City: A dynasty begins?

After Manchester City secured its first Premier League title in a dramatic finale last season, it was widely believed manager Robert Mancini would again spend big to usher in an era of domination in English football.

But the lack of action speaks volumes - City has only signed midfielder Jack Rodwell from Everton during the summer.

"I relish the opportunity of playing with some of the best players in the world and continuing my development," said Rodwell. "'It will be an amazing experience to make my debut in front of them."

The offseason has mainly been used to seek stability at the club and consolidate. Mancini signed a five-year contract extension while captain and central defender Vincent Kompany has agreed to a new six-year deal.

"This Man City project was probably one of the most difficult projects in Europe to be part of, and so far we have all done a good job, even though a lot of people said it (success) wasn't going to happen so quickly," Kompany said. "I like the kind of characters that we have in our team. I like the challenges we have ahead of us. Now is the time to build the culture of winning; we are in the right time, we are in the right moment."

City had been linked with a number of players, notably Liverpool defender Daniel Agger and Arsenal striker Robin van Persie, who instead agreed to a deal with rival Manchester United on Wednesday.

Mancini said on a preseason tour of Malaysia that he is not looking to make a mass of signings in comparison to previous years.

"I don't think we need 10 new players," the Italian said. "We need to improve some positions because it is important, but it is difficult to say now how many players. It could be two, three or one that arrive here, that can help the team to improve."

Mancini is focused on performing better in the Champions League after last season's group-stage exit.

(China Daily 08/17/2012 page22)