Man City hand Mancini £50m for new faces
Roberto Mancini will be handed £50million to spend in January to get Manchester City's title challenge back on track.
The City hierarchy have told Mancini they will spend whatever it takes to revive the club's title hopes following Monday's 2-1 home defeat to Everton.
That result cost City the chance of going top of the table at Christmas for the first time in 81 years, and the club's mega-rich owners are determined to address the shortcomings in Mancini's squad.
Top of the City manager's list is a new striker to ease the burden on captain and leading scorer Carlos Tevez, who has now pledged his future to the club after withdrawing a transfer request.
City have scored just nine times at home in the league this season - only Birmingham and Wigan have managed fewer in the top-flight. That is why Mancini is looking at the possibility of signing two strikers next month.
Wolfsburg's £30m-rated Edin Dzeko and Porto's Brazilian forward Hulk, who would cost around £20m, are his top January targets, but the City boss is also planning a swoop for Barcelona full-back Dani Alves.
MirrorSport has learned that City representatives met with the Alves camp in a Barcelona hotel last week, with a view to bringing the Brazil World Cup star and Champions League winner to Eastlands.
Although Barca are unlikely to let Alves go next month, midway through their assault on La Liga and the Champions League, it is understood the player is keen on a move to City.
Alves is out of contract in 18 months' time and City could get him for as little as £12m next summer if he does not sign a new deal and Barca are forced to cash in on him for fear of losing him for nothing.
Despite their unrivalled spending power, City will part-fund Mancini's New Year spree by offloading a number of disaffected players, including Emmanuel Adebayor, Roque Santa Cruz, Wayne Bridge and Shaun Wright-Phillips.
The City hierarchy know they must get their spending under control to comply with UEFA's fair play regulations, which come into effect in 2012 and which set a limit on the financial losses which can be incurred by clubs wanting to play in Europe.
Under the rulings, clubs playing in Europe cannot have losses in excess of £40m over a three-year period from 2012.
City's last reported losses were £121m - a sum they will have to drastically reduce in order to comply.
Steve Bruce is looking to pull off a sensational double swoop for Manchester City pair Adam Johnson and Nedum Onuoha.
The Sunderland boss is ready to offer £6million for Onuoha, who has been on loan at the Stadium of Light this season and has proved a hit at right back and as an emergency centre half.
If he can secure a permanent deal in January for the 24-year-old defender, who has relished playing weekly first-team football on Wearside, Bruce has prepared an offer to take Sunderland-born England winger Johnson on loan for the rest of the season.
Double deal: Sunderland boss Steve Bruce wants to sign both Adam Johnson (left) and Nedum Onuoha (right)
A year ago Bruce and his chairman Niall Quinn were certain they had secured Johnson from North East rivals Middlesbrough in a £6m deal, only for City to blow them out of the water with a last-minute bid.
Cash-strapped Boro accepted City's lucrative offer, which topped £8m with its add-ons and Johnson was attracted by City's £60,000-a-week wages.
The 23-year-old made a promising start under Roberto Mancini and has won five England caps since his move, but has struggled for a regular place at Eastlands.
He has started most of City's Europa League ties, and only failed to appear in four games all season, but is growing frustrated because he has started just four Barclays Premier League games. Mancini has also been critical of the Middlesbrough Academy graduate, putting further strain on their relationship.
In demand: Adam Johnson (left) in action for Manchester City against Juventus in Turin last year
After he scored against Red Bull Salzburg earlier this month, the City manager said: 'Adam must realise he must work and keep it going. I hope he understands I say these things because I believe in him. If he works well he could be a very good player. In three or four years, when I leave City, I hope he will say, "Roberto did a good thing for me."'
Johnson may welcome the chance to move back to the North East, where his parents still live, and help Sunderland's new year push for Europe, but there are obstacles for Bruce to overcome to pull off the double deal.
Premier League clubs can only take two England-based players on loan in a season. With Manchester United striker Danny Welbeck also on loan at Sunderland, Bruce must take Onuoha full time to make another loan deal in the transfer window.
England Under 21 player Welbeck, who scored his fifth Sunderland goal in seven games in Saturday's 1-0 win over Bolton, is still part of Sir Alex Ferguson's long-term plans and Bruce knows his former boss will not sell at this point.
Only on loan: Danny Welbeck scored against Bolton last weekend but is still part of Sir Alex Ferguson's long-term plans at Manchester United
The Sunderland manager, who shares a New Year's Eve birthday with Ferguson, has joked that he will get the United boss drunk on his 50th birthday and try to secure a permanent deal for the 20- year-old, who is ineligible for the Boxing Day meeting between the two sides.
As well as persuading City to do business on both Onuoha and Johnson, Bruce will have to convince Sunderland owner Ellis Short to fund the deals and find a compromise over Johnson's wages.
Bruce is also keeping tabs on Johnson's old friend, Middlesbrough defender David Wheater, who has yet to attract a firm offer from a Premier League club.
