january window

[carolina-blue]

Messi is the player who would take City to another level, on & off the pitch. He would end up making us money, & the fanbase would go through the roof. We would grab so many kids as supporters worldwide, from that one move, it would transcend all other considerations.

This exactly Ted . The money spent wouldnt matter a jot to what we would get back . I actually know people who follow Barca because of Messi daft but true buy the shirts the full monty .

[CTID Hants]

Messi is the player who would take City to another level, on & off the pitch. He would end up making us money, & the fanbase would go through the roof. We would grab so many kids as supporters worldwide, from that one move, it would transcend all other considerations.

You are right and for that very reason you can bet your bottom dollar UEFA would find a way to block it (SADLY)!!

[Peter Doherty (AGAIG)]

Goal says Aston Villa closing on 2.5 million deal for Scott Sinclair assuming Lambert doesn't get the boot. Please happen.

Who's paying who 2.5 million?

The National :Lottery are giving the money to Villa, and Villa are giving the money to the Red Cross.

[JamieMCFC]

A January signing doesn't have to be a panic buy. We let Negredo go because he wanted to and he wasn't fit anyway. We weren't prepared to pay silly money for a season loan for Falcao so we're one striker short. The Club may well have been planning a move all along in these circumstances. I'm not sure what we can and cannot do in January with the FFP restriction and availability in January is always a problem. But if the Club get in a decent striker who can pop in some goals, help us win the Premiership and maybe get past Barca or win the FA Cup I won't be complaining.

If we brought a striker in during the January window he wouldn't help in the Champions League due to the squad restrictions.

[nottsblue]

Is Barkley really that good? I have not seen too much of him but i don't see what the fuss is about and 40 mil +? I would be worried about a very expensive Rodwell. He was also the next big thing, and I know he had injuries by us but he's not exactly ripping up trees at Sunderland. We seem to be falling into the "next big thing must have him trap" quite a bit. Sinclair??

I think he has the ability to be a fantastic player. However, I get an uneasy feeling with him, like he tries to do too much and I think he needs that coaching out of him. I think he is certainly one of those players that could take the step up to the highest level and play with top players. Injuries are also a concern, even now, which is a worry again.

Not for me. For the money it'd cost I'd sooner pay the extra required for Pogba

[nottsblue]

Messi is the player who would take City to another level, on & off the pitch. He would end up making us money, & the fanbase would go through the roof. We would grab so many kids as supporters worldwide, from that one move, it would transcend all other considerations.

This exactly Ted . The money spent wouldnt matter a jot to what we would get back . I actually know people who follow Barca because of Messi daft but true buy the shirts the full monty .

This would be worth pursuing for non footballing reasons alone. Commercial income and fanbase would soar, raising the profile of the club immeasureably. Plus, how pissed would rags, chavs, dippers, journos, Platini et all be.

That and the fact he is still in the top two players in the world means he will light up the playing field as well

[PeterParker]

The new Messi speculation started after he did something that the media considered weird. So listen to this:

It seems that Messi, on his Twatter account, just started following City and Chelsea. Before that, he did only with Barcelon and Newell Old Boys, his boyhood club.

This is where the international press is now, this is what makes rumours happen.

[FA cup winners 2006]

The new Messi speculation started after he did something that the media considered weird. So listen to this:

It seems that Messi, on his Twatter account, just started following City and Chelsea. Before that, he did only with Barcelon and Newell Old Boys, his boyhood club.

This is where the international press is now, this is what makes rumours happen.

Few things wrong with that.

Messi does not have a Twitter account. He uses instagram. He has been following city for over a year now. Today he started following Chelsea, courtouis and Luis Enrique, hence the Chelsea rumours today

[PeterParker]

The new Messi speculation started after he did something that the media considered weird. So listen to this:

It seems that Messi, on his Twatter account, just started following City and Chelsea. Before that, he did only with Barcelon and Newell Old Boys, his boyhood club.

This is where the international press is now, this is what makes rumours happen.

Few things wrong with that.

Messi does not have a Twitter account. He uses instagram. He has been following city for over a year now. Today he started following Chelsea, courtouis and Luis Enrique, hence the Chelsea rumours today

Good addon.

All the articles were sayin about Twitter, his friendship with Fabregas, etc.

[twosips]

He probably follows City cos he has mates here. Simple as that really. People read into shit far too much.

I'd fucking love Messi here and agree it'd change the perception of the club incredibly, however I don't think we want him if he's on his way down in 2-3 years as I think we'd have to aim higher than that. Thing is, even when he's not even quite at his very best like at the moment he's still much better than the likes of Hazard who we drool over.

[FA cup winners 2006]

I know it's been discussed before but I can't find it now but how would our ffp sanctions effect our attempts to sign Messi.

Assuming we do get the extra sponsors on board to cover his wages and amortisation costs keeping us within the ffp regs. Can we actually push through the transfer (say £150m) with our current restrictions or what could we do to make it happen

[Ted Hughes]

I have no idea how we would finance it. But if it meant failing ffp, fail it. Simple. Problem solved, we get Messi.

[nottsblue]

I have no idea how we would finance it. But if it meant failing ffp, fail it. Simple. Problem solved, we get Messi.

Exactly. Plus sponsors of Champs league would not be pleased if one of the top draws were not allowed in it. A way would be found, you can bet your last dollar on that

[Moonchesteri]

I have no idea how we would finance it. But if it meant failing ffp, fail it. Simple. Problem solved, we get Messi.

