City were told they need to submit a bid for Enzo Fernandez by 5pm on Friday or Chelsea will refuse to do business after asking for £120M for the Argentina international in what would have been the biggest deal of the summer.
The 25-year-old currently faces an uncertain future in west London and after flirting with Real Madrid and City, it looks like he will stay with the Blues after all.
City boss Enzo Maresca was asked about Fernandez in his latest press conference on Friday, confirming no move will be made.
"I don't think we're going to do something today," he said with a smile. "The transfer window is open. We can buy players, we can sell players, anything can happen. I just saw Rodri and gave him a big hug. He looks good so let's see what happens.”
Rodri is set to join Barcelona whilst City will also lose fellow midfielder Tijjani Reijnders to Saudi side Al-Qadsiah in what is a huge overhaul in the middle for the Italian manager.
Maresca, who worked closely with Fernandez at Chelsea, seems content with his current side and as City work on a deal for Ayyoub Bouaddi, it looks certain that no move will be made for the 25 year old.
Since joining Chelsea in January 2023 for a then British transfer record fee of £106M, Fernandez has showed his quality under multiple managers but has found little success in the trophy department.
Reports claim he wanted a switch to City or Real Madrid as they offer him a higher chance at silverware. However, a move is unlikely to materialize now as he stays put and fights for a Chelsea side who are without European football.