Bulgarian winger Petrov, who put pen to paper on his £4.7million move from Atletico Madrid on Thursday morning, and Brazilian midfielder Geovanni flanked the Manager at a lunchtime press conference to introduce the new players after City had beaten off competition from other Premier League clubs for Petrov’s signature.
Sven said: “I’m sure that a lot of clubs wanted both of them, and I’m very happy that the board and Alistair were able to get them. They will do very well for us, I’m sure about that.
“They are experienced, and it’s important that we don’t just buy players around 19 or 20 years old. In the Premier League you need class and experience, and these two are top class players. Technically they are very good, Geovanni can play on the right or as a second striker, and Martin’s left foot is very, very good.”
When asked if Petrov could be likened to Bulgarian legend Hristo Stoichkov, Sven replied: “I don’t think you can compare one player to another, he’s himself and he will have a lot of chances to show the fans what he can do. I’m very confident that he will be a very good player for us.”
City’s summer signings have all come from overseas so far, and Sven has promised more new arrivals while saying that nationality is not an issue for him.
“I don’t think we are finished signing, there will be more new faces coming in different positions, whether they are English or not I can’t say.
“I think that the new owner has shown that he means serious business when he says that he wants to build a strong team, which is not fighting at the bottom of the table but at the other end. This is one way in which he has shown that, and I’m very happy about it.”
