Roque Santa Cruz

Roque Santa Cruz to rejoin Blackburn as City clear-out continues

Roque Santa Cruz has made only eight starts since joining Manchester City in 2009. Photograph: Mike Egerton/EMPICS Sport

Roberto Mancini's gradual easing out of Mark Hughes's signings at Manchester City is accelerating with Roque Santa Cruz likely to be next to join the exodus, the striker poised to rejoin Blackburn Rovers to end an 18-month spell better known for his injuries rather than goals.

Santa Cruz has scored only four times since joining City in July 2009 and Hughes's year-long pursuit to bring him to Eastlands, for £17.5m, now looks to have been one of the more wasteful transfers of modern times.

In total, Santa Cruz started eight games, with another 16 substitute appearances. The Paraguay international has earned around £6m in wages and was so marginalised this season he did not even make Mancini's 25-man squad for the Europa League. Instead the striker would often be seen cycling into the club's practice ground to train on his own.

Lazio have been trying to lure him to Italy but Santa Cruz's family is settled in the north-west of England and he is close to finalising a loan move to return to the club where he scored 23 goals in the 2007-08 campaign, his one season in English football when he has not been troubled by injury issues. If everything goes according to plan, including a stringent medical examination, a deal to the end of the season could go through in time for him to make his debut at Chelsea on Saturday.

Mancini's misgivings about many of the players recruited by Hughes have also led to a loan for Wayne Bridge to West Ham United whereas Mario Balotelli's knee injury will not change the club's stance when it comes to trying to move on Emmanuel Adebayor.

The former Arsenal striker's attitude behind the scenes – he was involved in a training-ground fracas with Kolo Touré last week – is becoming a growing concern to Mancini and City hope a loan deal can be arranged, leading to a permanent transfer at the end of the season. Shaun Wright-Phillips is also surplus to requirements, although City would rather sell him than add him to the list of players who have been loaned out.

Mancini has stated that Edin Dzeko will be the only new signing at City in January, but the Italian could be forgiven for wishing that Hughes had not opted against trying harder to tempt Gareth Bale from Tottenham Hotspur when the Welshman was out of the team two years ago.

City discussed Bale's potential availability at great length and Mancini's admiration for the player is clear. "You would need a lot of money [to sign him]," he said. "He is a very expensive player and if Tottenham decide to put him on the market, Bale would be the strongest target in the summer. He is perhaps the only player who is not a striker that can make a difference. Without him, Tottenham lose 50% of their potential."

Michael Johnson has accepted he may have to go out on loan after making his return after a cruciate ligament injury for the reserves on Tuesday night. He last appeared for the first team in October 2009. "We have a lot of world class players. That is why we are second in the league," he said. "It is better for me to go and get games now. Ideally maybe going out somewhere for the rest of the season and getting match fit might be a better option [than staying]."