Joe Hart has claimed he wants to stay with City for the rest of his career.
The England goalkeeper has been in stunning form this season and in an interview with the DSSC, he has professed a desire to remain at the Etihad until he hangs his gloves up.
Ian Ladyman writes: “In a week when the restlessness of some young English talent has never been more apparent, the country’s most eminent goalkeeper has a message reassuring not only for supporters of his club but also those fearing for the sanity of our national sport.
‘I’m very, very happy where I am and I can’t see that changing,” said Hart. ‘As long as Man City want me, I will always be at Man City. I love playing here and I want it to continue. I want to give them everything. When I am in Man City mode I give my whole body and whole life for the club.’
“Asked if that was one of his best saves, he said: ‘Yeah, I usually can’t tell but I did with that one. I thought, “Wow”. ‘I knew I wasn’t close enough to the post to put the ball round it so I knew I had to go over. I timed it well enough.’”
Meanwhile the Manchester Evening News suggest one of the Blues’ most promising talents could be set to make his first-team bow this weekend.
The report reads: “Kelechi Iheanacho could make his senior Manchester City debut on Sunday.
“The young Nigerian was expected to join up with his international team-mates earlier this month, but will now not do so until after the Southampton game.
“Manuel Pellegrini rates the striker highly and an end-of-season game with nothing resting on it for the hosts would be a perfect opportunity to give him some minutes.
“A first competitive appearance for the Blues would cap an eventful year for Iheanacho.
“The 18-year-old first caught the eye on City's 2014 summer tour. A few appearances in the US for the Blues was enough for Pellegrini to call him ‘a very important player for us in the future.’
‘It depends on the way he takes this profession, but I think he’s a good talent,’ he added.”
Check in later for the press conference and all the latest team news from the boss.
Finally today, Sky Sports pay tribute to Frank Lampard who play his final game for City on Sunday, leaving behind a legion of new admirers in the process.
Report Sky: “Even in his final Premier League season in which he has been a bit-part player at Manchester City, his goal-scoring ability has been evident. In fact, Lampard boasts the best minutes-per-goal record of any Premier League midfielder to score five or more this season.
“He now departs for New York City and what some will regard as semi-retirement. But this is the player that never stops in the city that never sleeps - his professionalism is certain to be a feature of his time there. From West Ham to Man City, Frank Lampard simply doesn’t know any other way.”
Manchester City are firm favourites to land Liverpool contract rebel Raheem Sterling, with the forward ready to snub interest from abroad to stay in the Premier League, sources have told ESPN FC.
Sterling's long-term future at Anfield has been the subject of intense speculation again this week with reports emerging that he was planning to inform Liverpool of his wish to leave at planned talks on Friday. ESPN FC reported last month that Sterling was prepared to reject any contract offer from Liverpool this summer as he sought a move elsewhere.
However, those planned contract talks have now been cancelled by the club over comments attributed to the player's agent, Aidy Ward, in the London Evening Standard.
England international Sterling, who still has two years to run on his deal at Anfield, has already turned down a £100,000-per-week contract to alert a host of clubs in the Premier League and across Europe.
However, sources say Liverpool's position is unchanged and they are not prepared to sell Sterling this summer.
The likes of Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United are all monitoring Sterling's situation and are ready to test Liverpool's resolve to keep hold of the 20-year-old.
Sources have told ESPN FC that Liverpool have already rejected an enquiry from Manchester United about the player's availability and it looks highly unlikely they would sell one of their prize-assets to their biggest domestic rivals.
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is an admirer of Sterling and has refused to rule out a move for the forward, but they are unlikely to be able to compete with City or Chelsea in a potential bidding war.
Liverpool remain hopeful that a compromise can be reached in the contract stand-off to keep Sterling at Anfield, but if they are unable to make a breakthrough in negotiations in the summer they may have to decide to cash in on the speedy attacker rather than keep an unhappy player whose transfer value will only go down if the situation drags on.
Liverpool would prefer to sell Sterling abroad if they had to let him leave, but sources say Sterling has no plans to go overseas at this stage of his career despite interest from Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.
