Manchester City are believed to be in advanced talks to sign Eliaquim Mangala from Porto. The fee is in the region of £32million, according to BBC Sport.
Manchester United were accused of having a bit of a limp midfield last season, with Marouane Fellaini providing the only bit of aggression of the central players. Michael Carrick can rake the ball all over the pitch for 90 minutes and Tom Cleverley can make sideways passes, but neither will get in amongst the tackles or make life difficult for the opposition. Perhaps that’s the reason why they are being linked with this former Manchester City battler.
Gareth Barry is a player who does what he needs to do. Nothing more. He’s a solid player who has never had the glitz and glamour of a football player attached to him, but has sculpted a successful career at the top of the game. Now, as his contract at Manchester City draws to a close, I would suggest that Arsenal take a punt on the free transfer.
With Roberto Mancini just a faint memory now, City have looked towards a not-so-but-maybe unorthodox choice in leadership in the form of Manuel “The Engineer” Pellegrini