City flew off for some pre-season sun today – but their unwanted stars remained grounded.
The Blues have set off for a 17-day trip to California and Canada, but it was the £68m worth of talent left behind which left them with their biggest headache.
Among the players missing from training so far this week have been Emmanuel Adebayor, Craig Bellamy, Wayne Bridge, Roque Santa Cruz and Nedum Onuoha – all of whom are likely to be shown the exit door during this transfer window.
The Blues have also been without Carlos Tevez and Pablo Zabaleta, on duty with Argentina in the Copa America, while Kolo Toure cannot train with his team-mates as part of his six-month drugs ban.
The other absentees earlier in the week were Nigel de Jong and Edin Dzeko, given extended leave after playing for their countries in Euro 2012 qualifiers in early June.
Shifting the left-behind players from the wage bill will be the task of new backroom boy John Williams, brought in to ease the burden on chief transfer fixer Brian Marwood.
Adebayor is holding out for a possible move to Real Madrid, where he spent the second half of last season on loan, saying he is prepared to wait until the last minute of the transfer window.
He has already rejected overtures from Russian club Zenit St Petersburg.
Celtic are the only club to have made positive moves for Bellamy – but manager Neil Lennon says a deal is ‘unlikely’ as the Scottish club cannot match his £90,000-a-week wages.
Newcastle have told City they do not want Wayne Bridge, who was surplus to requirements at Eastlands last season and will be even more so now the Blues have signed Gael Clichy from Arsenal for £8m.
Roque Santa Cruz may get a move to the Middle East, with Sheikh Mansour’s ‘other’ club Al Jazira and Qatari outfit Al Sadd both keen.
And Onuoha is wanted by Blackburn.
Sunderland, where he spent last season on loan, have cooled their interest after signing Wes Brown and John O’Shea from United.
One player in a grey area is Shaun Wright-Phillips, who is expected to fly out today, even though his chances of remaining long-term at City seem unlikely.
City will only let him go – with Wigan and Bolton interested – if they bring in another player who can play on the right of the front three.
City are intent on cutting the wage bill to help meet the requirements of Uefa’s new financial fair play rules, which begin to kick in next season.
It has been revealed owner Sheikh Mansour gave the club another financial boost last year by injecting another £44m in equity into the club, taking the total investment beyond £500m.
Manu fury as City freeze him out
EMMANUEL ADEBAYOR has consulted lawyers about bringing a case for constructive dismissal against Manchester City.
The furious Togo international star has reacted angrily after being banished from Roberto Mancini's first-team squad along with six other big-name stars.
And the £25million striker says he has been assured he has a great chance of winning in court.
Adebayor raged last night: "This is very hurtful and insulting and says a lot about Manchester City.
"On the one hand they want to become the biggest, most successful club in the world, yet the people who run the club are not acting in that way at all.
"No one at City is man enough to speak to me face-to-face to explain.
"I just received an email from Brian Marwood's secretary, a lady at the club called Claire, telling me to report for training on July 9.
"But when I spoke to the other players, I found out the first team was leaving for the pre-season tour of the USA on July 8.
"So it's clear they don't want me here but no one even called. Brian Marwood just got his secretary to send me an email.
"And I heard this was the same with at least six other players."
Craig Bellamy, Roque Santa Cruz, Shay Given, Wayne Bridge, Nedum Onouha and Michael Johnson are also in the cold.
But Adebayor is refusing to accept being ostracised by the club that paid Arsenal £25m for him two years ago.
He added: "What is the point of me coming in to train and they are all in America? I will train on my own."
Adebayor, who has three years of his £175,000- a-week contract to run, wants out of Eastlands. But City have slapped a £14m price tag on his head, frustrating interest from Real Madrid and Spurs. [strike]NOTW[/strike] Sun
Villa close on £4m Given deal
ASTON VILLA hope to seal a £4million deal for Manchester City keeper Shay Given by the end of the weekend.
Villa are close to agreeing a fee for the Republic of Ireland star after 40-year-old Brad Friedel left on a free to join Spurs.
Given, 35, is behind Joe Hart in the City pecking order but they wanted Villa to up their £2.5m bid.
And Villa boss Alex McLeish has underlined the club's stance over Stewart Downing by giving Liverpool a 'hands-off' warning.
The Kop have seen two bids - the second for £15m - rejected.
McLeish said: "He had a magnificent season and really came to full maturity as a top player.
"I understand why there are teams interested.
"His performances were top drawer. That's why he's not for sale.
"I intend speaking to him again when all the lads are back for training." [strike]NOTW[/strike] Sun
Craig Bellamy blasts Mancini and refuses to move on with pay cut
Craig Bellamy has revealed he has not spoken to Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini for 18 months - and blames the Italian's man-management style for the breakdown in communication.
