Manchester City

[Jockstar]

Man City set to swoop for West Ham's Bellamy

By Phil Holland

Updated: August 26, 2008, 12:46 PM UK

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Manchester City are set to address their striker deficiency by launching a surprise bid for West Ham's Craig Bellamy, according to reports.

Empics

Craig Bellamy: £8m-plus City target?

With Darius Vassell and Benjani both injured and new Brazilian signing Jo only just returning from the Olympics, City have limited attacking options with rookies Ched Evans and Daniel Sturridge the club's only other strikers.

UK newspaper The Guardian claims Hughes will table a £8.4million bid for Bellamy, who played just seven games for the Hammers last season in an injury-plagued campaign.

However, West Ham chief executive Scott Duxbury insists the club have 'absolutely no intention' of selling Bellamy who 'remains a very important part of our plans for the future.'

It would not be the first time Hughes and Bellamy have worked together, with the City boss having previously managed the temperamental striker successfully at Blackburn Rovers, where Bellamy hit 17 goals in 32 games, and at international level with Wales.

Although no stranger to controversy there can be little doubt that the 29-year-old is a potent striker, having scored goals at each of his many clubs.

At present he has played 356 games and notched 124 goals, better than one in three. The only disappointing spell in his career came at Liverpool where Bellamy only managed to hit nine goals in 42 appearances; although he has played a total of just nine games for West Ham following his £7.5million move to Upton Park from Anfield in 2007 he found the net four times.

So far this summer Hughes has spent around £30million acquiring three players - Brazilian forward Jo, Tal Ben-Haim and Vincent Kompany, both central defenders - but failed with a move to lure Roque Santa Cruz from Blackburn.

City are also being linked with a move for out-of-favour Chelsea winger Shaun Wright-Phillips, but could face a challenge from Everton.

Wright-Phillips, who has played under three different managers at Stamford Bridge, has been told his first-team chances are limited under current boss Luiz Felipe Scolari.

The one-time England international is thought to have reservations about rejoining City following his £21million move to Chelsea, while Everton could over UEFA Cup football.

Meanwhile, West Ham are set to lose the services of Anton Ferdinand with Sunderland boss Roy Keane confirming that the central defender was having a medical at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday.

Keane said: 'Anton is up today for a medical and we hope to get that tied up. I met him last week and it went well. He will be a good addition to our squad and it will keep people on their toes.'

The England Under-21 international is valued at around £8million and will become Sunderland ninth summer signing.

[mrbojangles]

Hughes will table a £8.4million bid for Bellamy

Way too much. If Blackburn are only tabling £3.5m for Ireland, then Bellamy must be worth 2 and 6

[mrbojangles]

SWP set for City medical

Winger heading out of Stamford Bridge

Shaun Wright-Phillips is set for a medical at Manchester City on Thursday, skysports.com understands.

The England international knows he is on the fringes of the first-team at Stamford Bridge and coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has hinted he would be willing to let him leave.

Aston Villa, Newcastle and Portsmouth all made enquiries this summer - but it is Everton and his former club City who have emerged as front-runners.

Now City are believed to have agreed terms on a deal worth close to £9million.

Wright-Phillips is due for a medical at City's training complex ahead of a possible move - although he will not be able to meet boss Mark Hughes, as he and his squad are in Denmark ahead of their Uefa Cup clash with FC Midtjylland on Thursday.

26-year-old Wright-Phillips played over 150 games for City before leaving the club in 2005 when Chelsea paid £21million for his signature.

[mrbojangles]

From skysports:

Thaksin hinders Hughes plans

Thaksin Shinawatra's reluctance to sell Manchester City to new investors is proving detrimental to the club's transfer dealings.

The Thai businessman is prepared to part with a minority stake in the club, but is struggling to create interest in such a deal.

City's board have held talks with numerous outside parties willing to buy the Premier League club outright, but none prepared to accept the terms currently available.

Shinawatra has helped bankroll a number of big-money transfers in the past but, with his assets currently frozen, it appears unlikely that any further new arrivals will be on their way to Eastlands before the summer window comes to a close.