City are ready to test Liverpool's resolve to keep Sterling with a firm bid as soon as the season is finished and they feel they can offer the player the stage to be challenging for trophies and playing in the Champions League on a regular basis.
ESPN FC has been told that City's hierarchy are huge admirers of Sterling's talents and feel his arrival would put down a major marker for their ambitions next season.
City would also be well-placed to pay big for Sterling due to the expected relaxation of the financial fair play rules (FFP), which hindered their efforts to make marquee signings last season.
James Milner is on his way to Liverpool at the end of the season, report the Mirror. Brendan Rodgers is said to be open to offers for Lucas Leica as he is confident that the Manchester City midfielder is going to Anfield.
City have not received a bid for Yaya Toure, although Inter are still confident they will sign the player this summer according to the Times. Toure's agent has admitted the midfielder is "90 per cent certain" to leave.
From the BBC, Rafa Benitez is in talks to become the next manager of Real Madrid . Carlo Ancelotti is expected to leave after the final game of the season, freeing up another manager who may have eyes on City.
Man City's Kelechi Iheanacho could make debut against Southampton
The striker has not yet joined up with Nigeria for the Under-20 World Cup and could feature for Manchester City on Sunday.
Kelechi Iheanacho could make his senior Manchester City debut on Sunday.
The young Nigerian was expected to join up with his international team-mates earlier this month, but will now not do so until after the Southampton game.
Manuel Pellegrini rates the striker highly and an end-of-season game with nothing resting on it for the hosts would be a perfect opportunity to give him some minutes.
A first competitive appearance for the Blues would cap an eventful year for Iheanacho.
The 18-year-old first caught the eye on City's 2014 summer tour. A few appearances in the US for the Blues was enough for Pellegrini to call him "a very important player for us in the future".
"It depends on the way he takes this profession, but I think he’s a good talent," he added.
Jose Pozo is the only EDS player to have played for the first team this season.
Problems with work permits and injuries delayed his impact at the club, but Iheanacho has shown signs of his potential in recent months.
He scored in the first ten minutes of the second leg of the FA Youth Cup final, and his goal against Porto won the Premier League International Cup for City EDS.
Pellegrini has been a noticeable presence at youth team games lately, something which cannot be said for the whole season.
And those close to the player have played down the chance of him going out on loan, suggesting he could be included in the manager's first team planning for the next campaign as City look to reclaim the Premier League title.
A representative said last week: "Manchester City will not send him on loan. Plan A, B and C is for him to remain with the club next season."
Along with Blues defender Chidiebere Nwakali, Iheanacho has been named in the Nigeria squad for the Under-20 World Cup in New Zealand, with their first game coming against Brazil on June 1.
The teenager was originally planned to meet up with his international team-mates for a training camp in Germany, but will now fly straight to New Zealand.
Being included by Pellegrini against Southampton would complete a dream for the striker.
"I hope he sees good qualities in me and I hope I will be in the first team soon." he told M.E.N Sport this month.
Meanwhile, the Blues will head off for a whistle-stop tour of North America next week.
The squad will play games in Toronto and Houston on consecutive days and then stop off in New York before heading home.
City's Kean Bryan in action this season.
Midfielder Kean Bryan will have been among the young players hoping to be involved, but an injury picked up against Southampton U21s has set him back.
The Under-19s captain tweeted on Wednesday: "Grade 3 ligament tear in my ankle, absolutely gutted .. Nothing worse. Whole summer ruined."
Manchester City anniversary a chance to reflect on club's rise
Joshua Parlby is not a name that comes up in Manchester conversations very regularly, but his part in Manchester City's history should be recognised here on this Thursday. For the club that has just sealed a second place finish in the Premier League was admitted to the Football League on this day in 1894. On a day of some excitement in Manchester, not only did the city gain a football league club for the first time, it welcomed the reigning monarch Queen Victoria to the city to open the newly completed Manchester Ship Canal.
Trade -- and indeed football -- in the city would never be quite the same again.