The 31-year-old striker - expected to be left behind when City's first-team squad fly to Los Angeles for pre-season training today - claims his career prospects at Eastlands stalled within days of Mancini being installed as successor to Mark Hughes in December 2009.
He claimed: "At present I expect to go back there and stay the whole year. And if Mancini is still there I'll probably do very little. Obviously I won't be involved with him and the first team.
"It was tough (when Hughes left) - it was like losing someone. It was probably as bad as losing a family member in some ways. I even struggled to eat for a few days.
"It was a totally different structure which affected me completely. Mancini told me to stay with the team all the time. We had longer training sessions, but with no intensity whatsoever.
"He seemed to know my knee better than I knew it myself. He tried to explain why I had problems with it and what I should do about it. When I told him my knee was hurting, he tried to tell me it wasn't.
"Mancini wanted me to come in another day and do some work - but I told him I'd finished my work that day, that I was keeping to my own schedule.
"That was when he started about my programme, that I couldn't follow my own schedule while he was the manager - and that I had to do what he was telling me.
"He said 'if you don't you can go back home now. And don't come in again'. I replied 'okay, no problem, I'm going home then'. That was a week after he'd arrived - and then he never spoke to me again."
Bellamy, who has a year remaining on his City contract, spent last season on loan at hometown club Cardiff but does not want another loan move, preferring a permanent move away from Eastlands.
"If they pay me the final year of my wages," he continued. "Then I'm sure I can go wherever I want. In that case my first option would be Cardiff."
However, a pay cut does not appeal, as he added: "I have my own academy in Sierra Leone, where I have to take care of 13 children, day in, day out. My wages are more important to them than they are for me."
Man City take off with £100m deal
MANCHESTER CITY will today unveil a record-breaking £100m deal with Etihad Airways.
The club has sold the naming rights to their Eastlands ground, which will now be known as the Etihad Stadium.
The Abu Dhabi airline has agreed a 10-year sponsorship package.
And it eclipses the £100m, 15-year deal between Arsenal and Emirates Airlines for the naming of the Gunners' home ground.
Etihad already sponsors City's shirts to the tune of £2.8m a year.
And this is just another example of the huge investment into the club from Abu Dhabi.
Owner Sheikh Mansour has committed £1bn to City through a takeover and money spent on players, wages and improvements to the ground and training facilities.
He arrived only in September 2008 but his investment in players alone will top £400m by the end of the summer.
But with financial fair play restrictions being introduced by UEFA, City have had to look to other streams of income - although this deal might yet fall foul of those rules.
Patrick Vieira set to snub Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger for Manchester City coaching post
Eastlands club confident former midfielder will accept a coaching and ambassadorial role in Manchester instead of returning to London to work alongside Invincibles manager
Former Arsenal skipper Patrick Vieira is poised to take on a coaching role at Manchester City in a move that represents another embarrassing blow for Gunners manager Arsene Wenger.
The Frenchman is understood to have turned down the offer of a coaching position with Arsenal and is now mulling over the chance to combine coaching with ambassadorial work at City where his playing contract expired last month.
Vieira spent nine trophy-laden years at Arsenal under Wenger but despite his strong links to the club, he is set to become a member of City manager Roberto Mancini’s coaching staff.
And City are confident that he will commit himself to the FA Cup winners who are now preparing for their first season of Champions League football having pipped Arsenal to third place in the Premier League last season.
“It was widely reported at the end of the season that he had been offered the chance to become a coach at Arsenal by Wenger but he is in advanced talks with City to take up a role there instead,” a source close to the talks told Goal.com.
“It would be part-coaching and part-ambassadorial. He has not signed anything as yet but they are confident that he will. He spent the last 18 months of his career at City but spent nine years at Arsenal, but he clearly likes working with Mancini because he was with him at Inter Milan as well.
“He was very popular with the City players and staff and became a bit of a father figure to the younger players and they are keen to keep him on board.”
Should the 35-year-old opt to accept City’s offer it would be yet another blow in what is proving to be a difficult summer for compatriot Wenger, whose club have not won a major honour since Vieira settled the 2005 FA Cup final against Manchester United in a penalty shoot-out.
Wenger is already facing up to the prospect of a difficult season having to deal with unrest at the Emirates with leading players Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri poised to leave the London club.
Vieira was a key member of the famous ‘Invincibles’ side at Arsenal that went undefeated throughout the season on the way to the 2003-04 Premier League title and he gave the side a bite that has been missing since he quit the club for Juventus after the 2005 FA Cup final win.
Vieira, who helped France win the 1998 World Cup, has made a big impression on City staff since he headed to the club from Italy and, as well as working with Mancini’s first-team squad, he would help promote the club overseas in a similar way to the work undertaken at Old Trafford by former United captains Sir Bobby Charlton and Bryan Robson.
