans Parking: There are plenty of car parks for around £5 around the ground. Mostly factories making a few extra quid though I'm told the school off Alan Turing Way is a fairly easy in and out. That said, my City supporting uncle suggests parking near or in the City centre – particularly if you want a drink – as getting away from the ground onto the major routes can be time consuming. Driving: Derby to Manchester is about 90 miles via the A50 to Stoke, the M6 to the M56 into Manchester. The RAC recommend the M62 junction but that means crossing The Thelwall viaduct and hitting the traffic at its worst. The M57 becomes Princess Road. Follow this to the A57(M) and look for the junction with Every Rd. At the end of Every St, turn right onto Ashton New Rd and the stadium is on the left. It's about a two hour drive on a good day but I'd give it at least three hours because of traffic. Mick's Prediction Note for City fans: See how I've managed to do a preview of a City game without mentioning Newton Heath or saying how you live in their shadow? Do I win £5? Post your match prediction here! Photo: Action Images Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
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