Manchester City

Palace snap up Macken from City
Striker Jon Macken has left Manchester City to join Crystal Palace for an undisclosed fee. The 27-year-old, who signed for City for £5m in 2002, decided to continue his career elsewhere after being told he had no future at Eastlands. "I was very disappointed to be told by Stuart Pearce I would not figure highly in his plans for next season," he said. "Palace were unlucky to be relegated last year and I'm looking forward to the chance to take them back up again." Macken, who failed to establish himself as a regular first-team player at City, was quicky snapped up by Palace because of his impressive goalscoring record in the Championship. "I felt as though things were just starting to come together for me at City. The team were playing well and there was a real buzz about the place," he added. "But I need to be playing regularly and having spoken to a few clubs, I was most impressed by Crystal Palace and in particular the manager and chairman . "They both have a reputation for being ambitious men and I was left in no doubt by either of them that a return to the Premiership was the only aim they had for this season."

Musampa stays at Man City on loan
Manchester City have agreed a deal to keep Atletico Madrid midfielder Kiki Musampa on loan for another season. The 28-year-old signed initially on loan during the January transfer window and impressed with a series of commanding performances. "I am delighted Kiki has committed himself to the club for another season," City boss Stuart Pearce told the club's website. "He did exceptionally well from January through until the end of he season." Pearce added: "And on the back of those impressive performances he received a call-up to the Dutch national squad. "If he continues to produce that sort of form I will be delighted." Musampa made 14 appearances for the club last season, scoring three goals - including a last-minute winner against Liverpool.

Musampa happy to extend City stay
Kiki Musampa said he is happy to stay with Manchester City as he feels he has adjusted to life in England. City have agreed a deal with Atletico Madrid to keep the 28-year-old Dutchman on loan for another season. "I am feeling good and I think it would have been bad for me if I had to go away and start a new life somewhere," Musampa told City's official website. "Now I know the culture and everything on the pitch, so I feel good. I don't have to switch my mind again." Musampa played 14 times for City last season, scoring three goals - including a memorable last-minute winner against Liverpool. "Stuart Pearce had let me know that he wanted me to stay, and obviously I enjoyed being here," he said. "It was always a dream of mine to play in England."

Wright-Phillips salutes City fans
Manchester City's England international winger Shaun Wright-Phillips says the backing he gets from fans is the reason he does not want to leave the club. The 23-year-old has been linked with a big-money move to Arsenal, Chelsea or Liverpool this summer. But Wright-Phillips told The Sun: "I am not thinking of moving. It is my home, the fans have really taken to me. "I went from the youth team to the first team and the fans supported me all the way. I'm settled here." Wright-Phillips also believes he can build on the form that saw him called into the England squad last season. He added: "You can always get better and always improve so that's what I do. "I work on my whole game and learn from the people around me, who I've benefited from tremendously, or the new players who come in to the club. "I'm always learning and you are never too old to stop learning new things and improve your game."

Man City backed for Uefa Cup slot
The Premier League wants Manchester City to take Liverpool's vacant slot in the Uefa Cup after they were handed a place in the Champions League. League chiefs reacted angrily after Uefa revealed City would not be able to step in as a replacement for Liverpool. They believe an English Uefa Cup place has now been taken away. A spokesman said: "We will be asking the FA to formally re-nominate Bolton, Middlesbrough and Manchester City in the three Uefa Cup places allocated." The League is also unhappy that Uefa has insisted that Liverpool must share in the cash pot awarded to England's four other Champions League entrants - Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Everton. The spokesman added: "We are very pleased for Liverpool and in many ways Uefa has taken a brave and correct decision. "However we do not feel this should have been at the expense of the English game's third Uefa Cup place, nor the Champions League pool as distributed between the four qualified clubs." Football Association chief executive Brian Barwick admitted he felt there was little hope of Uefa backing down over City's Uefa Cup place. "We have lobbied for Manchester City during the process while we've been lobbying for Liverpool," he told BBC Radio Five Live. "But Uefa have capped the number of teams at seven, going to the two European competitions - other than through the Intertoto or the fair-play and, therefore, it's unlikely that the door will be opened."

Man City 'cast eyes towards Bent'
Manchester City are lining up a £1m bid for Everton striker Marcus Bent, according to reports. City boss Stuart Pearce is said to have targeted the 27-year-old to bolster his attacking options. After selling Jonathan Macken to Crystal Palace, City have only Robbie Fowler as a senior striker. Out-of-favour Bent is likely to fall even further down the Goodison Park pecking order if Toffees boss David Moyes lands his summer targets. Everton are reportedly eyeing Newcastle striker Craig Bellamy and Swedish striker Johan Elmander who plays for Danish club Brondby. City boss Pearce will have noted that despite being apparently surplus to requirements at Goodison Park, Bent made 37 Premiership appearances last season, including six as substitute, and scored six Premiership goals to prove his ability to play in the top flight. The much-travelled Bent began at Brentford as a trainee and his journey has taken him to Crystal Palace, Port Vale and Sheffield United before a £2.1m move to Blackburn. From there, Bent moved to Ipswich in a £3m deal and had a loan spell at Leicester before joining Everton last June for £450,000.

Premiership trio head to Thailand
Everton, Bolton and Manchester City will all compete in the Premier League Trophy in Bangkok later in the summer. The trio will be joined by the Thai national team for the four-team knockout tournament. The English teams will also visit the island of Phuket to meet survivors of the tsunami disaster. "The passion and interest in the Premier League in Thailand meant it was a natural choice," said Premier League chief Dave Richards. The tournament will take place at Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok on 20 and 23 July. And Richards added: "By holding an event in Thailand we look forward to building on the strong relationships and enormous interest the Premier League enjoys throughout Asia. "In addition to the £1m donation we made to the Indian Ocean Appeal, we hope to help highlight the recovery of the region since the Indian Ocean earthquake as well as provide some presents and coaching for local children." The competition will be the second of its type to be held outside England. Chelsea, Newcastle and Birmingham all competed in Malaysia in 2003.

