No easy money to be made from City - Hughes

15th November 2008

Manchester City manager Mark Hughes has warned potential sellers they will face a hard time negotiating with the Blues new owners during the January transfer window.

Hughes also knows he can start planning to improve his squad, with Roque Santa Cruz, Wayne Bridge and Lassana Diarra all thought to be on his shopping list, putting Blackburn, Chelsea and cash-strapped Portsmouth on red alert.

But while the Welshman has been assured cash will be made available from owner Sheikh Mansour's vast fortune, he does not feel that means City will be prepared to pay exorbitant fees for any potential new arrivals.

"There is a danger that people look at us, see a club that can be strong in the market and try to charge top dollar," he reflected.

"But Sheikh Mansour and chairman Khaldoon are very astute businessmen. They have business projects all over the world that are managed correctly.

"The investments they make are done with cool business heads. That will apply to any acquisitions we want to make at Manchester City."