Exactly. Plus sponsors of Champs league would not be pleased if one of the top draws were not allowed in it. A way would be found, you can bet your last dollar on that

That's true. It might be transfer ban or whatever but we (or any club for that matter) would not be left out of CL with arguably the best player in the world.

Not that we're gonna sign him now but it's nice to dream every now and then

[Ted Hughes]

Well what could they do ?

We will sail through ffp this season. Say we sign Messi next, on a 5 year deal; if it does go over our spend (which it probably doesn't at all over 5 years) it wouldn't be by much.

Almost no chance they would ban us from the Champions League. At worst it would be another fine, (if they have the balls to do it & if ffp still exists). Transfer ban ? Use the kids. They can't hurt us enough to make it anything other than a no brainer that we must sign him if we can, & bugger the consequences.

Imagine we play by the rules & rags or Chelsea buy Messi & say 'fuck it'. We can whinge all we want, but they would have Messi, & be favourites for pretty much everything.

[carl_feedthegoat]

Players like Messi do not sign for clubs out of the CL......so before you all get giddy about fuckign FFP off, its important we comply with the cunts......for now.

[Ted Hughes]

Players like Messi do not sign for clubs out of the CL......so before you all get giddy about fuckign FFP off, its important we comply with the cunts......for now.

We wouldn't be out of the Champions League.

We would be in it when he signed. If they then banned us, it's too late, he's already signed. But they wouldn't ban us. They would only ban us if we kept breaking the rules over & over.

[FA cup winners 2006]

Well what could they do ?

We will sail through ffp this season. Say we sign Messi next, on a 5 year deal; if it does go over our spend (which it probably doesn't at all over 5 years) it wouldn't be by much.

Almost no chance they would ban us from the Champions League. At worst it would be another fine, (if they have the balls to do it & if ffp still exists). Transfer ban ? Use the kids. They can't hurt us enough to make it anything other than a no brainer that we must sign him if we can, & bugger the consequences.

Imagine we play by the rules & rags or Chelsea buy Messi & say 'fuck it'. We can whinge all we want, but they would have Messi, & be favourites for pretty much everything.

There is no way Messi will sign for a club with a threat of cl expulsion hanging over them and that's all it will take is for the media to run the story that we could be expelled if we break the sanctions.

I still think there is some benefit to come to city from the Madrid stadium sponsorship deal by ADUG. Always thought it would be through Madrid but maybe the benefit will be linked to the Messi tax case and the neymar transfer case. Out there but you never know

[Ted Hughes]

Well what could they do ?

We will sail through ffp this season. Say we sign Messi next, on a 5 year deal; if it does go over our spend (which it probably doesn't at all over 5 years) it wouldn't be by much.

Almost no chance they would ban us from the Champions League. At worst it would be another fine, (if they have the balls to do it & if ffp still exists). Transfer ban ? Use the kids. They can't hurt us enough to make it anything other than a no brainer that we must sign him if we can, & bugger the consequences.

Imagine we play by the rules & rags or Chelsea buy Messi & say 'fuck it'. We can whinge all we want, but they would have Messi, & be favourites for pretty much everything.

There is no way Messi will sign for a club with a threat of cl expulsion hanging over them and that's all it will take is for the media to run the story that we could be expelled if we break the sanctions.

I still think there is some benefit to come to city from the Madrid stadium sponsorship deal by ADUG. Always thought it would be through Madrid but maybe the benefit will be linked to the Messi tax case and the neymar transfer case. Out there but you never know

We wouldn't have the threat of expulsion hanging over us, at worst we would have the threat of a fine, but only if we broke the rules, which we most likely would not.

[FA cup winners 2006]

Well what could they do ?

We will sail through ffp this season. Say we sign Messi next, on a 5 year deal; if it does go over our spend (which it probably doesn't at all over 5 years) it wouldn't be by much.

Almost no chance they would ban us from the Champions League. At worst it would be another fine, (if they have the balls to do it & if ffp still exists). Transfer ban ? Use the kids. They can't hurt us enough to make it anything other than a no brainer that we must sign him if we can, & bugger the consequences.

Imagine we play by the rules & rags or Chelsea buy Messi & say 'fuck it'. We can whinge all we want, but they would have Messi, & be favourites for pretty much everything.

There is no way Messi will sign for a club with a threat of cl expulsion hanging over them and that's all it will take is for the media to run the story that we could be expelled if we break the sanctions.

I still think there is some benefit to come to city from the Madrid stadium sponsorship deal by ADUG. Always thought it would be through Madrid but maybe the benefit will be linked to the Messi tax case and the neymar transfer case. Out there but you never know

We wouldn't have the threat of expulsion hanging over us, at worst we would have the threat of a fine, but only if we broke the rules, which we most likely would not.

That would be great if true but i dont think there is anyone at the club who will trust UEFA's word. Of course there are 2 sets of rules we have to abide by if trying to push for such a transfer wither now or in the summer, 1 is the FFP regs that apply to everyone and the other is the set of restrictions that the club agreed to last summer. i understand how we will not break the main FFP regs but what if we break the restrictions we agreed to, is there any additional penalties they can levy at us. Can they exclude the players we buy from the CL squad, as they can claim the transfer cannot go through because City agreed to these restricitions. Again, if we called their bluff it is unlikely sponsors will want Messi excluded from the CL, but if the seed of doubt is planted before the transfer is completed then Messi would not sign.

If Messi ever leaves Barca for anyone else, it is going to be one of the dirtiest tansfer sagas ever