According to ESPN Soccernet, Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini admitted that he is not close to signing Inter Milan defender Ivan Cordoba but stated that a deal is possible. When asked if he was close to signing Cordoba, Mancini said:

“No, not for now. At the moment, what is important is this game and Manchester United. We are not talking about transfers. It’s possible, but not now, no.”

UPDATE: According to Arindam Rej at the Daily Mail, Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill would like to keep midfielder Craig Gardner but realizes that it might not be possible. O’Neill said,

“A number have enquired but there’s been nothing definite. In an ideal world, I’d like him to stay but players like to play. He’s one I’d like to keep but it might not be possible.”

“He’s not sure about things. His training has been good but he’s a bit down. I had thoughts of him playing against Blackburn (on Saturday) but decided to leave it alone.”

December 30th, 2009 According to Sky Sports News, Birmingham and Wolverhampton are both interested in Aston Villa midfielder Craig Gardner. It is reported that Gardner could leave the club for around £3million.

UPDATE: Sami Mokbel at the Daily Mail is now reporting that Manchester City are interested in Victor Moses.

According to Paul Smith at MirrorFootball, Crystal Palace superstar Victor Moses is happy at the club although he did admit that he would be tempted to play a higher level. Moses, who has been linked with Liverpool the past month, said,

“I would be a liar if I said I had no interest in playing at the highest level in the game and if an offer came in for me that Palace felt was too good to turn down I would have to seriously consider it. But to be honest, I’m very grounded and I have a very supportive group of people who help me keep my feet firmly on the ground.”

“While I’m flattered by the interest from other clubs, I am very happy at Palace … Players are frequently accused of being disloyal to their clubs but I wouldn’t count myself among them … I owe a massive debt of gratitude to Palace. The chairman and manager have bent over backwards to help me and I have the utmost respect for them.”

According to Aidan McGee at News of the World, Manchester United are planning to bid £20million for FC Porto striker Hulk. Hulk’s agent Teodoro Fonseca said,

“The big clubs in England have been in contact … They have asked for details about his contract situation but any decision about his future rests mainly with the directors of Porto.”

“I am calm about the situation and so is the player because he has an excellent future. I think we could be discussing a move in April or May.”