Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli hoping to avoid knee operation by having treatment in America
Manchester City have sent Mario Balotelli to a Vermont-based knee conditioning specialist in an attempt to resolve the injury that has forced the Italian forward to miss three months of the season.
Balotelli, who underwent surgery on a damaged meniscus cartilage in September, is due to spend another week at Bill Knowles’s remote Killington Medical Clinic having flown to the United States last Friday.
Knowles, described on the clinic’s website as having “helped professional and Olympic level athletes recover from season-ending and career-threatening injuries”, has also worked with Manchester United and Chelsea, as well as overseeing the rehabilitation of England rugby players Jonny Wilkinson, Charlie Hodgson, Richard Hill and Austin Healey following knee injuries.
Balotelli has not played for City since scoring a hat-trick in the 4-0 victory against Aston Villa on Dec 28 and, although manager Roberto Mancini remains hopeful that the 20 year-old will be fit to face Manchester United at Old Trafford on Feb 12, surgery has not been ruled out and a decision on the next step is likely to be made once he returns from Vermont a week on Friday.
“Mario has gone to Vermont,” Mancini said. “He’s gone out there to work and to improve his knee.
"The surgeon has said he doesn’t need the operation and I hope that he doesn’t need an operation. But if he does, it will be a problem for us
Gregory van der Wiel watched by four-man Manchester City delegation as pursuit steps up
Manchester City are stepping up interest in Dutch right-back Gregory van der Wiel.
The Ajax defender has been watched by City for more than a year but technical director Mike Rigg led a four-man City delegation to watch Van der Wiel during Wednesday's 2-0 win over Feyenoord.
The 22-year-old, who is a close friend of Nigel de Jong, is under contract until 2013 and has a fixed price of £17m written into his deal.
He has also attracted interest from Chelsea, Arsenal and Inter Milan.
OTHER BOLLOX
Bolton centre-back Gary Cahill has been cleared to join Arsenal after the Trotters signed Middlesbrough's David Wheater as his replacement. metro.co.uk
Meanwhile, Arsenal have put a £15m price tag on Nicklas Bendtner after a number of Premier League clubs asked about taking the 23-year-old Denmark striker on loan. However, Bendtner's father says his son is not interested in leaving the London club. the Sun
Zenit St Petersburg are interested in taking Russia striker Andrey Arshavin back from Arsenal. Daily Mirror
Liverpool are still in negotiations with Ajax to sign Uruguay striker Luis Suarez, although the Reds' offer is £8m short of the Dutch side's £21m asking price. the Independent
German side Borussia Dortmund claim they are fighting off interest from Manchester United for £20m-rated playmaker Shinji Kagawa, 21. Daily Mirror
Chelsea's Gael Kakuta could be sent out on loan to Fulham to get more first-team action. Daily Mail
Tottenham target Giuseppe Rossi has a £33m buy-out clause in his contract but the Italian striker's Spanish club Villarreal are willing to accept £16.5m for the former Manchester United man. the Independent
Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn has ruled out a move for Tottenham striker Robbie Keane, saying he "doesn't quite suit us now." talkSPORT
Sunderland boss Steve Bruce has upped his bid for winger Charles N'Zogbia to £9m, although it is thought Wigan want £10m for the French 24-year-old. the Sun
Aston Villa striker John Carew will become the highest-paid player in Stoke history when he signs a £52,000-a-week loan deal, with Ricardo Fuller being sold to Sunderland to make room for him. Daily Mirror
Swansea boss Brendan Rodgers is hoping to snap up highly rated midfielder Ryan Harley from League One side Exeter in a £300,000 deal. Daily Mirror
Wigan boss Roberto Martinez is lining up a £2m bid for Ipswich midfielder Grant Leadbitter, 25. Daily Express
Celtic and Burnley are both interested in signing Everton striker James Vaughan following the end of his loan spell at Crystal Palace.
Full story: talkSPORT
QPR and Ipswich are interested in French defender Pascal Chimbonda after he was released by Blackburn. Daily Mail
Fifa bosses are working on a secret plan to turn football into a summer sport which would run from March to October. the Sun
Manchester United's Owen Hargreaves could miss out on a place in their Champions League squad despite making progress in his recovery from a hamstring injury. Daily Telegraph
Spain goalkeeper Pepe Reina has reiterated his commitment to his long-term Liverpool contract which still has over five years to run. The Times (subscription required)
David Beckham was prevented from playing for a behind-closed-doors friendly for Tottenham against QPR this week because of an insurance query. Guardian
Portsmouth boss Steve Cotterill has banned his players from using Twitter, telling them they face being fined £1,000-per-word if they tweet.Daily Star
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