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City's ambition the attraction for Dzeko

Edin Dzeko is being tipped to shine at Manchester City © PA Photos

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• Profile: Edin Dzeko

New Manchester City signing Edin Dzeko has admitted the club's ambition was enough to persuade him to sign, and he could not help himself aiming a first dig at local rivals United.

Dzeko, 24, completed his £27 million move from Bundesliga side Wolfsburg at the weekend, amid interest from a number of other prestigious clubs across Europe. The Bosnia and Herzegovina international acknowledged he received other offers, but revealed it was City's targets that best matched his own.

"I'm very happy that I'm now here at Manchester City, at a club with big ambition," Dzeko said. "I saw something else in Manchester City, not like the other [teams]. For me it is a big club with a big ambition and I am also an ambitious player, and I think together we can have lots of success."

City have not been afraid to spend money on new signings since the arrival of Sheikh Mansour in 2008, in an attempt to make the club one of the biggest and most successful in Europe. As the latest expensive acquisition, Dzeko is eager to live up to his transfer fee and help achieve their targets.

"Of course, I want to do my best to show the people this money that Manchester City have paid for me I am worth," Dzeko said. "Yes it's a project, a big project. It's a really good team, with a very good coach. I hear a lot about the fans - I hear also mostly the people from Manchester are Manchester City fans."

Dzeko could be in line to make his debut against Wolverhampton Wanderers this weekend, although manager Roberto Mancini warned the striker would have to prove his fitness after enjoying the Bundesliga's winter break. A prolific goalscorer in Germany - including a memorable Champions League hat-trick against Manchester United - Dzeko is not concerned the Premier League could prove a more difficult hunting ground.

"I hope next Saturday will be my first game here," Dzeko said. "I had a lot of success in Germany, I had a great four years but now I'm here. I want to do my best to also have success with Manchester City, my new team.

"Everybody says it is the best league, we will see. I was two and a half years [in Germany] and, like I said before, it was a really beautiful time for me. We had a lot of success, we won the league for the first time in our history. I need to say I was very happy in my time at Wolfsburg, but I wanted to change. I wanted to try something new, something better and I'm here now at Manchester City."

Mancini was delighted to finally get his man, and believes Dzeko's signing gives City a strikeforce the equal of any other side's.

"I'm very happy that we have bought Dzeko because I think he will be a very important player for the future of this club," Mancini said. "We wanted him from the summer because we knew he was a perfect player for us. He is so different from the strikers we have, now we have a good mix and I hope he can score a lot of goals like in Germany.

"I think if a striker scores goals in Germany or Italy he can score goals in England. Maybe the Premier League is very different from all the other leagues, but I think he will continue to score goals. I have been following him for two years and for me he is one of the best strikers in Europe. I think with the strikers we have now we can have one of the best attacks in Europe."

The signing completes a long pursuit of the player for the Italian. With City still in the title race and into the knockout stages of the Europa League, Mancini hopes the addition of Dzeko will enable the squad to challenge for trophies on all fronts.

"I think that I spoke with him six months ago, maybe for the first time, because we want to know if there was a chance to buy him, but we do this now in January," Mancini said. "It is important because now we are in position in the league. I think that with one player like him we can improve, we can improve in the Premier League and in the Europa League."

With Mancini admitting the club will now consider offers for out-of-favour duo Roque Santa Cruz and Emmanuel Adebayor, Dzeko is hoping to quickly integrate himself with the rest of the squad.

"Of course I'm looking forward because, like I said before, it's a big team with big players," Dzeko said. "We don't have to think about names because we are one team and we can only have success like a team. I have to get used to my new colleagues, my new team, and I hope [it will happen] soon."

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