Roque Santa Cruz prepared for Manchester City
debut at last
Manchester
City - West
Ham -
3:00 am (Tue morning)
Twenty-one months after Manchester City began their
torturous pursuit of Roque Santa Cruz, the club’s supporters may
finally get their first glimpse of the Paraguay striker as he
prepares to make a long overdue debut at home to West Ham United in
the Barclays Premier League this evening.
City’s interest in Santa Cruz pre-dates Mark Hughes’s arrival as
manager at the club in the summer of last year, but despite finally
getting their man after what amounted to a seventh bid was accepted
by Blackburn Rovers in June, the agonising wait to blood him
continued as he was sidelined by a troubling knee injury.
Having spent the past three months recuperating, however, Santa
Cruz is expected to be given a chance against West Ham to show why
City persevered for so long trying to sign him.
“We could have brought him back sooner but given the fact that
we had good options up front, we had no need to rush him back,”
Hughes said. “We had a game behind closed doors against Wrexham
last week and he looked in good fettle. It is good to see him on
the training ground, playing in games and looking in good
nick.”
With Carlos Tévez and Craig Bellamy expected to lead City’s
attack once again, Santa Cruz may have to settle for a place on the
substitutes’ bench, but he will be involved at some point.
Quite where Santa Cruz will figure in City’s plans once Robinho,
the Brazil forward who is injured, and Emmanuel Adebayor, the Togo
striker who completes his three-match ban for violent conduct,
return remains to be seen.
With Bellamy impossible to drop at the moment and Tévez the
fans’ favourite, it would appear to be a straight choice for Hughes
between his two big men up front — Adebayor and Santa Cruz — but
while the African’s form so far has made him indispensable when
available, Hughes is a big admirer of the Paraguayan. So what does
£18 million buy you?
“He is a big guy, his physical presence is important for us and
he is quick, strong, brave and good in the air,” Hughes said.
“Technically, he is good enough and he is a great character and
that is part and parcel of what I am looking to bring to the
club.”
Unfazed by Santa Cruz’s history of injury problems, Hughes paid
Bayern Munich £3.3 million to bring the striker to Blackburn in
July 2007, a decision that paid handsome dividends as the player
plundered 23 goals in his first season with the club.
“I will always remember the first training session he had at
Blackburn and the reaction the other players showed when they saw
what he had produced,” Hughes said. “He has the ability to make
people sit up and take notice.
“He has been at the biggest club in Germany so he is used to
performing under pressure and at a club with a big profile. He has
the mentality I need. I blew all of my budget on him when I was at
Blackburn so that shows you what I thought of him. If he can
replicate even half of what he did there, then he will be good
value.”
Team line-ups
Manchester City (probable; 4-2-3-1): S Given —
P Zabaleta, K Touré, J Lescott, W Bridge — N De Jong, G Barry — S
Wright-Phillips, S Ireland, C Bellamy — C Tévez.
West Ham United (probable; 4-3-2-1): R Green —
J Faubert, J Tompkins, M Upson, H Ilunga — V Behrami, M Noble, S
Parker — Z Hines, A Diamanti — C Cole.
Referee: C Foy
