Manchester City chiefs want owner Sheikh Mansour to fund a new striker signing in January. The Mail on Sunday says City's top executives Garry Cook and Brian Marwood leave for Abu Dhabi today where they will hold pre-arranged talks with Mansour about the club's spending plans in the January transfer window, with Wolfsburg's £40million-rated striker Edin Dzeko and Liverpool's Fernando Torres on the agenda.
The high-level meeting could not have come at a more awkward time for City or manager Roberto Mancini, who was booed by fans after substituting Carlos Tevez during yesterday's 0-0 draw with Birmingham, the third home game in a row City have failed to score.
Sheikh Mansour might be tempted to ask chief executive Cook and Marwood, football administration officer, why £300m spent on players is not enough to put City alongside Premier League leaders Chelsea rather than the nine-point gap that will open up if Carlo Ancelotti's men beat Sunderland today.