Portsmouth must accept a compromised agreement in order to complete the sale of Benjani Mwaruwari to Manchester City.

The Guardian says members of City's hierarchy, though not the manager, Sven-Goran Eriksson, retain serious doubts as to whether the move for Benjani should be pursued, citing the results of a basic medical conducted on Thursday night as cause for concern.

City were troubled by apparent damage to one of Benjani's knees and have since tried to renegotiate the fee for the 29-year-old. Portsmouth insist he was to be sold for £9m but City now suggest the fee should be nearer £7.6m and there are indications that they are willing to go to court if railroaded into a transfer they are not happy with. They argue that Benjani's late arrival in Manchester on deadline day prevented them from attending properly to every detail of the move.

The Premier League is willing to sanction the transfer this week on the basis that both clubs were intent on concluding a deal before the closure of the transfer window.