Vieira, who is already a ‘goodwill ambassador’ with the United Nations, was ranked the fifth-greatest Arsenal player of all-time in a fans’ poll conducted on the club's official website.
OTHER BOLLOX
Liverpool will make an improved offer of £18m for Aston Villa midfielder Stewart Downing. Daily Telegraph
Meanwhile, the Merseysiders are to offer Lyon £12m for Brazilian winger Michel Bastos as boss Kenny Dalglish refuses to increase his bid for Downing. caughtoffside
Aston Villa want to tie up a deal for Wigan winger Charles N'Zogbia as they seek a replacement for Downing. Daily Mail
Championship outfit Southampton have laughed off Arsenal's £6m bid for winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - the Saints say they will not do business for less than £12m. Daily Star
Manchester United are set to make an offer of £10-12m cash plus two players for Tottenham star Luka Modric. caughtoffside
Spurs lead a host of clubs in the hunt for 'the new Luka Modric', Hadjuk Split player Ante Vukusic. Daily Star
Tottenham must fork out £20m to sign striker Pablo Osvaldo from Espanyol. the Sun
Spurs midfielder Niko Kranjcar is waiting to discover if Italian side Fiorentina have made a bid for him - the Croat remains unhappy at his club's £12m asking price. the Sun
Arsenal want £15m-rated Valencia winger Juan Mata - but to play alongside Samir Nasri rather than to replace him. Daily Mirror
Barcelona are set to tempt the Gunners into accepting a cut-price transfer offer for Cesc Fabregas by throwing either Maxwell or Eric Abidal into the deal. Metro
But Arsenal have told the Catalan giants that they must drop youngsters Jon Toral and Hector Bellerin from their bid for Fabregas before a deal can be agreed. Daily Express
Chelsea are chasing £9m Genk keeper Thibaut Courtois, whom they see as a long-term successor to Petr Cech. the Sun
Stoke want Olympiakos and Greece defender Vasilis Torosidis, who has a £6.3m buy-out clause in his contract. Daily Mail
Blackburn Rovers will have to pay £8.5m to sign FC Copenhagen striker Dame N'Doye. Daily Mirror
Rovers striker Nikola Kalinic is wanted by Dynamo Kiev - and the Ewood park club are keen to recoup the £6m they paid for him. Daily Mail
Blackburn have approached Monaco about a £3m deal for DR Congo international defender Cedric Mongongu. Daily Star
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce is preparing an ambitious bid to sign Liverpool pair Joe Cole and Paul Konchesky. caughtoffside
QPR boss Neil Warnock is to launch a £6m raid on the Hammers for striker Carlton Cole. Daily Mirror
Bolton have stepped up their efforts to land Rodrigo from Benfica after he impressed on loan last season. Talksport
Aston Villa are ready to spend £5m to secure the transfer of defender Alan Hutton from Spurs.Metro
Villa have also moved ahead of Tottenham in the pursuit of West Ham's Scott Parker, because Spurs must sell before they buy. Daily Mirror
Norwich are lining up a £2m move for Arsenal midfielder Henri Lansbury. the Sun
West Ham will decide next week whether to sign Polish defender Hernani da Rosi from Korona Kielce. the Sun
Fulham are set to sign Roma defender John Arne Riise for £2.2m. The Times
Victor Wanyama has arrived in Glasgow to secure a £900,000 to Celtic from Germinal Beerschot hoping that he will not be denied a work permit, as happened with his brother, McDonald Mariga, when he was on the brink of a move to Manchester City. (Daily Record)
Celtic manager Neil Lennon will make a plea via telephone from Australia to a Scottish Football Association appeal board as he attempts to win a work permit required for the transfer of Kenyan midfielder Victor Wanyama from Germinal Beerschot. (the Sun)
Rangers coach Ian Durrant is hopeful that the £850,000 the club will receive from former Ibrox midfielder Charlie Adam's transfer from Blackpool to Liverpool will boost manager Ally McCoist's transfer budget. (Daily Record)
Middlesbrough striker Kris Boyd arrived for signing talks with Eskisehirspor just as the Turkish club's head coach, Bulent Uygen, was arrested on match-fixing charges. (Daily Record)
Hibernian are eyeing a move for former Celtic striker Cillian Sheridan, who is keen on a return to Scotland after failing to settle in Bulgaria with CSKA Sofia. (Daily Record)
Former Ajax full-back Mitchell Pique moved a step closer to winning a contract with Kilmarnock after playing in a 0-0 draw with Ballymena. (the Sun)
Liverpool legend John Barnes believes his former club's summer spending spree could take them into the Premier League's top four next season. Talksport
Liverpool are ready to risk fan anger by quitting Anfield and building a new stadium rather than renovating their iconic ground. They will sell naming rights to their new home.Daily Mirror
Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira will snub his former club by turning down a coaching role at the Emirates. the Sun
Injury-jinxed Owen Hargreaves' YouTube workout videos look set to land him a chance to save his career after his release by Manchester United - with his old England boss Sven Goran Eriksson at Leicester. Daily Mirror
BOLLOX BOLLOX (Cont' from yesterday)
Manchester City pimped-up tribute car is a £50,000 bit of blue bling
Two die-hard Manchester City fans have spent £50,000 customising an old Chevrolet convertible car so that they can travel to matches in style.