Boro fear their former captain could leave on a free in the summer if there are no bids in January.
Newcastle are also willing to make Wheater a summer offer.
Mario Balotelli has claimed Lionel Messi is the only player better than him in the world.
And the Manchester City star has insisted his side can still win the Premier League and Europa League double this season.
The £24million Italian was awarded the Golden Boy Award for the best Under-21 player in Europe before the Eastlands defeat to Everton.
The outspoken striker has scored only two Premier League goals since his summer switch from Inter Milan - and only five overall.
But after helping his former club to the Treble last season, Super Mario insisted he deserved the award - and then set his sights on beating Messi to the full Player of the Year in the future.
“I want to be the best player in the world,” said the 20-year-old. “It is good to have ambition. I’ve said in the past that I don’t care what other people want or expect of me because I know what I want.
“I will always give everything because I want to become the best. That is my aim and I am determined to make it happen.
“I am really happy to have won the Golden Boy 2010, but who else should have won it if not me? Two years ago I finished sixth and in 2009 in fourth. Now it is my turn.
"Now my objective is to win the Ballon D’Or without age limits. To win the Golden Boy is a good omen to win the main prize. I am now a candidate for that. There is only one player who is a little stronger than me - Messi. All the others are behind me.”
Balotelli won the Golden Boy, awarded by Italian newspaper Tuttosport, ahead of Jack Wilshere - but then admitted he's never heard of the Arsenal midfielder.
“What is his name? Wil...? No, I don’t know him but the next time I play Arsenal, I will watch out for him,” he said. “Maybe I will show him the Golden Boy and remind him I have won it!”
Balotelli, who hit the post against Everton before limping off, has set twin team targets for 2011.
“I want only two things,” he continued. “The Premier League - to continue the Inter tradition that has seen me win the last three Serie A titles - and the Europa League, a trophy that I have never won and where I really see us as the favourites.”
Balotelli has never hidden his support for Milan and his former Inter team-mate Zlatan Ibrahimovic, now with the rossoneri, has repeatedly urged him to return to the San Siro.
The Manchester City striker said: “I know, I know and now I say to Ibra to continue to call me to Milan and one day I will be able to wear the red and black shirt.”
But Balotelli admitted he was devastated his 60-year-old mother Silvia had been unable to travel to Eastlands on Monday because of the winter weather.
“She should have left Linate (Milan) in the morning but her flight was cancelled because they told her Manchester airport was closed,” he explained. “I am so sorry - it really upset me.”
OTHER BOLLOX
Championship promotion-chasers Norwich have insisted that their £2m-rated striker Grant Holt is not for sale after he was linked with a number of Premier League sides including West Ham, Wigan, Bolton and Blackpool. Daily Mirror
Chelsea and Real Madrid are set to battle it out to land 20-year-old Independiente striker and Colombia international Cristian Nazarit - dubbed the South American Samuel Eto'o. talksport
West Ham are planning to make a loan move for Manchester United striker Michael Owen in the January transfer window. caughtoffside.com
Fulham manager Mark Hughes wants to sign former Manchester City midfielder Stephen Ireland, who played under the Welshman at Eastlands but has fallen out of favour at Aston Villa.Daily Mirror
Feyenoord coach Leo Beenhakker has laid into English clubs' attitudes towards signing young players after 15-year-old defender Nathan Ake agreed to leave the club for Chelsea. Daily Mail
Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka, who is out of contract in 2012, is interested in playing out his career in the United States. Daily Star
Blackburn captain Chris Samba says he wants to leave the club if the sacking of boss Sam Allardyce is a sign of how the club's new owners will run the place. The Sun
West Ham are in advanced talks with Aston Villa about taking midfielder Steve Sidwell on loan or on a permanent basis. The Sun
Liverpool, Arsenal and Fulham are all in the hunt for 17-year-old Southampton midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, the son of former Stoke and England winger Mark Chamberlain. Daily Mail
Manchester United's owners - the Glazer family - will sell the club according to a director at Old Trafford, with the Qatar royal family targeting a £1.5bn deal for the Red Devils. the Sun
Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has been earmarked as an England manager of the future and is set to be offered the chance to work with one of England's youth teams and then be given the chance to work his way up through the ranks. Daily Mirror
Tottenham defender Jonathan Woodgate is on course to make a shock first-team return after making a successful comeback in training following 13 months out. talksport.co.uk
Richard Dunne's Aston Villa career has hit a new low after being told he is now the club's fourth-choice centre-back. Daily Mirror
Villa boss Gerard Houllier could let as many as nine players go, including the likes of Stephen Warnock and John Carew, in a major squad overhaul. Guardian
Wolves winger Michael Kightly's return after a year out injured has been delayed by a new knee problem. Daily Star
Rafa Benitez's six-month reign as Inter Milan coach will come to an end on Wednesday after he had his contract terminated by the European champions on Tuesday night. Guardian
Former Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce admits he cannot get his mind off being sacked, but would consider a move abroad for his next job if necessary. Daily Mirror
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