Sunday 28th May 1994
Manchester
A week had gone since Gabriel was kicked off of the Manchester City academy. He'd just woken up; it was one o'clock in the afternoon. Hearing the doorbell, he hastily slipped into some trousers on the floor and a shirt he'd worn the night before and made his way downstairs.
"Oh, hi Julia." It was his girlfriend- they'd had a sticky patch since he was dropped from the team.
"God, you don't look so good."
"Oh I know, I still can't get over it. Just don't know what to do."
"Well, I don't know what there is you can do." she sympathised. "Sit down, I've got something I need to talk to you about."
"Okay." Gabriel yawned, bewildered but not too concerned.
Julia eyed him. "Gabriel, I'm pregnant."
"What?"
"And you're the father."
Wednesday 8th July 2011
City of Manchester Stadium
"Good morning, everyone." Garry Cook said as he sat down to address the crowd of eager sports reporters and journalists awaiting Gabriel's entrance. "At this press conference, I'm delighted to announce that Gabriel Sutton will be the new manager of Manchester City football club. As a board, we've decided to give him a 3-year contract, with just over £40 million transfer budget this summer with the aim of challenging for the Premiership title in mind. We felt that his ambitions and long-term plans for the club matched our own and we look forward to working with him. So, here he is to answer any questions you may have... Gabriel Sutton!"
The name was greeted by applause from all journalists, and Garry Cook included, as he made his way behind the table. "Hello, thanks to everyone for coming. Yes, you."
"Andy Lyons, When Saturday Comes. Good morning, Gabriel. After quite a long wait and some saddening news regarding the Italian National Team manager, how do you feel about bringing the situation to an end now and being appointed manager of the club?"
"Oh, I'm delighted. Of course I had a lot of respect for Mr Prandelli, I'm sure it's a mutual feeling of sadness across the football world to see someone like that leave us, and I have a lot of respect for Roberto Mancini for taking that job in what were very difficult circumstances, when he was doing very well at Manchester City. So, it can't have been an easy decision, but I take my hat off to him for that. As for my job here, as far as I'm concerned, and as far as the board is concerned, this is very much a long-term project for me. I think with the great financial clout we have at the club, I can help this team soar to new heights."
"Dan Walker, BBC Sport. Given that many supporters will have been hoping for someone like Mourinho to get the job, and that you've only recently retired from playing- tinged with being happy to be appointed, do you feel a degree of pressure to prove yourself to the fans?"
"Of course, but none more than usual. In football there's always pressure and you're constantly under scrutiny- you have to be very focused and very dedicated. I'm someone that thrives on pressure- I've proved that time and again in my playing days which I think is something Mr Cook noticed in me- I will give 100% to this team. So yes, of course there will be pressure, I'd expect nothing less, but I believe that I'm more than capable of handling it adequately- hopefully we can start the season with a run of wins to put the issue to bed."
"Neil Downes, the Guardian. With Mario Balotelli transfer listed after a training ground bust up with Roberto Mancini a few weeks ago, can he expect to get any first-team football at Manchester City under your management?"
"Absolutely not. From what Mancini has come out and said I thought that Balotelli was being extremely disrespectful to a manager of Roberto's quality. As far as I'm concerned, if any player in my team doesn't work hard, shows a bad attitude or is disrespectful on a consistant basis, then I can't work with them. It's as simple as that. I think the difference between where we are as a club now, and what teams like Manchester United have done is having that mental strength, that winning mentality to keep going until the end to get those extra two points if we're drawing, that never-say-die attitude, teamwork and perseverance. If players don't have that, then that's going to really hinder our progress in getting to where we all want to be. Afterall, all players, especially at Manchester City get paid so highly, and they have a job that most teenage boys would practically kill for, they should at least put in 100% every match. That's what I'm looking for, and, despite being exceptionally talented, I don't think Mario Balotelli has that."
"David Hall, FourFourTwo magazine. What kind of tactics can we expect to see from your side under the new regime?"
"Hi David. Big fan of FourFourTwo, by the way! The way I see it, football is about entertainment. We could adopt the strategy of tackling hard and hoofing the ball up- the way of playing that I believed in before an exchange trip to Barcelona. Now, I just don't think that that approach would be fair on the fans who have stuck loyally with the team through over 30 years of being aweful, who have paid over £1,000 for a season ticket plus potentially more for European games in this tough economic climate- the very least they deserve is a performance week in, week out, that's enjoyable to watch. The very least. Not only that, but I also think that attractive, one touch football would be our best chance of winnig games with some very talented ball players in the team. So in a nutshell, I want to get us playing some good football.
Bearing this in mind, I discovered this style of football called 'tiki-taka' when I went to Barcelona, which is essentially, pass and move. What I want is for the opposition players closing down to be so far away from the ball by the time they reach that player that they need a sat-nav. Alongside this, I'm looking for the players to pass the ball around in triangles at a high tempo, within a fluid system to outnumber the opponents wherever the ball is. I will be instructing James Milner and Yaya Toure to close down quickly in midfield so that we are in possession more often than not."
"James Barlow, Manchester City magazine and website editor. Gabriel, what do you feel are your long-term plans for the club?"
"Now, I'm glad you asked me that, James. I feel that this is very much a long-term project for me, as a relatively young manager, (I like to think!) I intend to stay at the club until the pope goes to the synagogue! (*laughs*). Seriously speaking, what I'm very excited about for taking this job is the current age of the squad- we have a lot of players who are about 24, and can play at the top level for the next 6 or 7 years. Whereas Chelsea are in a bit of a transitional state at the moment with an aging squad, and Manchester United have a team of players who are either over 30 and gradually losing their fitness or about 20 and far too inexperienced- like de Gea and Phil Jones. We've got players with the perfect balance. What I'm looking to do now, is bring in some of the best teenagers in the world, so that in five years time, when the current crop are thinking about retiring or want to leave for first team football, I can gradually fade them out and integrate the new blood. If I can sign some of the best wonderkids in the world in the next two or three years, by the time I'm nearly finished with some of the current first team players, I'll have a team of the best players in the world playing at the peak of their careers. I hope that the fans will understand that this kind of progress won't happen overnight, but we are in a fantastic position to begin to do so, and the more trophies we win, the higher we'll be ranked in the scheme of world football, the better quality player's we'll be able to attract, the more trophies we'll win and so forth. It'll be tough, but I'm someone that relishes challenges and have never looked forward to any, more than this one right now."
Garry Cook interjected: "Right, thanks for coming down, everyone. That's all we have time for today."
