German playmaker interesting City?

Who was it that told us the days of lavish spending at Manchester City were a thing of the past?

Rather, the Daily Star are reporting that Roberto Mancini is interested in Real Madrid playmaker Mesut Ozil in a deal that could set the English champions back up to £30 million.

Before everyone jealously begins to hammer Mancini however, let us consider two things. Firstly, when you ask for Robin Van Persie, Eden Hazarad, Daniele De Rossi and Daniel Agger and instead get Jack Rodwell, Maicon, Matija Nastasic, Javi Garcia and Scott Sinclair, perhaps you hardly blame the City manager for his eagerness to enter the transfer window once again.

Secondly, it is clear that City require just that little bit extra to make progress in the Champions League. While everyone can try and convince themselves that their failures in Europe are simply down to their inexperience in the competition, perhaps there simply needs to be a realisation that the players at the club simply do not stand up to the very best in Europe.

The signing of Ozil would certainly go some way to addressing that. The thought of the German sliding balls through for the likes of Sergio Aguero to feed on is certainly one worth thinking about if you're a Manchester City fan, not so if you're a Manchester United follower!

Adam Mazrani