Whilst we still have the same title-winning squad as last year I honestly believe it's foolhardy to believe that simply winning the title once means that we should no longer be as actively trying to strengthen.
A bit of prudence is key, now that we have won two trophies in two years, so the club should no longer accept being 'bullied' into paying a 'City-bonus' on top of a transfer targets fee; however, I think the club may have gone too far which is causing the current stagnancy in the market.
That said, my opinion is that we need at least two quality signings this window in order to strengthen the squad. On top of that if player's like Dzeko and De Jong do leave their transfer fees will also need to be reinvested in the squad.
The areas we should be looking to strengthen first and foremost are obviously centre-back and central midfield. The loss of Yaya and Kolo for the African Cup of Nations (which I remind everyone is on again this year) will hit us hard again, and with likely stronger competition for the league this year could prove costly. Obviously Mancini has indicated his desire to purchase a player who has the ability to cover both these positions, hence our interest in De Rossi and Javi Martinez. I'm in agreement with others in this thread that the signing of Jan Vertonghen would have been ideal and was a horrific oversight on our part for not even registering interest. Two other players that could do a job for us that haven't been mentioned are Sandro and Alex Song though they's likely command greater prices.
Whilst Sahin would be an excellent signing I can't see him winning a place in a side that is already packed with creative talent, and he doesn't really bring the defensive stability required to compete for Barry or Yaya's starting roles. So for me no deal.
Agger would be an excellent purchase if we do end up buying a pure CB, however, Lpool are likely to hold out for more money. I'm suprised no-ones mentioned Thiago Silva so far, whilst he certainly wasn't cheap, he would have been a fantastic addition to the squad.
As far as attacking purchases go, I honestly don't think we need a natural ST. With Balotelli, Dzeko, Aguero and (a happy) Tevez we're set. Each of those players scored en masse last season so there's no need to buy Van Persie. However, if this results in RVP heading to the scum then it'll obviously be a blow.
If I was Mancini I'd be more inclined to look for players that provide a scoring/or creating threat from the wing. Edinson Cavani, people seem to be forgetting, is capable of providing such a threat, unlike Falcao, RVP (who are better natural ST but in my opinion should only be an option if Dzeko leaves). Xherdan Shaqiri was indeed another unfortunate oversight, and would have provided an option for natural width on the right that currently Milner only really provides. I also find our lack of interest in Gaston Ramirez interesting as the current 15m being touted for his signature seems like a fantastic deal for a player with excellent potential and sell-on value.
So to recap:
1. We do need to strengthen
2. We need a CB, CM first and foremost
3. A player who provides width would be nice if we're serious about strengthening
4. If we lose Dzeko, De Jong, Kolarov they MUST be replaced with players of par quality (else we've effectively weakened)
A bit of prudence is key, now that we have won two trophies in two years, so the club should no longer accept being 'bullied' into paying a 'City-bonus' on top of a transfer targets fee; however, I think the club may have gone too far which is causing the current stagnancy in the market.
That said, my opinion is that we need at least two quality signings this window in order to strengthen the squad. On top of that if player's like Dzeko and De Jong do leave their transfer fees will also need to be reinvested in the squad.
The areas we should be looking to strengthen first and foremost are obviously centre-back and central midfield. The loss of Yaya and Kolo for the African Cup of Nations (which I remind everyone is on again this year) will hit us hard again, and with likely stronger competition for the league this year could prove costly. Obviously Mancini has indicated his desire to purchase a player who has the ability to cover both these positions, hence our interest in De Rossi and Javi Martinez. I'm in agreement with others in this thread that the signing of Jan Vertonghen would have been ideal and was a horrific oversight on our part for not even registering interest. Two other players that could do a job for us that haven't been mentioned are Sandro and Alex Song though they's likely command greater prices.
Whilst Sahin would be an excellent signing I can't see him winning a place in a side that is already packed with creative talent, and he doesn't really bring the defensive stability required to compete for Barry or Yaya's starting roles. So for me no deal.
Agger would be an excellent purchase if we do end up buying a pure CB, however, Lpool are likely to hold out for more money. I'm suprised no-ones mentioned Thiago Silva so far, whilst he certainly wasn't cheap, he would have been a fantastic addition to the squad.
As far as attacking purchases go, I honestly don't think we need a natural ST. With Balotelli, Dzeko, Aguero and (a happy) Tevez we're set. Each of those players scored en masse last season so there's no need to buy Van Persie. However, if this results in RVP heading to the scum then it'll obviously be a blow.
If I was Mancini I'd be more inclined to look for players that provide a scoring/or creating threat from the wing. Edinson Cavani, people seem to be forgetting, is capable of providing such a threat, unlike Falcao, RVP (who are better natural ST but in my opinion should only be an option if Dzeko leaves). Xherdan Shaqiri was indeed another unfortunate oversight, and would have provided an option for natural width on the right that currently Milner only really provides. I also find our lack of interest in Gaston Ramirez interesting as the current 15m being touted for his signature seems like a fantastic deal for a player with excellent potential and sell-on value.
So to recap:
1. We do need to strengthen
2. We need a CB, CM first and foremost
3. A player who provides width would be nice if we're serious about strengthening
4. If we lose Dzeko, De Jong, Kolarov they MUST be replaced with players of par quality (else we've effectively weakened)