London - Stevan Jovetic has vowed to make an impact at Manchester City this season and silence the critics who claim his £22million move from Fiorentina last summer was a waste of money.
Jovetic, 24, made only two Premier League starts due to a succession of niggling injuries that frustrated his new club and manager Manuel Pellegrini.
There were even suggestions the gifted Montenegro forward’s issues might be psychological rather than physical or that he was suffering from homesickness. But after playing his second game on tour and scoring twice in City’s 5-1 demolition of AC Milan in Pittsburgh on Sunday, Jovetic insisted that was not the case. ‘No it wasn’t mental,’ he said.
‘There are so many good players but your head has to be right. People were saying “Jovetic is not good and they paid £20m” but I was quiet, I kept working and I knew I would show what I was capable of. I wasn’t happy, that was obvious. I didn’t play. ‘But I never said it was better to leave England. I know I’m good, I know I can play there. It was difficult but in that moment you just have to believe in yourself.’
With Alvaro Negredo ruled out for up to two months with a broken bone in his foot and Sergio Aguero struggling for fitness, City will be relying more on Jovetic. The striker, who is set to face Liverpool at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday, blames last season’s setbacks on his protracted move to England eating into his pre-season. He added: ‘This year hopefully when I have a good preparation it’s going to be a different story and they will see the real Stevan Jovetic.’
Daily Mail