By Andy West
LONDON, Nov 7 — “Keep watching us — we’re going to get even better!”
That’s the message from Manchester City midfielder Nigel De Jong for his team’s growing army of fans all over the world.
In the past, City has been forced to live in the shadow of its more famous cross-town neighbour, Manchester United. But times are changing and, on the back of massive financial investment from new Abu Dhabi-based owner Sheikh Mansour, the team managed by former United striker Mark Hughes is threatening to reset the balance of power in English football.
City currently occupies fourth place in the Premier League, with an opportunity to strengthen their grip on that position with this weekend’s home fixture against Burnley, and Netherlands international De Jong confidently asserts: “If you see how we’ve already improved this season, you can only imagine how much better we’ll get in the future. I’m sure we’ll continue to buy new players and we’re going to get stronger and stronger.”
City served emphatic notice of their arrival amongst the elite with a thrilling 4-2 victory over Arsenal at the City of Manchester Stadium in September — De Jong’s first appearance of the season after starting the campaign on the substitutes’ bench. “That was an important game for us,” the 24-year-old recalls. “We made a big point to a lot of people by beating Arsenal so convincingly.
“It was the first time this season we’d played one of the big clubs, and we proved we’re good enough to beat them. Everything comes from confidence — if you’re playing a team as good as Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester United and you don’t think you can beat them, you won’t. We’re trying to become as successful as these teams, and the victory against Arsenal gave us a lot of confidence that we can do it.”
However, he also sounds a cautionary note: “We’ve got to be realistic; it will be very difficult for us to win the Premier League this season. We’re trying to compete with the top teams but people should also remember this is our development year, so at the moment we’re really happy to be fourth in the league and through to the quarter-finals of the League Cup.”
De Jong joined City from German side Hamburg in January, having earlier started his career with Ajax in his native Netherlands, and quickly learned to appreciate the special qualities that make English football so appealing to an international audience. “I think the Premier League is different from anywhere else because of two things — the atmosphere from the fans and the pace of the game.
“As a player, it takes time to adjust; it’s definitely a slower game in Holland and Germany. It was difficult when I first arrived and I wasn’t used to the tempo, but now it’s really enjoyable and exciting to play in. The game constantly goes from one penalty box to the other, and I think that’s why the Premier League is so popular globally.
“When I came here, it didn’t take long to realise how many people all over the world are watching me! The Premier League is getting bigger every season, and we all know that Manchester City is becoming more and more popular internationally because of the recent changes at the club. I certainly receive a lot more fan mail from overseas now than when I played in Germany!”
Despite City’s growing global profile and the monumental changes that have taken place in the last 12 months, De Jong is keen to preserve the club’s historical traditions. “Everybody talks about this as our ‘first year’ because of all the money that was spent in the summer, but it’s important to remember that Manchester City has existed for a very long time!
“Every club has its own culture and way of thinking. When I arrived here, I realised very quickly that the culture of the club is based around hard work. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you start in life, everyone has to strive for 100 per cent and that’s the only way to be successful.
“I’ve learned that over the years, Manchester City has always stood for hard work — Manchester United is the glamorous club and Manchester City is the hard-working club for the local working people. Even with all the money at the club, the talented players we’ve brought in and our growing popularity all over the world, we still have to remember that nothing will be achieved without hard work.”
These are certainly exciting times for De Jong — in addition to playing a central role in Manchester City’s rapid rise, he can also look forward to next summer’s World Cup Finals as an established member of the Netherlands starting line-up.
Although he’ll approach the tournament with confidence, De Jong certainly isn’t prepared to make any bold predictions of impending Dutch glory. “We’ve got a strong squad and we had a very good set of qualifying games, so we’re really positive. But can we win it? It will be hard; there are a lot of great teams and great players all going for the same thing.
“Teams like Brazil, England, Spain, Germany, Italy... they’ll all be very difficult to beat. And don’t forget Argentina! They had a difficult time in qualifying but they’ve made it now and the World Cup finals is different — you can easily struggle in qualifying but then go into the tournament, improve from game to game and win it. It’s the same for France if they qualify. The truth is that nobody knows who will win the World Cup, it’s too early to say — but it should be a great tournament.”
Before that, De Jong’s priorities lie with Manchester City, and the powerful midfielder has some ominous final words for his Premier League rivals: “This is our first season together as a squad and it’s still early in our development, so our immediate target is to finish in the top four and qualify for the Champions’ League. Then we’ll be ready to really go for it next year!”
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