MANCHESTER // There was a chuckle from Manuel Pellegrini. He had been informed of a quote from Fabio Capello, that the only way to stop Lionel Messi was with a rifle.
As it happens, Pellegrini’s Manchester City have done plenty of shooting this season, but the task of subduing a modern great is a welcome problem.
Fifteen years ago, City had just drawn 0-0 with Bournemouth. They were gearing up for their major local derby that season – against Macclesfield Town, not Manchester United – and hoping for a play-off place in the third tier.
This year, Pellegrini has branded City as the only team in Manchester in the current campaign. They are preparing for the biggest game in their European history. It is Tuesday night against Barcelona, not Bournemouth, Messi not Macclesfield. It is, they hope, a staging post en route to a greater destination. It has already been quite a journey.
“Of course I understand,” Pellegrini said, comparing City’s lowly past and lofty present.
And so he faces a dilemma that none of his predecessors has faced: how to halt Messi.
“He does a lot of different things: he has speed, good control, a good finish,” the City manager said. “But I don’t think Barcelona is Messi. You can have Messi tight and other players will decide the game.”
With a typical willingness to downplay the occasion, Pellegrini branded it, “a good test”.
Yaya Toure, an alumnus of Camp Nou, said: “We have a lot of respect for Barcelona. They have a great history in the last 10 years. Barcelona are a strong team: physically, tactically, the way they use the ball with Messi, Xavi [and Andres] Iniesta.”
Yet his message is that City will not be afraid – not of Messi, the Spanish champions’ 337-goal record scorer, and not of “the most important club in the world”, as Pellegrini branded them. Not of anyone. Instead, the aim is to ensure that Barcelona worry about them.
“I believe in the style of play,” Pellegrini said. “We are not just going to think about defending, but what we can do with the ball.”
Toure added: “We have the players, we have the quality and the temperament.”
They welcome back another of their premier performers with Fernandinho passed as fit. Star striker Sergio Aguero, approximately a week away from a return, will not feature on Tuesday.
Barcelona have been Uefa Champions League semi-finalists in each of the past six seasons, emerging as European champions in 2009 and 2011. Toure was part of the 2009 team, and 12 months later he gave up his place to sign with City, who had gone 34 years without a trophy.
“For me to come to Man City was the right move,” he said. “I was always talking about coming here to win something.”
He has been a winner, scoring the goal that decided the 2011 FA Cup final and winning the Premier League 12 months later. Now his sights are set higher. City are chasing a quadruple. Toure is eyeing the most prestigious prize of all.
“Obviously, the Champions League is our top objective,” he said.
A personal goal is to become the 10th player to win the competition with different clubs.
“I hope if I’m lucky enough to get it this year,” he said. “I would love to be part of that group.”
There are plenty in Catalonia who would like to see him among Gerardo Martino’s group. Toure topped a radio poll for the City player Barcelona fans wanted most in their team. Instead, a giant figure should tower over teammates-turned-rivals, such as the diminutive technicians Xavi and Iniesta, in midfield.
Toure has become more prolific since leaving Camp Nou – he has scored 15 times this season – but it has led to suggestions that a man who played in the 2009 final as a centre-back is not defensive enough.
“The most important thing is what my manager tells me to do,” Toure said.
Pellegrini concurred: “Yaya plays the way I want him to play. He scores a lot of goals and gives a lot of creativity to our team.”
In that respect, Toure personifies City. They have progressed, while United have regressed.
“If we only consider this season, there is just one club in Manchester, and it’s ours,” Pellegrini said.
If it is a controversial analysis, it is also an accurate appraisal. The bigger statement would be if the Champions League quarter-finals contained just City and not Barcelona.
sports@thenational.ae
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
if you go
The flights
Emirates flies to Delhi with fares starting from around Dh760 return, while Etihad fares cost about Dh783 return. From Delhi, there are connecting flights to Lucknow.
Where to stay
It is advisable to stay in Lucknow and make a day trip to Kannauj. A stay at the Lebua Lucknow hotel, a traditional Lucknowi mansion, is recommended. Prices start from Dh300 per night (excluding taxes).
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
PROFILE OF CURE.FIT
Started: July 2016
Founders: Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori
Based: Bangalore, India
Sector: Health & wellness
Size: 500 employees
Investment: $250 million
Investors: Accel, Oaktree Capital (US); Chiratae Ventures, Epiq Capital, Innoven Capital, Kalaari Capital, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Piramal Group’s Anand Piramal, Pratithi Investment Trust, Ratan Tata (India); and Unilever Ventures (Unilever’s global venture capital arm)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill
Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.
One in nine do not have enough to eat
Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.
One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.
The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.
Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.
It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.
On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.
Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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