Mancini pessimistic on Serie A buys

The prospects of our taking Mathieu Flamini from AC Milan seem to have taken a bit of a knock, as Mancini has said that a move for Flamini - or for Giorgio Chiellini of Juventus - are unlikely:

Mancini said: "I think it's impossible Chiellini will leave Juventus, because he's their best defender right now. He's the best defender in Italy, probably.

"Flamini is a good player. But he is part of a Milan side who are doing very well in Serie A at the moment. They are only six points behind Inter. I don't think he would want to leave that at the moment. For me, Chiellini and Flamini are impossible."

It's a bit of a shame but not a disaster. Having signed Patrick Vieira Flamini would be more valuable as a full-back than a midfielder, and we do have a good stable of centre-backs at the moment without Chiellini. I'd love us to spend big there but with Vincent Kompany in the form he's in I'm not sure our season necessarily depends on it. And there are other targets out there.