Manchester City have made the first move to persuade
Mark Hughes to quit Blackburn and become £3 million-a-year manager
at Eastlands. They contacted Rovers officially yesterday and
requested permission to speak to the Welshman on behalf of City's
Thai owner, Thaksin Shinawatra.
The move confirms it is the end of the road for Sven Goran
Eriksson as Manchester City boss after just one year in charge. The
former England manager had it confirmed yesterday that his contract
had been terminated.
The Swede is now expected to move to central America and agree
an offer to steer Mexico to the World Cup finals in South Africa.
It would be a major coup for Shinawatra if he and his senior aide,
Pairoj Piempongsant, could make former Manchester United star
Hughes, 44, an offer he cannot refuse.
But Hughes is also among the serious contenders for the Chelsea
job. He is high on the hitlist of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich to
replace Israeli manager Avram Grant.