Rumour Mill: Manchester City or Former Arsenal XI?

There are 2 rumours today floating around Eastlands and I can't see how this piece can be particularly long, in that both names get a big 'yes' from me....In the interests of being informative and interesting however I suppose I should go into a little bit of detail, lets take one of these at a time.  Firstly we might have an answer to the left back conundrum in French international Gael Clichy.


The flying left back is one of those players that is deceptively young, it feels as if he should be in his late 20s because of the fact he has been playing for what feels like eternity, but in fact he is only 25 so definitely no problems there.  It is clearly a position that we need to strengthen, and to be fair an area of the field where we have struggled for years, our defensive record from crosses is poor to say the least and I would wager that many of those crosses are coming from our left hand side.  I want Aleksandar Kolarov to work out but he just hasn't adapted to Premier League football as quickly as we would like and maybe a season rotating with a more experienced player will do him the world of good.

Of course we will be battling on an extra front next year, clearly it would be foolish to suggest that we have any real chance of winning the Champions League, but that doesn't mean we can't put in a decent showing.  Our squad is pretty light on experience of Europe's top competition but it is something that Clichy can provide by the bucket load and that is another real benefit.


He is quick, skillful, and useful in attacking areas, and whilst he may not be the best full back defensively, he is by no means one of the worst, and I personally think that makes him a more attractive proposition than say Leighton Baines.  The Everton defender is many peoples first choice, but I am slightly put off by the fact that it would cost over £20million to secure him, Clichy is rumoured to be available for £7million, surely that is better business?


The second possible signing I see as a lot less likely, but it would be one to really get excited about.  Samir Nasri has flattered to deceive at times during his Arsenal career, but in the last 18 months he has really started to show what he is capable of and I think he would be perfect for City.  Those lovely people at Talksport reckon that we are sniffing around and readying a bid of £20million, now before this gets dismissed out of hand, it is important to remember that the figure is slightly lower than what might be expected due to the fact he is in the last year of his contract.


There appears to be conjecture about the validity of this story, word on twitter originating from the Mirror claims that City 'sources' have confirmed interest in Clichy but denied we had made contact with Arsenal over a transfer for Nasri.  Clearly he would be a great addition to the squad, if he were to come in his link up play with Silva and the rest of the forward line could be a joy to behold, but just how likely is it?


Firstly there is rumoured to be strong interest from Manchester United and obviously that could present one or two problems, secondly is the ongoing Cesc Fabregas saga.  If, as expected, he moves to Barcelona over the next few days surely Arsene Wenger will do whatever he can to retain the former Marseille midfielder and offer him the wages that he is demanding to stay at the Emirates.

If I were a betting man I would say the signing of Clichy is highly likely, any move for Nasri though I just can't see at this point.  Since we withdrew from the Sanchez deal I think it might just be more rumour mongering from the tabloids, not that I wouldn't want him, I am just not sure I see it as being that likely, i'd love to be proved wrong though.....

Can we focus on our weakest area for a while?

Do we really need another central defender?  Whilst fans of other clubs who don't watch very much Manchester City could 'hilariously' point out, yes we do, so Mancini can field 5 across the back to go with his 3 defensive midfield players.  Rubbish jibes aside, why are we continually linked with new centre backs when there is another gaping hole in our side?

Today sees reports from a couple of different media outlets linking us with Juventus and Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini..lets quickly run through members of our squad capable of playing in that position: Kompany, Lescott, Toure, Boyata, Boateng, Onuoha, Richards, Wabara and at a push Yaya Toure.  Even if a couple of those players were to move, whether it be on loan or permanently, we still have more than enough to get by.  When the Gary Cahill rumours went quiet, I for one was pretty pleased, I saw no reason for us to strengthen in that area, our defensive record is good, but that doesn't mean the entire backline is solid.

We started this season with Kolarov as first choice left back, with Jerome Boateng also (supposedly) comfortable playing there.  By the end of the season however, I think most City fans were happiest with right back Zabaleta playing on the left side of the defense.  The Serbian defender has had a difficult time this season, and it is strange to me how highly regarded he was before we bought him, supposedly we did battle with Real Madrid to secure his signature.  The 25 year old cost a lofty £16million and he arrived with high expectations, it hasn't quite yet panned out however.

I am not writing the defender off and saying he should be sold, but it is a clear weakness in our side and one that I think really should be addressed.  He arrived with a reputation for being an attacking fullback, and maybe if the offensive side of his game was more impressive we could justify his shaky defensive displays, but he isn't much better coming forward.  His distribution isn't the best, and he doesn't appear quick enough for the Premier League.  He was also lauded as being a set piece expert and also possessing a wicked shot, well he may have managed 3 goals (one of which was a superb free kick against Birmingham) but those pale into insignificance when you consider all the opportunities he has wasted taking on shots from 30 yards out when there have been other options available to him, his delivery from set pieces isn't much better either.

Perhaps surprisingly however I do think there is ability in the player, and I hope we do keep hold of him.  There were some signs of improvement over the closing months of the season and I think with more time in the squad he could develop his game and perhaps become more positionally aware, and possibly more aware of his defensive duties.  That isn't to say however that I think we should go into next season with him as first choice, I think he is good backup but he isn't good enough yet for a team chasing major honours.

Identifying replacements is not particularly straight forward, I think it is time that we had a full back who's main priority is to defend as opposed to attack.  Previously we have been closely linked to Leighton Baines and I think that deal may still come off, but I do have questions about the defensive side of his game, clearly he wouldn't come cheap either and that may put Mancini off somewhat.  Fabio Coentrao and Juan Vargas are other left full backs that we have been linked with but the fact they can both also be used as left wingers puts me off somewhat.

I am not writing this to propose a solution to the left back problem, and it would be better if I did, but one thing is for sure, whilst making moves for Sanchez, Eto'o, Chiellini or whoever else we will be linked too is fantastic, I still can't help but feel that we should be making the left back slot one of our main priorities.