Man City should copy rivals United

Manchester City have the wealth, noted Paul Wilson in the Guardian, but their urban rivals Manchester United will always have the kudos, as the Old Trafford faithful will never tire of reminding the Eastlands faithful. And the current nonsense surrounding City's bid to sign England and Chelsea captain John Terry just reinforces this belief.

So, "if City are trying to be the new Manchester United, they appear to be going a funny way about it. All right, the Eastlands club are no longer making bullish statements about trying to become bigger than the neighbours. The last time Mark Hughes was quoted on the subject he said he would be happy to win the Carling Cup, a disarmingly modest ambition though not necessarily one to send John Terry's pulse racing."

But in the longer run, of course City want to be playing their football on the highest stage. "So do several other clubs, notably Everton, Aston Villa and Spurs, but City have the money to make it happen. Which makes it all the more mystifying why they keep trying to throw squillions of pounds at marquee signings who plainly prefer staying where they are, rather than concentrating on putting an effective team together."

The latter is the plan that wily old Alex Ferguson is following at Old Trafford, but "City seem to have abandoned the notion. There was nothing wrong with pinching Gareth Barry from under Liverpool's noses, and although United might have deemed the player too old at 28, the £12m price was at least a relative bargain. The £17m for Roque Santa Cruz, who turns 28 next month, was not quite as stunning a bit of business, as City were kept waiting for a whole season and ended up paying top whack for a player Hughes had brought to Blackburn for a song."

The attempt to sign Terry, however, "is just plain silly, with echoes of the Kaka fiasco last Christmas. The Chelsea captain will be 30 next year, does not have too many Champions League seasons left, and has never given any public indication that he wants to leave Stamford Bridge. All City seemed to be interested in was making a statement  and all they actually managed to achieve was the not inconsiderable feat of making Chelsea look shrewd and financially astute."

Wilson concludes that while "City have been flashing the cash this summer, or attempting to, most of the curiosity still surrounds what sort of team United will be deploying. Perhaps United have earned that position over the years, and perhaps City only have their new found wealth with which to compete. All the same, City could learn a lesson or two in humility from their illustrious neighbours." ·