Stevan Jovetic (continued)

[LoveCity]

Sub appearance sounds sensible, but means starting 1 or 2 of the main strikers again.

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

Re: Stevan Jovetic

The Montenegro star was one of the mist exciting Premier League acquisitions of the summer

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[Lucky Toma]

Re: Stevan Jovetic

"He came here with the illusion of playing in the Premier League"

You can say that again.

 

[Marvin]

Re: Stevan Jovetic

Sub appearance sounds sensible, but means starting 1 or 2 of the main strikers again.

Don't see how starting one of the main strikers is sensible. if Jovetic is fit, he should start.

 

[carlos tevez is a blue]

Re: Stevan Jovetic

Stevan Nextweekjovetic. He's always playing but it's next week. When next week comes it's next week. What's the problem?

He's in the squad to play tomorrow.

Let's hope he doesn't have a dodgy lunch then.

 

[LoveCity]

Re: Stevan Jovetic

Sub appearance sounds sensible, but means starting 1 or 2 of the main strikers again.

Don't see how starting one of the main strikers is sensible. if Jovetic is fit, he should start.

Sensible as in, easing him back in after no football for 3 months. He might only have 20 or 30 minutes in his legs for now.

 

[George Hannah]

Re: Stevan Jovetic

"He came here with the illusion of playing in the Premier League"

You can say that again.

"He came here with the illusion of playing in the Premier League"

 

[Blue Haze]

Re: Stevan Jovetic

Start Dzeko, give him a full 90 now that Kun is back. It would be too risky to play Jovetic for more than 30 minutes or so.

 

[George Hannah]

Re: Stevan Jovetic

Start Dzeko, give him a full 90 now that Kun is back. It would be too risky to play Jovetic for more than 30 minutes or so.

tomorrow Doug Higginbotham will reveal the name of the other EDS player training with the first team today - bet it's a striker!

 

[adrianr]

Re: Stevan Jovetic

Manuel Pellegrini is backing unlucky Stevan Jovetic to bring a new attacking dimension to City as he nears a return to action.

The £22million striker has had a nightmare start to his career with the Blues, beset by a series of injuries and an illness which KO'd his planned comeback just before Christmas.

But he is in the squad for tonight's Capital One Cup semi-final first leg at West Ham – although he may have to settle for a place amongst the substitutes.

The Montenegro star was one of the mist exciting Premier League acquisitions of the summer, and City fans were desperate to see a player whose performances for Fiorentina in Serie A had seen him compared to Italian legend Roberto Baggio.

But, after showing glimpses of his ability in the pre-season win over AC Milan, he suffered a hamstring problem which saw him miss the start of the season.

He finally made his debut in the goalless draw at Stoke on September 14 and bagged his first goals in the 5-0 Capital One Cup beating of Wigan.

But further hamstring and calf problems have beset him since then, and his last outing for the Blues, in the cup win at Newcastle at the end of October, lasted just ten minutes before he limped off.

Since then, his season has been a litany of aborted comebacks, and confused utterances from Pellegrini about his physical and mental state.

City insist the problems have been purely physical, and Pellegrini said he has simply been the victim of “bad luck”.

But the manager was cautious about the chances of Jovetic being involved at Upton Park, even though he has come through two full training sessions with no apparent reaction.

“We’ll see what happens with Stevan in the next few days,” said the Chilean. “It’s an important chance for him to come back to play but I don’t think he’ll be able to play from the beginning or play 90 minutes.

Some cynics have suggested that Jovetic may have a mental hang-up, and insist on being 100 per cent certain before committing himself to play, but Pellegrini refutes that, saying the player is simply frustrated.

“He came here with the illusion of playing in the Premier League,” he said.

“He was a very important player in Italy for Fiorentina and I still believe he will be a very important player for us.

“He can really start playing often in the next three months and I think he can be the player we hoped he would be.

“It’s very difficult to be happy when you’re not playing and you have so many injuries but he’s conscious that he will be 100 per cent fit and demonstrate why he’s here.”

City have not missed Jovetic, with their three other strikers in stunning form this season, but the 24-year-old is more of a creative type, and could be a good replacement for long-term injury victim Samir Nasri if he can stay fit.

“Stevan can play as a forward or a midfielder - it’s a position he played sometimes at Fiorentina. We’ll see when he’s fit if he can do it,” said Pellegrini.

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Some pretty odd quotes in there but you can probably chalk half up to the language barrier and half up to journalistic license to misrepresent whatever he was trying to say to suit their own ends.

Regardless, the fact that he won't start is a bit confusing. I'd have thought of all the games to start him in this would be the one. If he gets injured you can replace him, if he comes on at half time and gets injured you've wasted a substitute. Pellegrini and the medical staff will know best, but I'd be giving him the chance to get as much time under his belt in as close to a dead rubber game as we'll play for the rest of the season.

That said, a solid second half against West Ham and then a start to play maybe 60 minutes or so against Watford would be a big success story given his luck so far. Can't be too picky!