Mancini coy on summer plans

03 May 2013 15:47

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini intends to keep his summer recruitment plans under wraps until the end of the season.

Having been dethroned as champions by rivals Manchester United, City could make major squad changes in the close season a bid to reclaim lost ground next term. Mancini missed on all his prime transfer targets last year and eventually made a series of mostly disappointing signings late in the summer window.

He may want to move more decisively and earlier this time but, with numerous names being linked with the Etihad Stadium, he is not divulging much information. Mancini even joked that he may not be the right person ask, given the amount of speculation there has been over his own future throughout the season. He said: "You want to speak with me, with Pellegrini, with Guardiola, with Mourinho, with who?"

He added: "My strategy is only one, to get the second position and try and win the FA Cup. After this we start to work for next year."

One player City have been linked heavily with this week is Shakhtar Donetsk's £20million-rated Brazilian midfielder Fernandinho. Mancini downplayed the rumour when asked about it at his press conference to preview this weekend's Premier League trip to Swansea, saying he expected the summer market to be competitive.

He said: "I don't know this. We can talk about Fernandinho. Fernandinho is a good player but he plays for Shakhtar. I don't think there are a lot of good players (available) around the world. There are also four or five top teams who want to buy good players. It could be difficult."

With any new arrivals there could be departures and several City players have been linked with possible exits. Winger Scott Sinclair has been linked with a return to his former club Swansea and Mancini has conceded his future could lie elsewhere.

The 24-year-old has struggled to catch the eye of Mancini and started just three games since his £6.2million move from the Liberty Stadium last August.

Mancini said: "This situation with Sinclair is difficult because I didn't give him a lot of chances to play. He is very unlucky. It is my fault, not his fault. A young player like Scott who is a good player deserves to play always.

"For him, it was a really difficult year this year."

Source: PA