"Thaksin is happy to sell off a chunk but wants to retain the majority," said City chief executive Garry Cook.

"But they - potential investors - want all of it. Everybody wants all of it. They all want a football club.

"I have had representatives of companies from Dubai, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait on to me.

"Some of them have phoned the supporters' club because they couldn't find the club number. So I get the supporters' club asking me if the club is for sale. So I've got to deal with all that.

"We tell them that the club isn't for sale. We are looking for new investment. It might not be the selling of a stake, and we've got five or six options.

"The reason we want to do that is because we're in the transfer window and we need three or four players."

[mrbojangles]

FC Midtjylland v Man City

Manchester City centre-back Micah Richards could play as the Premier League side try to overturn a 1-0 first leg deficit in Denmark.

Richards suffered concussion in a aerial collision with team-mate Tal Ben-Haim in the win over West Ham on Sunday and has been training.

Midfielder Kelvin Etuhu is also a doubt as with a pulled hamstring.

But striker Jo could play depending on the Brazilian's fitness after his return from the Olympics in Beijing.

[Seapok]

Man City re-sign Wright-Phillips

Manchester City have completed the signing of their former winger Shaun Wright-Phillips from Chelsea.

England's Wright-Phillips, 26, has signed a four-year contract at the City of Manchester Stadium having rejoined for an undisclosed fee.

He told the club's website: "Obviously I'm delighted to come back to City and I can't wait to get started again."

Manager Mark Hughes added: "I've always admired Shaun and he's been a target of mine since I came to the club."

Wright-Phillips left City to join Chelsea for £21m in July 2005, but struggled to hold down a regular place in his three years in London.

He made only 43 Premier League starts, scoring four times, as he fell out of England reckoning too.

"To actually secure the deal and bring Shaun back home is a fantastic coup for us," said Hughes.

"I'm sure the supporters will be just as excited as we are to have him back at Manchester City."

In his previous spell at City, Wright-Phillips made 181 appearances and scored 31 times.

He is expected to be presented to the media at a press conference at the City of Manchester Stadium tomorrow.

[mrbojangles]

Excellent news.

[Seapok]

Excellent news.

Not being funny Mr B but he was bloody rubbish for us, you may say he wasn't given a chance, he didn't play that often but when thats the case you take the bull by the horns and show people what you can do. He had a couple of good games but the majority of the time he was crap, never looked up when he ran with the ball and his crossing and shooting never ceased to amaze me, how could we pay all that money for a very average player?.

I've seen him a few times on Chelsea TV and he comes across as a nice bloke, so I wish him well and good luck trying to restore his career.

[mrbojangles]

I don't think he really got given a chance Seapok. Chelsea have alot more quality and depth of players than city do at the moment. Would he have gotten into a Chelsea side prior to Abramovich arriving?

[mrbojangles]

Midtj'land 0-1 Man City (agg 1-1)

Man City win 4-2 on penalties

Manchester City qualified for the first round of the Uefa Cup thanks to Joe Hart's heroics in the penalty shoot-out against Danish side FC Midtjylland.

The goalkeeper made great saves from Jonas Borring and Kolja Afriyie to give City a 4-2 victory on penalties after they went close to being dumped out.

Danny Califf's injury time own goal gave City a lifeline after what was a poor display during the 90 minutes.

Ched Evans went close with a header and Daniel Sturridge's shot hit the bar.

Both Evans and Sturridge came on late during normal time and gave Mark Hughes's men the boost they so desperately needed.

Wales international Evans, 19, played a key role in the last-gasp goal that levelled the tie on aggregate.

Two minutes into stoppage time, Michael Ball, who had been one of City's best players, clipped in a cross from the left, which Evans managed to get his head to, but so did the unfortunate Califf, who sent the ball past keeper Lasse Heinze.

Buoyed by their change in fortunes, City went for the win in extra time and both Evans, with a four-yard header, and Sturridge, with a 20-yard shot that hit the bar, went close to settling the tie before penalties.

