Hughes wants to bring in the experienced Ivory Coast international to put pressure on Micah Richards and Richard Dunne.
Both defenders were outstanding in the 3-0 win over the Gunners on Saturday but the City chief is determined to bring in top-class competition in the January transfer window after his side conceded ten times in five consecutive outings from the end of October.
A reported £60m move for Chelsea's John Terry is a non-starter but Arsenal's 27-year-old battled-hardened defender would fit the bill, especially as another Arsene Wenger re-build looks on the cards at the Emirates.
Israeli Tal Ben Haim has failed to shine when given his chance to press his claims for City and Nedum Onuoha has been handed just one league start all season. If Toure does come in then one of those two, most likely Onuoha, would push for a move out.
Recruits
England Under-21 regular Onuoha would not be short of top flight alternatives at a cost of around £5m.
Toure could be one of several defensive recruits in January with Hughes set on adding to his goalkeeping strength and bringing in a left-back to rival Javier Garrido.
It could be that Michael Ball is on the way out of the club with Sunderland and Blackburn said to be keen on his services.
Hughes will also pursue midfielder Lassana Diarra at Portsmouth to free up Shaun Wright-Phillips to move back to the right flank and then renew his interest in Blackburn striker Roque Santa with a whopping £18m bid.
Neither expensive Brazilian Jo nor Benjani have looked in prime scoring form this season and Hughes knows Santa Cruz will be suited to the Blues' current style.
Would you like to see Toure at City? Have your say.
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I thought Santa Cruz was excellent in a poor Blackburn side yeaterday. They pumped high balls up to him all afternoon and near every time he found a man or held it up. His strength up front would allow Robhino / SWP plenty space.
Toure and Diarra would add to a stronger spine.
Still we need a pacy strong left back. I would also like to see a Gareth Barry type. Even in Diarra / Kompany we are still short of cover in that hard working midfield area.
I see the show pony, Ronaldo, is getting `rested' in the midweek Euro game in time for the Derby this weekend. Injured my eye. In or out it won't make a difference. Give him hell on Sunday and don't forget 44000 shouts of PENALTY when he goes down on the halfway line like a sack of spuds. 100% wil win us the game AGAIN!!!.
MEN, where's this one come from ?
I can't see any quotation marks in the article.
If City do manage to bring in Toure,Diarra,Santa Cruz,Buffon and Bridge then you have to say it would be considered a good transfer window. All of them have Premiership experience(Buffon the exception of course) which will be vital when joining the team mid-season,they are already up to the pace of the Premier League,and the second half of the season could be an interesting one.
Toure would be a great acquisition and could even sit in alongside Kompany in the middle of the park!
My prediction last Tuesday -
City 3 Gooners (without THIER Fabrigas) 0.
King of Dong, Uphill Gardens, Heaton Misery
19/11/2008 at 10:14
10/10 for me, methinks.
Sunday - Big City 3 Little ManUre 1.
He`s a pretty good defender, has the odd lapse in concentration(ala Distin) but great athlete too, would need a good solid, dependable partner though.
With regards to who may leave I would certainly rather keep Ned(who can also fill in at right back) than TBH.
toure would be an amazing signing. don't want to get my hopes up though as i still struggle to believe we can sign players like him yet (i still can't believe we've got robinho).
diarra is exactly what we need. i think the reason swp has been playing in the middle is because hughes knows that elano just isn't going to put tackles in like he did on sunday.
would much rather have owen than santa cruz
Also, I agree with Jersey Blue, not the greatest RSC fan myself but yesterday I was really impressed with him.
I have never slagged hughes off, but i feel you must question his judgement, if he pays 18 million for that one season wonder at blackburn. Surely to god he can come up with someone better than cruz. I just know this player is not good enough, no better than what we already have. Toure will put pressure on dunne and richards, but can anyone honestly say cruz will improve us up front. Rather have owen or defoe if there available. From 3.5 mill to 18 mill in a season i dont think so.
Not Kolo Toure for me. I think he's the most over rated defender in the premiership. Out of position so often.
However, a massive improvement on what we already have.
yes toure would be a good signing , would complement dunne well, richards can be right back / compete with zabaleta , can move to middle in emergency.
as for ronaldo , we need to jeer his every move , he was wound up by the villa fans on saturday , perhaps we can get him sent off as he's inclined to have a dig back at people who manage to tackle him
king of dong.
Well done in predicting the score mate 10/10. Every week me and my mates try and predict first goalscorer and correct score. It is incredibly hard. Any prompters on first goalscorer on sunday ?????
Touré would be a marvellous signing, but are Arsenal selling? Given the current problems, selling one of their lynchpin players would hardly be wise. Does anybody know how long his contract has to run, or whether he has reported he wants out or anything?