City took another 43 years to win their first title and were promptly relegated the following year, beginning a tale of slapstick inconsistency that gave birth to many a wicked title attached to the fumbling exploits of the sky blues. Relatively modern times have seen the club slide from one level to another, even scraping the barrel of the third-tier in English football in 1999. From that particularly turbulent episode, the club gained nicknames like Typical City that have stuck to the club over the years and which it is trying so hard to shed in the modern era.
Arsenal's failure to score against Sunderland in their penultimate league game this week marked not only salvation for the North East club but also made it impossible for the Londoners to pass City in second place. Thus the Blues have now secured third, first, second, first and second place finishes in the last five years, making them the Premier League's most consistent performers so far this decade.
Just let that sink in for a moment -- the league's most consistent performers over the last five years.
To some this may smack of small beans, but to those who have supported a club well-schooled in not only surprising its supporters at every turn, but also managing to secure defeat from the jaws of victory more often than anyone cares to remember, this is quite a feat. The intrinsically quirky nature of this grand old club is thus beginning to change, more slowly maybe than the outer -- more obvious - visual effects, but nevertheless, changing.
Hardly surprising that this deep-rooted inconsistency is beginning to leave the scene, I hear you say. The club's massive investment in talent and infrastructure has catapulted it into a small, gilded European elite. Whether the powers that be like it or not, Manchester City have joined the greats of Germany, Italy, France, Portugal and Spain in a tiny group of elite clubs that will -- for the foreseeable future -- fight it out among themselves for the game's top prizes.
Unlike past decades, since 2010 Manchester City have been consistently finishing near or at the top of the Premier League.
While UEFA president Michel Platini and his cronies in Zurich battle to find an acceptable FFP template that does not crucify the well-intentioned and give a leg-up to the tired old money of Europe, it cannot be denied that City have been fortunate to be one of the last to crawl under the spikes before the portcullis came crashing down. With a multi-million pound squad, gleaming stadium and regular Champions League participation, the Manchester City that gained entry to the football league exactly 121 years ago in an upstairs room of the Old Boar Inn on Withey Grove, now looks fit for modern purpose.
Without the incredible power of persuasion of Parlby, City, a club then with neither a full playing staff nor the finances to glean one, might not be where they are today.
The vagaries of history, the subtle touches of Mother Fate that have pushed and pulled the club from triumph to disaster and from delight to despair seem now to consider it the right moment to let the club drift gently into a new era. "Drift", however, is possibly a word that undervalues what has happened to City in the last ten years.
The club has grown spectacularly from the unstable initial investment of Thai tycoon Thaksin Shinawatra to the prime example of modern football finance that we see before us. The old elite may huff and puff at this newcomer to the top table, but it cannot be denied that Manchester City have been around in one shape or another for an extremely long time, have been winning trophies longer than most of today's rivals and have every right to now count themselves among the modern game's movers and shakers.
Proof of that comes from noted Manchester City author and historian, Gary James: "Manchester City won a trophy four years before Manchester United, 26 years before Arsenal and 51 years before Chelsea. They won the FA Cup 61 years before Liverpool and were the first English club to win a domestic and European trophy in the same season."
That City are at this point of evolution and can do so, is down to the weird and wonderful combination of the modern day largesse of club owner Sheikh Mansour, whose generosity has built a new kingdom in Manchester to rival the game's greatest names and to Mr Joshua Parlby, a moustachioed, round-faced businessman from a bygone time, whose perspicacity and powers of persuasion brought Ardwick Association Football Club to the attention of the Football League, thus beginning a long and eventful journey to where the club stands today.
Liverpool have pulled the plug on Friday's showdown talks with Raheem Sterling's agent.
Mirror Sport understands sources within the club have cancelled the planned meeting after comments made by his representative Aidy Ward, outlining their agenda for the meeting.
The England star's future at Anfield is in major doubt, but the Reds remain bullish about their chances of keeping him for the remaining two years on his current deal.
Premier League rivals Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City have all been linked with a move for Sterling.
