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Most likely formation : 4213

---------------------------------Shay Given-----------------------------

Richards-------------Toure-----------------------Dunne------------Bridge


--------------------Barry------------------------Ireland-----------------

--------------------------------Robinho---------------------------------

----Tevez---------------------Santa Cruz--------------Adebayor-----------


Shay Given: One of the best keepers in the EPL.

Richards: decent at going forward but suspect in terms of defending.
Toure: hasn't been the same in more than 2 years, odds are not favourable for him to regain his former glory... but you never know.
Dunne: Nothing special, decent at best.
Bridge: a lesser version of Richards.

Barry: good as he maybe, he will be under immense pressure and countless responsibilities such as: playmaking, holding and defending. To be honest, even if they had 2 Barrys it might not be enough to bring balance to their mid.
Ireland: Average player.

Robinho: great striker no doubt about that, but rarely if ever tracks back or helps defensively... also he tends to like to dribble the ball more than he should and results in losing posession.
Tevez: He is a better version of Dirk Kuyt, and in my opinion every worldclass team needs such a type of player, don't know what whiskey nose was thinking favouring rooney or even worse berbatov over him.
Santa Cruz: good striker, i personally think they weren't sure they would get better strikers when they bought him, i don't see him moving to city to warm the bench either.. so it would be interesting to see what they gonna do with him.
Adebayor: although there is no doubt that his performance for the last two seasons is not up to his usual standards, he got tons of EPL top flight experience and is always a goal threat.


Conclusion:

i can see them score alot of goals and might dominate lesser teams with brute attacking power. On the other hand, they will concede alot of goals as well the team is seriously lacking defensively.
good news for them the top 4 teams are much weaker this season in my opinion. ManU are not as strong as last season with an aging midfield and the loss of their scoring cash cow.
Arsenal seem to be heading towards free fall mode, i wonder sometimes is Wenger that blind thinking he can challange for trophys with a bunch of kids and not having to spend money on proven experienced ones?
or is it beyond his control and the management board are just not willing to spend? i think the first assumption might be accurate, cause i don't see why Wenger would not leave if he is not getting enough
support from the upper management. Either way, if not this year maybe the next Mancity will break into the top 4 no doubt about that.

Why would Ferguson favor Rooney over Tevez!? Are you kidding me?

Rooney is by FAR better than Tevez. If, as you said, Tevez is only a better version of Kuyt, then Rooney is even better, much more of a workhorse when needed. He played most of the season as a left winger, knowing that he won't have the freedom to show all of his talents, to accommodate Ronaldo. He defends like a mule! I bet Evra thanks his stars every day that he's got Wayne Rooney in front of him. There's no denying he works himself into the ground every game.
Rooney tops Tevez also offensively, there's no denying that. Better finisher, passer, better vision, better shooting, etc etc... Plus Rooney has got that leadership about him, Rooney can have a team built around him. Just look at England and how Capello has got the best out of him by building the whole England offense around him. I just can't see Tevez having a team built around him.

I think that, in the end, Fergie realized that they are in fact too similar to each other to fit in the same team. Berbatov is of a different kind, so you can't really compare Tevez and Berba. Each brings something different to the table.

Anyway, as for City, I think they do have the potential. They are probably the closest team to the English top 4 on paper.
But there are three things that in my opinion can hinder their progress:
1- Are all their stars playing for money or are they eager for the huge challenge in front of them?
2-Can they gel together quickly? Will they be given time? With all that money, if a player under-performs, they can bring in someone else without problem
3-Is Sparky the right man to lead them?

EXCELLENT THREAD MY DEAR NS and as the only real City fan, allow me to retort:

1. Defense: Totally agree with you: Defense is an improvement over last year but definitely still weak, especially when u look at the likes of Chelsea/Liverpool up front and their counter attacks, we are left vulnerable. All that changes though if you team up Toure with Lescott (who today sent in a written formal transfer request and at 22mil i'm sure Sparky will finally get him). Lescott replaces Dunne and its a seriously solid back for! Agree about Shay Given, I think he's top 2-3 keepers in EPL.

2. Midfield: I totally disagree about Ireland. 1)he showed ridiculous improvement last year, I think maybe one of the most improved players in the EPL. 2)He's only 22. 3)he's now got all these stars around him so he's got a real opportunity to show his worth and that he can compete with the best "bought" players in the world. I think Ireland will be a star this year.
Barry: wicked player, he'll have lots to prove to show that he didnt just come for the cash and ditched Liverpool adn Champions League for a team that really wanted him and one he wants to help improve.
You totally forgot Shaun Wright Phillips as a winger--pure class, I love that guy and love him on our team!!!!!

3. Strikeforce: Last year we ended up mid table but with the most number of goals compared to any other team minus the Top 4. Our +/- Goal difference was ridiculous for being 10th place (everyone else around us was barely over or minus). AND ALL THIS, without Tevez, Adebayor, Santa Cruz and Bellamy (injured). so you can only improve on that with the strike force we got and even our subs are class players.
Robinho: I think last year he thought he was "King Shit"---> most expensive player, the only "star" on City and really brought the name out. Now there are plenty of others as high up in the "famous studs" rank and again he has to really prove himself. At home, Robinho was unbelievable last year, and considering he ended up 4th in the scoring table (or something) with only a handful of goals AWAY, he's got a lot of juice left in him. The guy is a pure-class finisher and with enough shots that might bounce in the direction of Tevez and Co.

Rest of league: its without a DOUBT that the Top 4 is going to change this year: I even bet 200pounds on it!!! Manchester is significantly weaker: Losing Ronaldo not only takes away 30 odd goals (that I dont'see anyone on their roster today scoring), but also the creativity and the setting up of others. Let's face it, he's a DICK but he was the best player in the world the last 2 years and ur not going to just replace him with a bunch of kids.
Liverpool: best chance to win the league in years, but if they lose Xabi Alonso then all bets are off and they can end up anywhere between 1st-6th.
Chelsea: FUCK EM!

last but not least : COME ON CITIZENS!!!!! great great time to be a City fan after 14years of pain, anguish and heartache!!!