Rosario Central starlet Angel Di Maria is in London to finalise his move to Arsenal (various). Angel is a flying 19- year-old winger who Arsene is apparently interested in adding to his youthful squad. He impressed greatly when aiding Argentina to the Under-20 World Cup crown earlier in the month. That tournament has over the years thrown up many world-class prospects, so come on Wenger, get him to sign on the dotted line. The last time you took a winger with an eye for goal, he did pretty well, didn't he!

There can be no doubt the effect of having a high-profile manager at the helm of a football club. No doubt a great many football fans are still dubious about Sven-Goran Eriksson's tactical nous, not to say his apparent lack of passion, but he is clearly a man who is helping to get big names to Manchester City.

The fact he has access to a large transfer fund also helps and it seems the former England boss wants to spend, spend, spend. After capturing Martin Petrov, he has now set his sights on many other names that Spurs boss Martin Jol is also keen on capturing,. Let battle commence!

City are closing in on the £4.5m signing of  Newcastle United midfielder Kieron Dyer (The Sun). Dyer has been linked with a number of clubs, perhaps most notably the aforementioned City, Spurs and West Ham. If the figure concerned is indeed £4.5m, then that represents a real bargain. SGE gave Dyer a large proportion of his 32 England caps but Kieron may feel a London move would be more beneficial.

Spurs could use his services as undoubtedly could West Ham. It is pivotal point in Dyer's somewhat stop-start career; let's hope that money is not the only motivating factor for the 28-year-old. All three clubs seem to be on the up so it is a good position to be in . He has featured in pre-season matches at Newcastle, who under Big Sam Allardyce could have a lot more to offer him. So maybe he will be encouraged to stay at St James' Park. Decisions, decisions, decisions - what would you do if you were in Dyer's size nines?

Sven has also enquired about  West Brom's £9m-rated centre-back Curtis Davies (The Sun). Davies's desire to leave the Baggies hasn't exactly been subtle. The youngster wants to be playing in the Premiership and that's understandable, as is Baggies chairman Jeremy Peace's insistence that they get an appropriate transfer fee.

It seems that the value of the player has been the biggest stumbling block to any move to date. It has long been thought that the main players in Curtis's future were Spurs and Arsenal; now City have joined the race. Davies will not be at The Hawthorns much longer and they deserve the £9m+ he is worth. Who will be the first club to wave their cheque book?

Eriksson will also turn his attentions to Juventus full-back Giorgio Chiellini, Nantes midfielder Emerse Fae and Olympiakos striker Nery Castillo (Daily Mirror). Sven is clearly keen to build a United Nations of a squad, and these three represent the growing young talent that is on the verge of blossoming, rather than aiming at more established names.

The City boss is maybe trying to adopt the Arsene Wenger approach to digging out muddy gems and turning them into diamonds. He certainly didn't have this approach when he almost bankrupted Lazio with a series of record-busting moves, which did in fairness clinch him a Serie A title, but almost sank Lazio into administration. Let's hope City's Thai owner has a bottomless pit of financial reserves.

Meanwhile, City may be have to act quickly to sign Racing Santander striker Nikola Zigic. The Times says Zigic, the Serbia forward valued at more than £10 million by Santander, has been offered to City, Spurs and West Ham. As noted in this column recently, the giant Zigic has potential, especially in the bustling Premiership game. But is he worth £10m+? I don't think so, but I'm not a Premiership boss, and probably never will be!

Another Times rumour is that City are planning a bid for Liverpool goalkeeper Scott Carson.The newspaper says that while a £6m offer would turn Anfield's head, it is unclear whether the Merseyside club would be willing to sell him. The important part of this potential signing is indeed whether Rafa Benitez wants to sell his second-string keeper. Carson is arguably the leading young keeper in the world but he still seems resigned to being behind consistent performer Pepe Reina at Anfield. As with Chris Kirkland, Benitez may just have to step aside rather than stunt the career of England's next No.1. Carson may not want to leave Liverpool, but it could be unavoidable, especially if he wants to progress in his ever-burgeoning career.

Sir Alex Ferguson, it seems, is about to lose two more of his Manchester United squad members. Following the depature of Kieran Richardson to Sunderland, it now seems that Aston Villa are ready to rival Everton for England striker Alan Smith (Daily Mail). Ferguson has also admitted defender Mikael Silvestre may leave following a £3m offer from Lyon (Daily Mirror). Would the departure of either of these players have any real effect on United's ability to fight for all those trophies next term? In a word, no.

Middlesbrough are preparing to revive their interest in Spurs striker Mido after he rejected Birmingham (Daily Mail). Gareth Southgate may not want to see Yakubu leave, the striker being the subject of intense interest from many top sides, but if he captures Egyptian Mido, then that may ease the loss of the Nigerian. However, Mido is far less affective, as Spurs have found, and may not be worth the exaggerated wage packet he is seeking. If I was Southgate, I wouldn't bother and simply give the cash to keep my current front man.