Man City have reportedly identified Southampton’s Mario Lemina or Real Madrid’s Mateo Kovacic as an alternative if they fail to land Jorginho from Napoli.
The Premier League champs have had a £44million offer rejected for the Italy midfielder.
They are expected to return with a £59m bid in the hope that the Serie A giants’ reluctance will ease.
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Jorginho, 26, is desperate to join Pep Guardiola’s side, with others parties also keen, and his employers are using that to play hardball over their asking price.
Talks are continuing but City have been forced to look at alternatives, with the Daily Mail claiming two men are at the top of their list.
Lemina impressed for Southampton after joining from Juventus last summer and is a target for Napoli if Jorginho departs.
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City are also been long-term admirers and are quite comfortable with the idea of turning their focus to the 24-year-old Gabon ace.
The same is true of Madrid star Kovacic, 24, with neighbours Man United also keen.
Guardiola knows Jorginho is desperate to move to the Etihad but has told his agent he will soon switch his attention elsewhere unless a deal can be struck.
The Napoli man’s agent, Joao Santos, said: “A deadline? Manchester City have one because they look at three names for each position.
“At the moment they have told me nothing, but I think that Jorginho is their first choice.
Speaking to CalcioNapoli24, he added: “I’m in England, specifically Colchester, 400km from Manchester. The negotiations are in the hands of Napoli, “I’m waiting for a signal to understand what to do. This week something will happen. Until Friday I will be in England.”
City have shown in the past they are willing to walk away from deals if they believe they are not receiving market value.
Alexis Sanchez’s wage demands and Leicester City’s January valuation of Riyad Mahrez saw the Citizens pull out of moves to bring them to the North West.
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