Manchester City have already identified a replacement for unsettled midfielder Nigel de Jong.

De Jong has fallen out of favour at the Etihad and is also frustrated because City are refusing to renegotiate a £55,000-a-week contract he wants doubled.

The Mirror says City could replace De Jong with Spanish World Cup winner Javi Martinez after making an enquiry about the 23-year-old last week.

The Athletic Bilbao star, whose play mixes creativity and positional discipline, has been compared to Xabi Alonso.