But, almost inevitably, the match went to the ultimate of sporting deciders.

It seemed City's luck had run out after Michael Johnson had his kick saved by Heinze with the scores at 2-2.

But Hart came to the rescue with a fantastic dive to the right to palm away Borring's effort. And after Dietmar Hamann fired past Heinze, Hart put the fate of the tie in City's hands when he saved low to his left from Afriyie.

The clinching penalty was left to Vedran Corluka, who rifled past Heinze before being predictably mobbed by his team-mates.

Over the two legs, Midtjylland deserved the win. They had numerous chances to wrap up an aggregate victory on their home patch, with substitute Collins Babajide going close with a header and two efforts from inside the area in the last 15 minutes.

Only in the last five minutes of the match did it seem that City had realised they were about to exit the European competition.

Prior to that, Martin Petrov and Elano, with two low shots, were the only City players who really tested Heinze, in a match that saw £18m striker Jo make his debut and Micah Richards recover from concussion to play in central midfield.

Hughes and his team will consider themselves lucky to have progressed as they go looking for the club's first piece of major silverware in 32 years.

[lazeeboy]

taksin will be pleased .doubt he will be wATCHING AWAY GAMES THOUGH

[totlanh]

Thought City were SOOOO bad last night but somehow we scrapped through.So happy that SWP has come back and i think given time and hopefully the return of his confidence which was shattered by Chelsea he will prove to be an excellent signing.With Petrov down the left and SWP down the right i think Jo should get the service he needs and i really think we could be a potent force given time.....

[mrbojangles]

Excellent news.

Not being funny Mr B but he was bloody rubbish for us, you may say he wasn't given a chance, he didn't play that often but when thats the case you take the bull by the horns and show people what you can do. He had a couple of good games but the majority of the time he was crap, never looked up when he ran with the ball and his crossing and shooting never ceased to amaze me, how could we pay all that money for a very average player?.

Have you got anymore "crap" players you'd like to offload to us

2 goals on his return debut

[redrus]

Shaun Wright Phillips, he's a donkey..............

redrus

[mrbojangles]

Shaun Wright Phillips, he's a donkey..............

[mrbojangles]

From skysports:-

Mark Hughes hailed his Manchester City side for their emphatic 3-0 win away to Sunderland thanks to a Shaun Wright-Phillips brace.

From the start City looked the more threatening in front of goal with South American Jo proving a handful and Wright-Phillips announcing his comeback with a well taken brace.

"I was delighted with the performance it's been a difficult week having to play in Europe on Thursday night," Hughes told Sky Sports.

"I thought they were excellent from start to finish, we had real purpose to our play, good accurate passing and got the goals when we needed."

Hughes was particularly proud of his debutant Wright-Phillips, who recently returned to City following an short spell at Chelsea, and lone striker Jo.

On SWP he said: "Everybody's delighted that he's back at his club.

"You saw the reaction after the goals, he was absolutely delighted, so it was a great day for him.

"He wasn't the only one who had a decent performance, I thought Jo was excellent today."

Before half-time, Stephen Ireland fired home from close range after he guided Michael Johnson's cut-back past Craig Gordon.

Then, after the interval, Wright-Phillips tapped in Jo's drilled ball across the box and then placed a clinical effort into the bottom corner from a Michael Ball clearance.

"Today was a performance of intelligence, we understood exactly what we wanted to do today," Hughes said.

"We got the rewards for it, it was an excellent performance from start to finish."

As the transfer deadline looms on 1st September, with the City boss recruiting Espanyol defender Pablo Zabaleta to his promising squad, he still remained coy over more new arrivals.

"We're bringing good players to the club, that's what we need to do. Obviously I've got good players already here so I'm just complementing what I've already got and try to push the club forward.

"I'm sure tomorrow will be busy for a number of players and clubs. We'll wait and see."

[mrbojangles]

From skysports

City capture Brazilian stopper

Glauber becomes Hughes' sixth new signing

Manchester City have followed up the signing of Pablo Zabaleta by bringing in Glauber Berti on a one-year contract.

