Roberto Mancini confirms interest in Newcastle striker

Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini has confirmed his interest in Newcastle United star strike Andy Carroll, after the 21-year-old impressed against his side yesterday.

Carroll was the sole goalscorer for Newcastle in a 3-1 home defeat to City, with the striker now having hit the net 11 times in 18 appearences this season. Having won a recent England call-up, Carroll has won a raft of admirers in his debut Premier League season, with mega-rich City adding their name to the list.

Asked whether or not Mancini is looking to bolster his strikeforce in the January transfer window, the City boss said "Carroll is a good player, he's young, he's strong, he's very good. But I don't think that Newcastle want to sell."

City have alerted to reports in German daily Bild that Wolfsburg have apparently lowered their asking price for Bosnian striker Edin Dzeko to €30m. Dzeko has been angling for a move quite publicly, arguing with manager Steve McLaren over a recent substitution and even writing a letter to City's CEO Garry Cooke of his admiration for the side.