Fabian Delph: What challenges await at Man City?

After all the drama of Fabian Delph’s move from Aston Villa to Manchester City last week, attention is already turning to what the future holds for him at the Etihad Stadium.

Delph agreed personal terms and passed his medical at City on Friday after they triggered the £8m release clause in his contract following a dramatic transfer saga.

Nick Wright looks at three of the challenges the 25-year-old must overcome if he is to succeed at his new club...

Silence his critics

Delph’s remarkable U-turn on joining City came less than a week after he released a statement pledging to stay at Villa Park - and just a few months after he signed a new long-term contract at the club.

The manner of their captain’s departure sparked a furious reaction from Aston Villa supporters, but his former manager Paul Lambert insists Delph deserves credit for ensuring Villa received a transfer fee by signing the new contract last season.

“All credit to Fabian,” Lambert told Sky Sports News HQ. “He actually signed the contract and he got Aston Villa £8milliion, when he could have gone for nothing at the end of the season.

“You owe it to yourself to play at that level and he’s given himself the opportunity to do that, but he’s also done great by Aston Villa by signing the contract when he did and getting them the money.”

But while his former manager insists he doesn’t deserve the criticism, Delph faces a major battle to silence his critics. It is one he must embrace if he is to make his move a success.

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Buck the trend?

To say English players don’t get a fair chance at City is slightly unfair given the important roles played by the likes of Joe Hart, James Milner and Joleon Lescott in recent years, but the struggles of Scott Sinclair and Jack Rodwell are nonetheless impossible to ignore.

The pair made just a handful of starts between them after joining City in the summer of 2012 before leaving for Villa and Sunderland respectively, and Delph’s critics are already placing him in the same bracket.

But Delph’s circumstances are rather different. The injury-prone Rodwell was just 21 when he made his move from Everton, while former Swansea man Sinclair had less than two years of Premier League experience under his belt.

Delph, by contrast, is already 25 and a fully fledged England international. The competition for places will be fierce at City, but Delph’s experience will serve him well in his new surroundings.

Win his place

Fernandinho and Fernando are the two City players Delph will be most closely competing with for a starting spot at City, and the stats suggest he could offer something different.

Delph would add considerable energy and dynamism to City’s central midfield. According to Premier League tracking data, the former Leeds midfielder covered an average of 10.78km per game for Villa last season, more than any of his new team-mates. Indeed, both Fernandinho and Fernando averaged under 9.5km per game, while his nearest competitor at City was Pablo Zabaleta on 10.32km.

But Delph is a solid all-rounder, and he is also adept with the ball at his feet. While his pass accuracy of 85.2 per cent is slightly lower than City’s central midfielders, Delph created 36 chances compared to Fernandinho’s 30 and Fernando’s 13. In fact, he also created more chances than the more advanced Yaya Toure.

So, while Delph is unlikely to walk straight into City’s starting line-up, suggestions that he will simply be warming the bench could be wide of the mark.