City dismisses interest on David Villa

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Manchester City are not interested in any deal for Barcelona striker David Villa, according to reports.

Reports suggest both City and Arsenal are keen on the frontman, who has struggled to hold down a regular first-team place at Camp Nou this season.

But Arsene Wenger denied any Gunners' interest on Tuesday and Sky Sports understands City are also ruling out a deal.

Roberto Mancini's side appear set to lose striker Mario Balotelli to AC Milan, with the Italian due at the Serie A club for a medical on Wednesday.

However, it seems they will not turn to Villa to fill the void left by the frontman at the Etihad Stadium. City have also been linked with big-money moves for Napoli striker Edison Cavani and Atletico Madrid's Radamel Falcao.

But manager Mancini has said he does not expect to bring in a replacement for Balotelli before the transfer window closes on Thursday.

Earlier this month, Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova has reiterated that striker David Villa will not be leaving the Catalan club.

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"David is not going to leave. We are very happy with him," said the Barca manager. "The other day he scored two goals. We've always said that he's coming off a long injury, and he's getting more minutes all the time. But he's suffering more physical problems again.

"We know how important he is, like last year when we missed him a lot in the second half of the season. I'm convinced he will help us a lot over the remainder of the season."