Everton mull defender Distin move
Everton have spoken to Manchester City about the possibility of signing French defender Sylvain Distin. The former Paris St Germain defender is one of several defenders boss David Moyes is looking at as he plans for Everton's Champions League campaign. "The two clubs have spoken about Distin, but he won't be back from holiday for another 10 days," Distin's agent Willie McKay told BBC Sport. In January Newcastle had a £5m bid rejected for 27-year-old Distin. The defender, who spent the 2001/02 season on loan with Newcastle, is likely to cost Everton £6m if City decide to sell.

Onuoha set to miss season opener
Manchester City boss Stuart Pearce fears 18-year-old defender Nedum Onuoha will miss the start of the new campaign with a hamstring injury. Onuoha picked up the problem in the final game of last season and Pearce expects him to be out for two months. Pearce told the club's website: "We thought it was a straightforward tear, so Nedum went through rehabilitation. "Things weren't progressing as the physios hoped and another scan showed the injury to be more severe." Pearce added: "I think we are talking about two months and while I hope that timescale can be reduced, I am acutely aware that you cannot rush problems like this. "Long-term player care is more important than a short-term fix and we need to get him right." The setback means Onuoha will miss City's pre-season tour of Thailand, plus the chance to play for England in the Under-19 European Championships in Northern Ireland next month.

City hold firm on Wright-Phillips
Manchester City have not received any offers for Shaun Wright-Phillips and insist he is definitely not for sale. Newspaper reports on Saturday claimed Chelsea were poised to sign the 23-year-old England international on a five-year contract for a fee of £18m. "Shaun has not been sold, we have received no bids for him nor will we encourage any," said City's head of communications Paul Tyrrell. "We want to set the record straight on this important matter." City manager Stuart Pearce is keen to hold on to Wright-Phillips despite the club being £60m in debt. Wright-Phillips only signed a new contract last season and has said he is not looking for a move. Wright-Phillips, joined City in the summer of 1998 having been a trainee at Nottingham Forest and has played almost 150 games for the club. Arsenal were also thought to be keen to sign him but could not compete with the spending power of Roman Abramovich. Spurs and Chelsea in Arneson deal Chelsea, who have also agreed a compensation deal with Tottenham over sporting director Frank Arneson, spent £8m earlier in the summer for Athletic Bilbao left-back Asier Del Horno.

Weaver suffers new injury setback
Manchester City goalkeeper Nicky Weaver is set to miss the start of the new season after being sidelined for two months with a wrist injury. City boss Stuart Pearce revealed Weaver broke a wrist in the final weeks of last season and has undergone surgery. Pearce told www.mcfc.co.uk: "He played with the problem and it was a niggling injury that we thought he could get away with. "After a couple of weeks we realised that was not going to happen." Pearce added: "He was having injections before matches and was happy to carry on in the hope that the bone would knit by itself during the summer. "He has had surgery and had the bone pinned. The rehab will be six weeks and there could be two weeks on top of that so we are looking at two months."

Triple injury boost for Man City
Three Manchester City players are closing in on full fitness after long-term injury problems. Sun Jihai, Trevor Sinclair and Geert de Vlieger could all be available for the Blues' pre-season trip to Thailand. "They have all shown a great aptitude in their training and a desire to get back to full fitness," said City manager Stuart Pearce. Sinclair and Sun both suffered ruptured cruciate ligaments, while Vlieger tore an Achilles tendon. Vlieger sustained his injury in a pre-season friendly shortly after arriving from Willem II and missed the entire season. Sinclair and Sun managed just 11 first-team appearances between them. "Geert has been working all summer," added Pearce. "Jihai was near enough fully fit at the end of the season anyway, has been working with his father in China and will return to us shortly, while Trevor Sinclair will be like a new player." If the trio come through the early stage of pre-season unscathed they should be part of Pearce's squad for the FA Premier League Asia Cup in Bangkok next month. City begin the new season with a home fixture against West Brom on 13 August.

Man City facing Olympiakos match
Manchester City will conclude their pre-season with a game against Greek champions Olympiakos on 6 August. Brazilian star Rivaldo is among the potential visitors to Eastlands for the game, which will see the sides compete for the Thomas Cook Trophy. Stuart Pearce's side begin pre-season with friendlies at Tranmere (15 July) and Macclesfield (16 July). They then head to Thailand for the inaugural Premier League Asia Trophy, together with Everton and Bolton.

City wait for Wright-Phillips bid
Manchester City midfielder Shaun Wright-Phillips returned for pre-season training on Thursday with his club still waiting for a bid from Chelsea. The Blues are poised to offer about £20m for the 23-year-old but City have had no contact yet from Chelsea. Manager Jose Mourinho is back from a break and after missing out on Steven Gerrard is keen to tie up the signing. City are in no hurry to part company with Wright-Phillips despite reported debts of about £60m. And they also know the player is happy at the club and in no hurry to leave - a state of affairs certain to strengthen their bargaining position. Wright-Phillips only signed a new contract last season and has said he is not looking for a move, stressing his contentment. Wright-Phillips joined City in the summer of 1998 having been a trainee at Nottingham Forest and has played almost 150 games for the club. Arsenal were also thought to be keen to sign him but could not compete with the spending power of Blues owner Roman Abramovich. Chelsea, who have also agreed a compensation deal with Tottenham over sporting director Frank Arneson, spent £8m earlier in the summer on Athletic Bilbao left-back Asier Del Horno.

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