Manchester City Transfer Rumours: 8 Strikers Linked to the Citizens

Even though Manchester City are the top of the English Premier League and have what is believed to be one of the most talented strike cores in all of Europe, the Citizens are still being linked to even more attacking talent.

Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and Mario Balotelli have combined for 40 goals in the EPL alone and are all ranked in the top 10 of the EPL scoring charts. The return of Carlos Tevez is expected to give a little extra boost if he can get back to goal scoring form.

However, it seems the club are in no mood to settle for even top-10 attacking talent.

Tevez is likely to leave in the summer and both Aguero and Balotelli could be expendable. The only player not seemingly believed to be packed up and sent out is Dzeko.

With nine games left in the EPL schedule, the Citizens are still maintaining their two-point advantage over Manchester United but if they fail to hold them off and finish second, it will be certain the attack is going to be primarily blamed.

All of that combined has led to much speculation as to who Manchester City are likely to try and pick up this summer.

Stevan Jovetic

Caughtoffside reports that Steven Jovetic of Italian Serie A side Fiorentina is hoping that Manchester City will come after him this summer.

Jovetic leads his club with 12 goals this campaign and has helped the Viola get above the dreaded relegation zone, but three losses in their last four matches once again have them in fear of dropping too far down the table.

The 22-year-old goal scorer is also likely to be a target of Liverpool in the summer and City will have to fight off multiple suitors in order to claim the talented young goal scorer if he indeed fits their needs.

Daniel Sturridge

Football Gossip has linked Daniel Sturridge with a possible return to Manchester City after only leaving the club just over 18 months ago.

The young Chelsea striker made his first breakthroughs with Manchester City back in 2007 with several strong performances, scoring two goals and adding an assist.

After having joined from Coventry in 2003, he spent seven seasons with City before his contract was allowed to expire in 2010 and he moved to Stamford Bridge.

Under Andre Villas-Boas, Sturridge was given a strong chance to impress and has so far scored nine goals in the EPL.

With the future of the club in the balance, he could make a big-money return to Eastlands.

Hulk

TalkSport are reporting that Hulk is another powerful striker on the Citizens' radar.

However, the real drawback of trying to sign the Brazilian forward is his massive release clause from FC Porto.

City were in the hunt with Chelsea, but the dismissal of Andre Villas-Boas from the Blues could end the London club's pursuit of the high-priced striker.

Hulk has expressed aspirations to play at a larger club, but his comments seem to be showing him lean more towards Spain than England:

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"I have a lot of affection for Porto but who would not want to play for Barcelona with the quality they have?

"Barcelona or Real Madrid, I think I would say yes to playing for these teams."

"

Fernando Llorente Torres

Athletic Bilbao have produced great talents in the world of football. One of their most recent players to truly start to rise to prominence is 27-year-old Fernando Llorente.

TalkSport has linked the 6'5" attacker with Manchester City as well as Tottenham and Barcelona.

With his contract set to expire in June of 2013, this summer and the coming January are likely to see many teams chase Llorente, who has averaged close to or over 20 goals per season across all competitions in the last four seasons.

Edinson Cavani

A major bid in the range of £50 million is being reported by Goal.com as what the Citizens could be willing to offer Italian Serie A side Napoli for their gangly Uruguayan striker, Edinson Cavani.

The player has been highly rated since joining the Neapolitan side from Palermo.

Cavani is another third-ranked goal scorer, with 16 goals in his respected league.

It would be a tall task for the English side to secure the services of the player, but the lure of the EPL title challenge and Champions League action may be enough if the offer is right.

Gonzalo Higuain

Metro report that Manchester City are set to consider Real Madrid's possible offer of swapping Gonzalo Higuain for fellow Argentine forward Sergio Aguero.

Both have been in great form this season with Aguero the third-highest scorer in England and Higuain third in Spain's La Liga.

Each have managed 16 league goals and it is hard to imagine why either side would want to make the swap.

Ezequiel Lavezzi

Edinson Cavani is not the only Napoli player who has been linked with Manchester City, as Argentine forward Ezequiel Lzvezzi has also been rumored a target, according to the Daily Mail.

Although the Italian club has made it known that there is no way they are going to sell Lavezzi this summer, stranger things have happened than clubs making a u-turn.

The player scored a brace in the last Champions League match against Chelsea FC two weeks ago and has scored a total of seven goals in the Italian league while adding another three assists.

His primary ability as a second striker could be hugely influential on the scoring chances of Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko while allowing midfield playmaker David Silva even more time to create in the middle of the park.

Robin van Persie

With the Citizens not ready to settle for top 10 as previously mentioned, they are looking at trying to prise away the No. 1 scoring talent in the EPL this season.

Caughtoffside claim that the Sky Blues are going to make a minimum £35 million offer to Arsene Wenger and London-based Arsenal for captain Robin van Persie.

However, I truly cannot see the high-flying Dutchman abandoning the club, fans and manager that adore him.

If the Gunners can continue to play the way they did against AC Milan, they could be right back in the fight next season—making Van Persie's departure even more unlikely.

Conclusion

If Manchester City manage to hold on and win the English Premier League title, they are certain to have their pick of almost all of their believed attacking targets, but a stumble at the finish line could lessen their appeal.

However, it is no doubt that the project at the Etihad is going to involve some of the world's best footballing talent for years to come.

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