Football News: Why did Man City buy Scott Sinclair?

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With the recent news that Manchester City winger Scott Sinclair is off to Aston Villa on loan, I just wonder how it all went so wrong for the former Swansea City winger. Prior to his big money move to Citeh, Sinclair was a flying winger at the Swans, alternating the two wide roles with Nathan Dyer and Wayne Routledge.

It does seem odd that a player who was not a definite first choice player for Swansea would be bought by a team with aspirations of Champions League glory. The thinking behind it is clear, and now Jesus Navas has taken that role of hugging the touchline and providing an out ball for Man City, though still unconvincingly.

The question is what made both the club think he was good enough and him believe he was good enough? I am sure a lot of people will assume it was just all about the money, that the lure of the oil dollar was the sole reason behind him taking the switch there, when he did have other offers on the table.

For me, I think those other offers were actually what made Sinclair think he was good enough to hold down a place in the City team. When you have a host of big clubs clamouring for your signature, it is easy to get swept along and believe them when they are telling you how great you are, in order to get you to choose them.

The problem is, Scott Sinclair was never actually all that good, he was at the level he should have been, a lower to midtable Prem team, at best. I do mean at best. At his best he is good enough for those kind of teams, but certainly not for the top echelons.

The odd thing is that Man City felt he was good enough to make an impact for them. He is quick, yes, strong, yes, decent touch and not short like the two players he was competing with in Swansea's squad. Is that enough? Clearly not, as has been shown by his inability to get even regular sub appearances at Eastlands.

So how can a club like City, with such a good scouting set up, the best money can buy, still make mistakes like this one? Surely, especially then when FFP was still to be implemented, a club with all the money they could possibly need available to spend on a player, they could find one that actually is good enough to play a regular part?

It just shows how subjective scouting still is, when a player fits the profile the manager has given them to find, it does not necessarily mean he is the right player to sign.

Written by Tris Burke January 30 2015 10:03:19