Barcelona plan to make a £50m-plus bid for 24-year-old Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey in the summer despite their transfer embargo. (Sun)
Manchester United are ready to exploit Bastian Schweinsteiger's contract stand-off with Bayern Munich by making a move for the 30-year-old Germany midfielder. (Telegraph)
Italian champions Juventus are considering a £25m bid for Tottenham's 23-year-old forward Erik Lamela. (Daily Mail)
Liverpool are willing to listen to offers for midfielder Lucas Leiva, 28, who has been linked with Inter Milan, because England international James Milner, 29, is on his way from Manchester City as a free agent. (Daily Mirror)
Striker Emmanuel Adebayor, 31, could have played his last game for Tottenham after being given compassionate leave for the second time this season. (The Times)
Brazil defender Dani Alves, 32, is set to leave Barcelona at the end of the season after failing to agree a new contract with the Spanish club. (Sport)
Steve McClaren is set to be dismissed as Derby County manager and is expected to be replaced by Real Madrid coach Paul Clement. (Telegraph)
Robert Huth, 30, is moving closer to a permanent move to Leicester City after Stoke City confirmed the signing of fellow defender Philipp Wollscheid, 26, on a three-year deal. (Daily Express)
Hearts are set to sign Queen of the South striker Gavin Reilly, 22. (Daily Record)
Former West Ham defender Slaven Bilic will leave Turkish side Besiktas at the end of the season, increasing speculation that he may replace Sam Allardyce as manager at Upton Park. (Guardian)
England Under-21 coach Gareth Southgate has tried to reassure Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino that he will take care of striker Harry Kane at this summer's Under-21s European Championship. (Sun)
Dick Advocaat has been offered the Sunderland manager's job on a permanent basis after saving them from relegation while on a short-term deal to the end of the season. (Daily Mirror)
But the Dutchman is set to turn the Black Cats down due to his family being in the Netherlands. (Independent)
Newcastle are ready to make a new move for Derby County manager Steve McClaren with the Rams set to approach Real Madrid assistant Paul Clement. (Independent)
Newcastle United manager John Carver does not know if the club's owner Mike Ashley will be at St James' Park on Sunday to see the Magpies attempt to stay in the Premier League. (Guardian)
Sunderland are set to make a £5m move for Celtic's Israeli midfielder Nir Biton, 23. (Daily Record)
West Ham's players have been given five days off before they travel to face Newcastle on the final day of the season on Sunday. (The Times)
Arsenal's 34-year-old midfielder Tomas Rosicky's chances of being handed a new contract have been boosted by the impending £10m signing of Chelsea goalkeeper and Czech compatriot Petr Cech, 33. (Daily Star)
Manchester United seem prepared to let defender Jonny Evans, 27, leave this summer and Tottenham will compete with Everton for the defender. (Manchester Evening News)
Former Liverpool midfielder Jan Molby believes his old club should sell forward Raheem Sterling, 20. (Liverpool Echo)
Swansea City have offered goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski, 30, a new contract as they look to fend off impending interest from Premier League rivals. (Wales online)
Manchester United's on-loan striker Radamel Falcao tweeted a photo of his new haircut with the enigmatic comment: "Changes are never easy, but there are moments when you have to do it."
Tottenham striker Harry Kane tweeted a clip from his appearance on The Clare Balding Show, saying he feels the pressure of being in everyone's fantasy football team.
There was plenty of support on Twitter for new England call-ups QPR striker Charlie Austin, Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy and Burnley goalkeeper Tom Heaton. QPR midfielder Alejandro Faurlin tweeted: "Massive congrats to Charlie Austin, really happy for you! Fully deserved! Hard work dedication top pro top lad!!! Enjoy this precious moment pal!"
Team-mate Joey Barton tweeted: "Great news for Charlie Austin. Couldn't have happened to a better lad. Will score at any level. Also good to see Jamie Vardy and Tom Heaton in there. Good to see Roy picking players from the less fashionable clubs."
Crystal Palace's Yannick Bolaise tweeted: "Fair play to Jamie Vardy from the bottom to an England call-up #lovedat great story. Also big up to Charlie Austin."
An Inter Milan fan did not see the funny side of Alvaro Morata's goal celebration when the Juventus striker used the supporter's sunglasses after they fell on the side of the pitch. (Daily Star)
