Manchester City are waiting to trump Liverpool over the permanent signing of Javier Mascherano.

The Independent says boardroom problems at Liverpool could see Javier Mascherano slipping through the net, although the obvious thing to do is to sell Mohamed Sissoko to Italy and use that cash to help fund the Argentinian's £17m transfer fee.

However, Manchester City, who have identified a holding midfielder as their main priority, are waiting to hijack the deal and will offer impressive terms along with a pre-contract agreement.