Hughes tips Santa Cruz to be one of City's heroes

Published on Tuesday 29 September 2009 23:37

MARK Hughes is confident Roque Santa Cruz will become one of Manchester City's unsung heroes.

Amid a summer of big spending on high-profile stars, Santa Cruz's arrival from Blackburn slipped under the radar somewhat. At 17million, the South American was not exactly cheap. But at the time, all the talk was of Carlos Tevez, with Emmanuel Adebayor's 25m arrival overshadowing Santa Cruz's recovery from knee surgery.

Yet the same general opinions could also have been reached about Craig Bellamy's switch from West Ham in January and the Welshman has gone on to be one of the early-season stars in City's excellent start.

And, after he made his debut in the victory over the Hammers on Monday night, Hughes is looking for Santa Cruz to go on and make a similar impact.

"Certainly there were a few eyebrows raised when I brought Craig to the club," recalled Hughes. "People doubted him and his ability. I certainly didn't because I knew what I was getting.

"It will be the same with Roque. I know the talent he has. I know the attributes he has and I know what kind of guy he is.

"He is a driven guy. He is ambitious and he wants to win. The challenge is there, not just for him and Craig, but everybody in the squad."

It is a challenge Santa Cruz is now looking forward to taking up.

The Paraguayan struggled with injury in his final months at Blackburn and those problems resurfaced in the early days of pre-season training at City. Santa Cruz was tempted to play on through the pain, so desperate was he to make an impact at his new club.

However, wiser counsel prevailed, even though he freely admits he is not the ideal patient.

"I always try to push things," he said. "Sometimes the physios have to stop you doing silly things. You always want to be on the pitch playing, no matter how painful it is, especially having come to a new club. In that sense it has been very helpful to have people around. You need to listen and not rush things."

Santa Cruz's desperation is understandable.

As the weeks have dragged on and City have begun in such impressive fashion, his impatience to get involved has increased.

"It has been frustrating," he said. "It is hard for a player not to be involved when the season starts, especially when you are new into the club. At the same time I have been very pleased watching the players perform.

"I think we deserve to be where we are in the table because of the hard work we have been doing and the fantastic way we have started the season."

Although Robinho will be out for a further three weeks with an ankle injury, Santa Cruz's recovery does present Hughes with an even greater selection headache than the one he has already.

Bellamy can hardly be left out on present form, while Tevez's double last night confirmed his present status.

Unless tomorrow's improper conduct hearing brings bad news, Adebayor will be available for next Monday's trip to Aston Villa.