Transfer Talk: Blue moan

Following the 8-1 mauling at the hands of Middlesbrough on the final day of last season, the awful handling of Sven-Goran Eriksson's sacking, the long and inevitably fruitless quest for Ronaldinho, their owner constantly teetering on the verge of extradition to his homeland on corruption charges and their humiliating UEFA Cup qualifying round defeat at the hands of Danish club Midtjylland, the news that City bigwigs have drawn up a wishlist of transfer targets that includes none other than Barcelona striker Thierry Henry is just the ticket to boost their credibility.
According to the Guardian, they are looking into the possibility of making the former Arsenal hitman the "box office signing" of the January transfer window.
Seeing as January is generally the time when movie studios try to bury any films that they expect to tank, the choice of words isn't really the best. It's highly unlikely of course, but you never know. A bad few months for Henry under new Barca boss Pep Guardiola and an exorbitant bid from city could turn this Sky Blue fantasy into a distinctly murky reality.
The arrival of Vincent Kompany has served only to encourage speculation about which City defender is about to jump ship, with the smart money on Vedran Corluka resurrecting his move to Tottenham Hotspur.
Back at Henry's old stomping ground, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger seems intent on upsetting as many Scousers as possible.
He refuses to rule out a move for perennial Liverpool target Gareth Barry, a situation that Fabio Capello blames for the Aston Villa man's duff England performance.
"The Liverpool situation means he is not at his best," said Fabio Capello using only a complex set of gesticulations. Who can blame Barry? It's a tough business not knowing who is going to be paying your fabulously inflated wages.
The Times also has Wenger tracking Everton target Stephane Mbia , the £6.5m rated Rennes midfielder.
Mbia is covering his bases by hoping to play for both. He said: "I want to resume the season at Everton. It is the ideal springboard for my career."
The Mirror reckon the Toffees will finally break their duck with the £7m capture of Turkey's Gokhan Inler from Udinese, who have been shedding personnel faster than a pumpkin merchant on November 1.
Matter-of-fact Bolton Wanderers manager Gary Megson has confirmed he has shown an interest in Jimmy Bullard. "We have shown an interest [in Jimmy Bullard]," he said.
However, Fulham boss Woy Hodgson has wubbished the wumours, weiterating that Bulllard will wemain where he is.
The Indpendent go large on the sleeper hit of the summer, Albert Riera's move to Liverpool. Espanyol's director Paco Herrera is reputedly adamant that, like all good transfer sagas, it will lead to nothing.
Transfer Talk will have to ask Patrick Moore how much Wigan want for Wilson Palacios after Steve Bruce said it would take an "astronomical sum of money" to buy him.
Finally, Jordi Lopez has his eye on Antonio Nunez's crown as the worst former Real Madrid player to join a Premier League club. He is on trial at Blackburn Rovers.Tony Mabert / Eurosport