True Blue: Owners of the £50,000 Man City customised car rest proudly on the bonnet (Anthony Moss)
Lifelong City fans Mike Radcliffe and Shaun Donohoe imported the car from America after brainstorming the idea of creating the ultimate tribute cruiser.
After firstly laying out £20,000 to buy and transport the car over to England the pair needed to find a spray shop and upholsterer willing to take on the job.
Although most people who worked on the car where United supporters, Mike and Shaun were lucky enough to get their car back without spec of red being added.
The 1975 Chevy features the crest on the bonnet and club legends past and present on opposite doors.
On the right are Nigel De Jong, David Silva and Carlos Tevez, while on the left Colin Bell, Franny Lee and Mike Summerbee are enshrined.
City owner Sheikh Mansour hasn't been forgotten either with the billionaire's face put on the spare wheel case - while a FA Cup replica trophy takes pride of place on the back.
Asked whether Tevez would be replaced should he leave the season ticket holders replied with a stern 'no'.
But admitting things may have got a little out of hand, 60-year-old Mike said: 'Shaun wanted a big and brash car to go to matches in. We found this one but then it snowballed.
Catch us if you can: City's owner is emblazoned on the spare wheel case (Anthony Moss)
'We had to tell Tom Jones, a United fan from Oldham who has done art work on cars for us before, ‘don't you dare put a Red Devil on it’.
'All their lads were United supporters and another lad from Stockport, who did the upholstery, is also a United fan,' he added to the Manchester Evening News.
'When it was finished we went over it with a fine tooth comb to make sure they hadn't hidden any United stuff in it.
'We drove to the ground to pick up the new away shirt and it caused plenty of comments. But we didn't take it to Wembley - it only does 10 miles to the gallon.'
Reports that flamboyant Mario Balotelli is planning to make an offer for the car have yet to be substantiated
Manchester City plane 'Blue Moon Rising' jets into Manchester airport for first time
Manchester City players on the steps of the aircraft Manchester City players on the steps of the aircraft 1/6 Play Slideshow
Manchester City have joined football's jet set – with their own plane kitted out in club colours.
The plane – emblazoned with the club's name and crest – graced the region's skies for the first time yesterday as it flew into Manchester Airport from Abu Dhabi.
The Blue Moon Rising jet, owned by sponsors Etihad Airways, touched down just after 3pm – and it was greeted by some of City's star players who were given a quick tour.
[youtube]WtFsc5SM1Wg[/youtube]
A team of 40 painters worked around the clock for EIGHTEEN days in Abu Dhabi to paint the A330-200 in City colours.
A staggering 450 litres of paint were required to complete the job.
Airline chiefs said the plane would take their sponsorship with City to new heights and it would also mark the commencement of double daily flights between Manchester and Abu Dhabi next month.
James Hogan, Etihad Airways' chief executive officer, said: “We are very proud of our sponsorship of Manchester City Football Club, and of our commitment to the wider community.
“Manchester has been a key destination for Etihad for five years, and the increase in frequency to double daily indicates our dedication to the region.
“Business and leisure travellers from all over the north west of England can now easily take advantage of the services, whether flying to Abu Dhabi, or further afield to destinations such as Thailand, Singapore or Australia.”
It is the latest step in the link-up between the club and the Middle East airline.
The carrier has been City's main sponsor since May 2009 and boss Roberto Mancini opened the airline's executive lounge at the airport last December.
City fans will get to follow in the footsteps of their heroes because when the plane is not transporting the players, it will be in normal service – meaning United fans flying out of Manchester may have to make the journey on the Blue jet.
It will operate on the Manchester-Abu Dhabi route – which goes to a double daily service from August 1 - but will also serve Milan, Frankfurt, Brussels,
Johannesburg, Cape Town, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Singapore, Istanbul and destinations throughout the Middle East and India.
The US tour starts on Saturday, July 16, with a match against Club America in San Francisco, followed by games against the Vancouver Whitecaps and LA Galaxy.
The arrival of the aircraft comes as the MEN understands a deal for the naming rights to the City of Manchester stadium is poised to be finalised.
The US tour starts on Saturday 16 July with a match against Club America in San Francisco followed by matches against the Vancouver Whitecaps and LA Galaxy.
The MEN's City reporter Stuart Brennan will be covering the tour and you can follow his updates on his Facebook page.
