WAITING GAME

CITY are willing to wait for Napoli midfielder Jorginho.

The Italian international is one of Pep Guardiola’s principal targets in the summer transfer window and he saw an initial offer of around £40m knocked back by the Serie side.

However, and contrary to reports, the club have not yet returned with a second bid as talks continue.

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis, a notoriously tough negotiator, is looking to get as much as possible for one of his star players.

While Guardiola is keen to get his signings sorted quickly, City are aware of their bargaining power – and have not ruled out moving on to other targets if a deal cannot be struck.

Jorginho’s agent, Joao Santos, is in England this week waiting for a breakthrough in talks.

“The negotiation is in Napoli’s hands. As the agent I’m just waiting for the signal to tell me what to do. Something will happen this week,” he said. “I’ll be in England until Friday, after which I’ll return for other negotiations. I’m waiting for Napoli and Manchester City to find the best deal for both clubs.

“A deadline? Manchester City have one, because they look at three players in each role. At the moment they haven’t said anything to me, but I think Jorginho is their first choice.” CITY SPECIAL: PAGES 58-60