Spending spree has made City hated says Barry

Gareth Barry fears Manchester City are becoming the Premier League’s most despised club after using their vast wealth to muscle into the top four.

Barry, currently on England duty for Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier against Belarus at Wembley, was one of several big-money arrivals at City during the close-season as boss Mark Hughes – backed by the club’s Arab owners – splashed out over 120 million pounds on new players.

Hughes’s spending spree has paid immediate dividends as Barry, Emmanuel Adebayor, Kolo Toure and Carlos Tevez have helped City to fourth in the Premier League.

But Barry knows that the downside of buying success is the inevitable jealousy from rivals clubs and fans who don’t have City’s financial power.

“A lot of money has been ploughed into the club and people on the outside may enjoy seeing us fail rather than go on and achieve something this season,” Barry said.

I’m sure that’s where the views are coming from but as a unit I’m sure that can help us and make us stronger.

“There was a year or so it happened with Chelsea and then it blows over. The whole club at City expected it.

“The manager has made the point to us. We’ve tried to use it to help us, to bring us together and to work harder on the pitch. We’ve made a good start and hopefully we can keep that going.”

Barry has more immediate concerns than any criticism of City as he waits to discover if he has regained his England place for the team’s final qualifier.

The former Aston Villa midfielder lost his holding position to Manchester United’s Michael Carrick in Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Ukraine after being a regular throughout the qualifying campaign.

Barry is refusing to panic over his ommision because he believes he is playing well for club and country.

“You’re always on your toes and you never expect to be in the starting line-up,” he said. “I didn’t drop my head. Maybe if I was a few years younger or a bit less experienced I might have done. But it was something I wasn’t too worried about.

“In terms of England the whole team has been playing well and we’ve qualified. In terms of my Man City form we’ve started the season well too. So I’m not too worried about my own form.

“I didn’t get an explanation from the manager, but I wouldn’t expect one. As a player you always respect the manager.

“The World Cup is still a long way away and it is down to be to make sure I stay in the squad and the World Cup team. So I am not reading too much into one game.

“There is rivalry (for places) everywhere, but there is still a long way to go.”