• Stephen Ireland transfer request puts Arteta on City’s radar
• Eastlands club considering £20m offer or exchange deal
Manchester City have made their first inquiries to ascertain Mikel Arteta’s availability from Everton as a replacement for Stephen Ireland after the unsettled midfielder made a transfer request.
Ireland’s request to leave Eastlands after a frustrating season in which his form has deteriorated and the manager, Roberto Mancini, has said he needs to “change his head” has been reluctantly accepted and moves are under way to find another creative player for central midfield.
Arteta ticks the right boxes, although City’s interest in him dates back to when Mark Hughes was manager and an approach was made last summer. The 28-year-old Spaniard has two years remaining on his contract and City are aware Everton would try to repel any advances, particularly after losing Joleon Lescott in the same direction last summer, a transfer saga that lasted several months and caused substantial damage to the relationship between the clubs.
City, nonetheless, are weighing up whether to turn their interest into an offer in excess of £20m and can possibly offer Ireland in a player-plus-cash exchange.
Ireland’s unhappiness stems from what he perceives to be his marginalisation since Mancini took over from Hughes and his belief that he would not be regarded as an automatic first-team pick if he were to stay at the club where he was voted player of the year two seasons ago.
There have been concerted efforts behind the scenes to convince him that he still has a lot to offer and that, in reality, Mancini has included him in a lot of big games, but the player is said to have taken the last few months very badly and has come to feel that he is no longer wanted.
He has not played a full 90 minutes since the 2-0 defeat of Portsmouth on 31
