Manchester City Transfers: Top 5 January Rumors

Manchester City have emerged as the team to beat in this Premier League season, now at the top of the table with five points over crosstown rivals and returning champions Manchester United. With a formidable attack built on recent acquisitions and fiery young prospects like Mario Balotelli having returned to form, City have been hitting goal after goal, and their supporters have plenty of reasons to keep on doing "the Poznan."

With January on the horizon, City may be looking to make some key moves that will seal their place at the top of English football. Here are five of the latest rumors, and as always, they should be taken with a grain of salt. If you have any thoughts as to who you'd like to see move to or away from Eastlands, please have at it in the comments. 

22-year-old Borussia Mönchengladbach attacker Marco Reus has taken Europe by storm, scoring braces in back-to-back matches and helping turn a Bundesliga side that flirted with relegation last season into real contenders. 

Arsenal, Bayern Munich and City are among the clubs reportedly interested in bringing the versatile £15 million-rated attacker—who can serve in midfield or as a striker—on in January. Reus is contracted with his side until 2015, so whoever comes for him will likely have to carry a big wallet.

When Tévez goes, Reus could be a valuable addition to the striking rotation, although with Agüero, Balotelli and Edin Dzeko all in top form, and David Silva and Samir Nasri in attack, it may be difficult to see him get first-team status. 

Christian Eriksen is a name that has been thrown around an awful lot in this transfer deadline day-related discourse, and it looks as though he'll continue to be one right up until deadline day. Manchester City and Chelsea are the latest to join the race for the 19-year-old Danish winger, who has earned extensive praise for his performances at Ajax. 

According to a report from ADifferentLeague, the Blues will be setting up a £22 million bid for the starlet, with cash-flush City seeking to show them up with a £30 million offer. January is still a ways away, though. 

At 31, Cristian Chivu has been something of an institution at San Siro, serving on a Champions League-winning side and seeing great success at Inter Milan. But now, out of contract and with the normally top-flight club dangling just above relegation, the veteran defender may be looking for a new home.

Among those homes to which he has been linked are Manchester City and Liverpool, and with his contract up and Inter struggling, he may be quite the bargain. 

Seriously though, "Hazard Watch" should just be a section under transfer rumors on this site by now. 20-year-old Belgian playmaker Eden Hazard will technically leave Lille at the end of the season as opposed to January as he announced last week, but as Europe's biggest teams jockey for position to win him over, he still remains a hot topic.

Arsenal, Chelsea and Real Madrid are among the top clubs trying to court Hazard for next season, and according to a report from CrunchSports, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur have now joined the race to win his affections. As Adam Johnson remains the club's best winger despite still seeing little playing time, perhaps City is in the market for a new wide man. 

City's veteran defender, whose brother Yaya Toure is a fixture in midfield, spent a long time on the bench as the FA served him with a six-month ban for doping. As his time served came to a close, Kolo Toure had expressed interest in a transfer move, with the Ivorian international reportedly being particularly interested in a move to cash-heavy Paris Saint-Germain. 

Now though, as Toure faces a £600,000 fine from his club and further disciplinary action after failing a drug test last week, the ready-to-move defender's career seems far more uncertain.