The Rambling view from the City perspective

City are taking a lot of flak for signing De Jong in the January transfer window when he had an out clause in the summer for approximately one tenth of the transfer price.

A couple of comments on this. First value is defined by the need that you have for an item not the perceived value.

This is true for all goods and services. City need a defensive midfielder now. Not for the start of next season. The club has had great difficulty in finding a defensive midfielder, especially in the Premier League.

Second there is no guarantee that De Jong would sign for City in the summer. An established Dutch international available for a small fee would attract significant interest from major clubs in Spain and Italy and quite possibly the Premier League. The sort of business Harry Redknapp might do, although I'm sure Martin Jol would be loathe to have a player move to Spurs.

And third, the signing of a defensive midfielder is crucial in this transfer window because it also allows Vincent Kompany to move into the back four, essentially two transfers for the price of one.

This is not, as has been portrayed in the press, a poor decision. On the contrary this is using our new found wealth wisely to leverage the arrival of a proven international while others would have waited.

We get the player we need, at the position we need, and also solve a second issue.

As always I welcome your feedback at wallace.poulter@gmail.com