Surprise star voted best player.

Manchester City midfielder, Stephen Ireland, has been named the club’s player of the year beating a whole host of bigger names to the club’s highest accolade. Ireland has developed tremendously as a player this season and the award is just what he deserves for having the ability to break through a growing squad filled with bigger names than himself.

City are improving as a club all the time and the financial power the club holds is now public knowledge. The point is that taking this all into account makes what Ireland has done even more impressive. Robinho arrived at the club for big money and Ireland, a youth product, has been deemed as a better player over this season.

However, the good news also brings with it a heavy element of bad news. Ireland’s representatives have so far been unable to strike a deal with the club over a new contract for their best player. The terms of what can’t be agreed on are not known but this is a player that the club need to get to commit if they are going to develop further.

Ireland’s demands are apparently relatively modest considering the wealth of the club and if his requested wages is the main issue then the club need to stop stalling and offer a ‘whatever you like’ type agreement or risk losing a player that has held together a side that has been consistently uncertain of itself this year.

Ireland has the same character as Steven Gerrard of Liverpool. He can drop off and link up with the defence, play off the front man and create space for other players or play out wide and cause headaches to opposition left backs. He also runs his socks off for entire games and never complains when something negative is written about him or when the manager unduly subs him off of the pitch.

The fact that the players in second and third place for player of the yea are both defenders shows that City need much more of an attacking emphasis next season. No doubt this will be reflected in the way they act in the transfer market, but goals, goals and more goals are the only way City will progress and start winning things.

It is also a valid point to make that until they do actually start winning things, they will not actually be able to attract the high calibre players they would like. Although Robinho joined for lucrative wages, the club have failed in a bid to sign Kaka from AC Milan and Barcelona wouldn’t even talk about Lionel Messi, they probably thought it was an insult.

So praise where praise is due, well done to Ireland for a successful season in which he has shown what he can do. City need to bear in mind that sometimes they will have to look a lot closer to home in order to find the players that are going to make a real impact. It is refreshing to see someone who hasn’t been bought for millions or swayed to the club by cash as the person who is getting their biggest award of the year.