Dickov confident the future's blue

Man City legend reflects on club's transformation and predicts more history for Guardiola's men

"I would get nowhere near this team!" Paul Dickov gleefully admits when asked if wishes he had plied his trade for Manchester City during the Pep Guardiola era. "I would be alright with Pep's pressing, but just don't give me the ball!"

While he never quite managed Erling Haaland's strike rate, Dickov remains a bona-fide cult hero with the City faithful, mostly thanks to a last-gasp goal in a Wembley playoff that helped the club gain promotion from England's third tier in 1999.

How times have changed. Fast-forward to 2023, and Dickov is a Man City ambassador, fronting a just-concluded Treble Trophy Tour around China, and the Abu Dhabi-owned club is more concerned with building dynasties than beating the drop. And while City has gone through a whirlwind transformation from perennial underachiever to reigning European champion, Dickov stresses the club has never forgotten its roots.

"It's in a different stratosphere now, but I have arguments with people all the time about this. The owners have done a fantastic job and they really do make a conscious effort to keep the history there," Dickov told China Daily last weekend at the end of a two-week-long trophy tour that visited fans in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Zhengzhou, Tianjin and Beijing.

"There are still so many people who worked at (City's old stadium) Maine Road in 1996 that are still there. People like Danny Wilson who worked in the ticket office, who is now more or less on the board. Clare Marsden is still player liaison officer. Club legends like Mike Summerbee and Joe Corrigan. They have made sure to keep the heart and soul of the club intact and that connection with the fans is still there."