Manchester City have been linked with a lot of world class names this summer but so far no moves have been completed. One position the Premier League champions are supposedly looking to strengthen is the central midfield area in order to support Yaya Toure, Gareth Barry and Nigel de Jong. Two names that are continually mentioned are Javi Martinez (source), the young Athletic Bilbao sensation, and Danielle de Rossi (source), the more experienced Italian midfielder who Mancini has always been a keen admirer of.
However, these two could both be very expensive options. Martinez is considered Bilbao’s shining light, a real fan favourite and tipped to be future Spain captain, at the tender age of 23 Martinez has his best playing days ahead of him and there is speculation that Barcelona and Bayern Munich have registered an interest.
Daniele de Rossi has been a world famous name for quite a few years now, the 29 year old World Cup winner has made 78 appearances for Italy and featured regularly in the Champions League with Roma. Roberto Mancini has reportedly been a long term admirer of de Rossi as he tried to sign him during Mancini’s Inter Milan reign.
I believe a much better option for City; due to availability and taking Financial Fair Play into consideration would be Nuri Sahin. The Turkish midfielder has strangely, in my eyes, been left in the shadows by Mourinho at Real Madrid but this by no means diminishes his ability. Sahin, same age as Martinez, is a quality footballer who at the end of the 2010-11 season was voted best player in the Bundesliga as part of the title winning Borussia Dortmund team that included new United signing Shinji Kagawa and sensation Mario Gotze.
I am baffled by the fact that Mourinho is allowing Sahin to leave, who has been linked with a loan move to Arsenal (source: Independent). I feel Sahin on loan would be perfect for Manchester City as he can certainly fit into the attractive passing style they have adopted over the last 12 months and fill spaces in the team as Barry may begin the season injured and Yaya Toure will yet again be leaving in January to play in the African Cup of Nations.
Admittedly, one disadvantage of choosing Sahin over Martinez or de Rossi is that Sahin can’t play at centre back like the other two options but money saved on signing Sahin on loan can be put into buying a quality central defender to put pressure on Joleon Lescott to partner Vincent Kompany.
As much as I think Sahin would be a perfect option for Manchester City, it seems like he is edging ever closer to a move to Arsenal. Therefore, I still think Roberto Mancini will go all out to sign Daniele de Rossi and I, for one, certainly won’t be disappointed if he does arrive at the Etihad Stadium.
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Good article. I have been thinking exactly the same thing everytime I see a new article linking Sahin to Arsenal, I watched Sahin when he was in Germany and he is a quality midfielder that would fit in perfectly at City. Going to Real so early was a mistake for him, he should have stayed in Germany for another 2 seasons.
Mate city can’t sign every good player,take a cue from Malaga,I can see city heading down that lane in a few years when the sheik gets bored!!!
Did Roman get bored?
And the Sheikh is a much more sensible owner than Abramovich is and lets qualified people run the club without personal interference.
You must be a paid spoiler by Man City. Must Man City spoil every fun for Arsenal after Kolo Toure, Adebayo, Clichy and Nasri? Sahin going to City would be the end of his development though he may earn big money, but Mancini does not know how to nuture talents. If it is going to happen at all, Arsenal is the best place for Sahin.