CARABAO CUP FINAL SPECIAL CITY’S LONG-HAUL TACTICS WIN IN CHINA

MANCHESTER CITY are winning more than silverware under their Middle Eastern owners – they’re winning hearts and minds, too.

Last week, City bought a stake in Chinese third-tier club Sichuan Jiuniu – their latest move into an Asian market that they’re on the brink of dominating.

Other clubs turn up in China to play tour matches in a bid to shift shirts. But according to Simon Chadwick, professor in Sports Enterprise, at Salford Business School, City are in China for the long haul.

And that could pay a very rich dividend, particularly given the ever-closer relationship between the Chinese government and oil-rich states like the UAE.

Chadwick said: “City is in the business of talent acquisition and market development – and China was an inevitable destination.

“Here is a country with a large population, a government committed to promoting football, and a market that continues to exhibit healthy growth.

“As such, China is a potential source of sustainable revenue for City, but also a place where potential future stars will be identified.”

Chadwick believes City have pulled off a masterstroke by buying far from Shanghai and Beijing.

“It is a lower league team some considerable distance away from the economic hotspots,” he said.

“It demonstrates a commitment to support the development of Chinese football as it moves across the country. It also implies that City sees the relationship as long-term, rather than opportunistic.”