When you mention football and dominance these days, you can barely get past a conversation that doesn’t involve Manchester City. The team has been playing incredible football, winning 4 PL’s in the last 8 years. It basically became an all-star team, currently beating team after team with little resistance(with the occasional misstep). It is odd to think that not long ago, they were more or less a mid-table team. People didn’t expect championships from them but that changed almost in an overnight way. As fate would have it, their mid-table prospects would change in the blink of an eye thanks to the takeover. The City Football group under the Abu Dhabi United Group changed Manchester City with a considerable amount of investment, making them one of, if not the richest club in the world. As a result, they bought some amazing players like David Silva, Yaya Toure’ and Sergio Aguero just to name a few. While their contributions were extremely important, there were some players who rose to the greatness that were bought before the takeover. Let’s take a look.
#4. Elano:
The Brazilian has been through quite the gamut of clubs, and aside from his initial run at Santos in his home country, Man City is the club where he has spent most of his time. He was a very good attacking midfielder. His shooting was precise, enabling him to find the target from long distances, which is why he scored 14 goals for City. His ability on the set-pieces were nothing to scoff at either, with his bulleted kick against Newcastle being one of the best free-kick goals in the PL. He was a clever attacker able to play all three positions (left, right, centre) and many believe CIty should’ve kept him instead of letting him go to Galatasaray.
#3. Joe Hart:
The former England goalkeeper is the subject of much contention. You could say he has earned both the love and hatred of football fans. In recent years, his mistakes and dip in form led him to the bench at Man City and eventually a spot out of the club. That’s not to say he wasn’t an incredible keeper at one point. He was bought for reportedly less than £1 million and saved CIty multiple times. He became one of the world’s best keepers because his awareness and reflexes were fantastic. He won 2 Premier League titles with Manchester City. One of his greatest highlights was his performance against Barcelona where he proved that you can hold your head high despite conceding a goal, saving shot after shot against Messi and Co. He might not be quite the beloved figure now, but there’s a reason he has the most Golden gloves and 75 caps for England.
#2. Pablo Zabaleta:
Pablo Zabaleta was a deadly full-back in his Manchester City days, where he was signed just prior to the takeover. Surely he was in for a surprise once the take-over brought in new players. But the fact is that he played well enough to distinguish himself amongst the more expensive talent. He won 2 FA Cups and 2 PL titles before being signed on to West Ham United. The Argentine managed 333 appearances for Man City. Not surprising considering how good he was at tackling along with his runs and passes along the right flank.
#1. Vincent Kompany:
Was there any doubt? Vincent Kompany is a legend and is sure only of the Premier League’s greats. He captained Manchester City through thick and thin and came out as nothing short of an elite centre-back and glorious captain. The Belgian’s game-sense, his aerial prowess, strength and stopping power helped Manchester City procure an immense number of victories. He even achieved a fair amount of success in the international scene, reaching 3rd place in the 2018 World Cup, the highest ever for Belgium in the competition. There’s, of course, the fact that he made 360 appearances for Manchester City and won 4 PL Titles, even being part of their legendary and record-breaking 100-point season in 2017-18. It’s hard to deny that he is simply one of the best defenders of the Premier League era.
