The baton passes

Richard Dunne, winner of the last four Player of the Season awards, seems resigned to losing the crown this year to another Irishman:

"Stevie has been outstanding all season and I don't think anyone can touch him for what he has done since August," said Dunne, the man who has won the Blues' player of the year honours a record four times.

"I think for his age he has been sensational and could possibly be the best midfielder in the country at the moment. I just wish he played for his country too.

"The key with Stevie is to just let him play and let him enjoy himself.

"We are not really surprised how he has come through the ranks because he has always had the talent.

"It is amazing to think that he wasn't in the side at the start of the season and might even have left the club at one stage but since he got into the team he has been man of the match on countless occasions. That shows his determination and how much he wants to be part of this club moving forward.

"He is priceless. We could probably afford to buy any player in the world at the moment but you cannot put a price on him. He is a great example to others coming through the system at City."

And so the baton passes from one generation to another. Who'd have thought that of the Richards, Johnson, Onuoha, Ireland and Hart (slightly cheating, I know) generation, that Ireland would be so comfortably the best at this point?