Mancini downplays De Rossi signing chances

Manager says it is unlikely his compatriot will want to leave the Italian capital, and admits Africa Cup of Nations could cause his squad "big problems" next month.Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini expects any move for Roma midfielder Daniele De Rossi to be unsuccessful.De Rossi, who is out of contract at Roma at the end of the season, has been linked with City but Mancini believes it will be difficult to lure the midfielder away from the Italian capital."I don't think it will happen, because De Rossi was born in Rome and it's unlikely that he'll leave the city," he told reporters.Mancini, who has stated he will have to sell players before he can make additions to his squad next month, also revealed that he fears January's Africa Cup of Nations could cause his squad "big problems".The Italian manager admitted his side have been fortunate in the injury department so far this term, in contrast to their rivals Manchester United who look to have lost defender Nemanja Vidic and midfielder Darren Fletcher for the rest of the season."This [Kolo Toure's departure] could be a problem in January because we also lose Yaya and it will be a big problem for us if we get any injuries," Mancini said "We have been lucky so far. I'm very sorry [for Vidic and Fletcher] and I hope they can come back quickly."But this is football and sometimes it can happen. For this reason January is going to be very important for us."A need to begin to conform with Uefa's Financial Fair Play regulations could halt any significant spending in the January transfer window at the Etihad Stadium, with Mancini insisting the club must sell before they look at adding to their squad."I asked the owner [Sheikh Mansour] for Lionel Messi but it's not possible," he joked."We need to sell two or three players and then we'll see. We want to sell first and after that we may have time to buy someone if it's possible."But it's not easy. There are players that could be good for us but every time we want to buy a player their clubs ask for lots of money."City sit atop of the Premier League table going into the post-Christmas set of fixtures and Mancini hopes securing first place during thefestive period will bode well, but has warned his players not to get complacent with rivals Manchester United close on their tail."Usually, yes," he said. "It's a good omen to be top at Christmas but it would be a better omen if United lost their next three games."I've told the guys it's possible we could drop to second for three or four games in the new year and maybe go one or two points behind United."But it won't change anything. We know that United have to play many difficult away games and we can recover points in those moments."I think we've got more chance if we have that attitude."