Argentine defender Zabaleta completed his move to City on Sunday morning and has now been joined in the Premier League by Glauber.

The Brazilian has spent the past two-and-a-half years with Nurnberg and made 19 appearances in the Bundesliga last season.

However, following Nurnberg's relegation from the top flight, Glauber has opted to accept a move to the Premier League.

He has accepted a 12-month deal with Mark Hughes' side and does not require a work permit as he holds Italian citizenship.

The 25-year-old becomes Hughes' sixth summer signing following the deals for Zabaleta, Tal Ben Haim, Jo, Shaun Wright-Phillips and Vincent Kompany.

[LeungKen]

Hey BJ I think Vedran Corluka has gone to Spurs can you confirm ?

[Chaimai]

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/...115090724?f=dta

[redrus]

Shaun Wright Phillips, he's a donkey..............

Awe, there's just no fooling you now is there....!

redrus

[mrbojangles]

Hey BJ I think Vedran Corluka has gone to Spurs can you confirm ?

Yeah he has Ken. There was talk of it over the last month or so, cos he wants to be with his Croatian buddy at Spurs. But Mark Hughes wouldn't let him go unless we got a replacement for him, which we have now just signed.

[lawling]

Hey BJ I think Vedran Corluka has gone to Spurs can you confirm ?

Yeah he has Ken. There was talk of it over the last month or so, cos he wants to be with his Croatian buddy at Spurs. But Mark Hughes wouldn't let him go unless we got a replacement for him, which we have now just signed.

I'm sorry to see him go. I thought he was good.

[redrus]

CITY MAKE BERBATOV BID - REPORTS

Posted 01/09/08 11:54

Manchester City are reported to have launched an audacious attempt to sign Dimitar Berbatov from under the noses of city rivals Manchester United following their takeover by an Abu Dhabi investment group.

With Abu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment understood to have agreed a deal to buy City from the disgraced Thaksin Shinawatra on Sunday night, the Manchester Evening News reports that a 'dramatic 11th hour bid for United's number one target Dimitar Berbatov' has been sanctioned.

The newspaper claims that the Abu Dhabi group's 'first instruction to the Blues was to try and lure Berbatov for a reputed £28m.'

The Bulgarian is nonetheless expected to complete his long-awaited transfer to Manchester United later today with other reports suggesting that Frazier Campbell will be used as a makeweight in the deal.

Gonna get a wildcard into The Champions League too.....

redrus

[mrbojangles]

Gonna get a wildcard into The Champions League too.....

These guys apparently have enough money to buy it

If all this speculation is true and comes to pass, Man Uniteds biggest nightmare is about to happen. Think about Red, think about it. Think about it, until you can't get a winks sleep tonight

[Sunderland]

The Guardian are reporting that Man City have offered an incredible £37million for Dimitar Berbatov.

[redrus]

Gonna get a wildcard into The Champions League too.....

These guys apparently have enough money to buy it

If all this speculation is true and comes to pass, Man Uniteds biggest nightmare is about to happen. Think about Red, think about it. Think about it, until you can't get a winks sleep tonight

:D

Five LOL's, you iz gettin fuuunier and fuuunier.....! We gonna have to sort out a meet while the weather's still ok and well, if you're on a roll. Are you in the country at the moment...?

redrus

[redrus]

The Guardian are reporting that Man City have offered an incredible £37million for Dimitar Berbatov.

Spurs have accepted it but, will 'he' go there....!

redrus

[mrbojangles]

Are you in the country at the moment...?

Get back on friday for 3 weeks buddy

[redrus]

Are you in the country at the moment...?

Get back on friday for 3 weeks buddy

Wahey, where you been? Do i remember something about The middle East?

redrus

[mrbojangles]

Are you in the country at the moment...?

Get back on friday for 3 weeks buddy

Wahey, where you been? Do i remember something about The middle East?

Yeah, i've been in Saudi since May. So i'm ready for a pint or 12 of Boddington's