Still, money talks, and we reputedly have a few bob to spare. Hope it comes off – he’s precisely what we need.
Toure would be a great signing. We need an experience and quality defender. Although I think Dunne is a good player at the moment, he is not one that will be good enough in the direction City want to go. I would also sell/release Ben Haim over Onuoha.
With regards 'johntheface' comment on signing Owen over Roque, i totally disagree. He is not the type of strike who could play as a lone forward. Roque totally suits our style of play. Although Jo may not be a goalscorer, i still think he is the best to play the lone front man. He is a fantastic target man, and with Robinho, Wright-Philips and Ireland to play of him, we would be dangerous. Count how many headers he wins next time he plays - doesn't lose many!
Kolo Toure would be terrific signing he always shows great enthusiasm every game,if he could bring his kid brother with him also that would really be a coup. As much as I admire Sant Cruz who I had in my own fantasy team last season, Blackburn were only able to sign him so cheaply because because of his poor injury record. Bayern Munich also sold Hargreaves to United knowing he had previous injury problems and look what has happened to him. While I am a great believer in bringing in proven Premiership players, I think that their are a lot of good strikers out their who are playing for their country. I quite like the look of Yohann Gourcuff who has just broken into the French team,his physique and style are almost identical to that of Santa Cruz.
Here is my predictions for who we bring in.
Jan; In
Toure,Diarra,Huntelaar,Benayoun
Jan: out
Ball,Onohua,Evans,Hammaan
Summer Window:OUT
Vassell,Dunne,Fernandes,Caceido,Schemical,Benjani,Elano
IN:Messi,Benzcema,Matsekar(german captain and centre half)Kaka,Buffon,Bridge.
Toure to Citeh...From the frying pan into the fire
Forget about RSC..he is a proven pl player..but i dont think he is top top quality, he does have rough edges..
Jo, i feel, will come good. It takes time sometimes for strikers, let alone south american ones, to settle. He can be the "target man" - i would spend double on Aguero to support him. playing in behind. Think of this lads, Jo up top, with Aguero behind him, Robinho slightly to the left and Wrighty to the right!!!...personally if we could attract players like De Rossi(getting a bit carried away am i?), thats who i would go for him, but Diarra has impressed.
Toure is proven so no qualms bout that, and Taiwo or Bale for left back..
Sorry to change the subject,but where are all the Anti-Hughes brigade today. Was only last week that everyone was saying he must go etc and that we can't trust him with the money!! Really brasses me off a lot of fans who change like the wind. Either support the manager or don't!Now I will leave you all to find your internet feeds to watch the game for next week. !!
According to Sky tv Colin Kazim-Richards is a City target. Please do not contemplate signing this poisoned dwarf MH. Saw him in the Euros (usually played a few minutes before being subbed) and wouldn't sign fim for Moss Side Tesco.
On another note-did anyone listen to Hawksby and Jacobs on Friday.Jacobs has a hatred of City like no one else all over Robinho and to quote him "City are on the verge of self-destruction" and predicted a 3-0 loss. It was most satisfying walking out of the ground on Saturday evening in the knowledge that his team couldnt even beat Chelsea!!Chelsea skins-where are you???
Ted knott is my hero, warrington
24/11/2008 at 09:32
Cheers for the recognition son.
First ( and last ) scorer - simply Robbo.
According to Sky tv Colin Kazim-Richards is a City target. Please do not contemplate signing this poisoned dwarf MH. Saw him in the Euros (usually played a few minutes before being subbed) and wouldn't sign fim for Moss Side Tesco.
jackblue, Prescot
24/11/2008 at 10:02
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE NO. RUBBISH. HE SHOULDNT HAVE BEEN A CITY TARGET EVEN THREE OR FOUR SEASONS AGO. STAY WELL CLEAR.
If Kolo Toure is a transfertarget, than we might as well try for his brother Youro at Barcelona instead of Diarra.
If Ball is on his way, we indeed need a leftback to challenge Garrido. Don't think we have a ready stand-in from the youth setup yet. And although Garrido is getting better every week, I am for healthy competition everywhere in the team.
An experience goallie is a must, but 50 million for Buffon would be ridiculous money. Hart can learn much more (so can Schmeichel), but it does not have to be a no.1 target. Pity Schmeichel didn't get the chance to show his potential, but Hart simply is a fantastic talent.
Santa Cruz up front could indeed be the ideal man that Hughes is looking for. But we already score loads, we are creating numerous chances, Bojinov will be back, Jo needs a bit more time to adjust, and Sturridge/Evans both can prove theur worth and grow up a bit further. So why not wait until the summer.