Well don’t forget, it was Gary Cook who said that “Richard Dunne doesn’t roll off the tongue in Beijing”… Hughes was most likely as much of a cog in the machinery of this bullshit carpet ride they’re all on as Ranieri was in his last season at the Bridge once Abramovich came in. And given the season Dunne had just had at Eastlands last year, he hadn’t shown much of a case for retention on the pitch if the marketing men wanted him to be shown the door in favour of someone sexier – like Lescott.

Having said that, something must have been awry between Dunne and Hughes given that the former had been such a rock for Citeh under Keegan and Sven, then had an extremely wobbly season under Hughes – transitionary period bedamned, City live in a perpetual transitionary period – while still doing well for Ireland, and is now back in imperious form at Villa.

I look forward to seeing what Simon Hattenstone has to say about it all in the Guardian…

via Hughes oot, Mancini in – Forums.