Football 4 All

Manchester City have confirmed this evening that they have ended their pursuit of Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o, a player whom they were set to make the highest paid player in the world, according to reports.

City chief executive Garry Cook confirmed the decision to the club's official website, stating, "Samuel Eto'o is undoubtedly a fine footballer but the circumstances surrounding him were such that the deal could not be completed.

"We now feel the time is right to pursue other avenues and we have a clear and strategic transfer plan, which we continue to follow."

The Mancunians were reported to have made a bid of around £25 million for the player, and were apparently ready to offer him wages of over £200,000 a week. However, there now seem to have been too many stumbling blocks for the deal to be completed.

It was also reported that Eto'o was seeking a severance payment from Barca in addition to the wages he was demanding, and it seems now that the Citizens will move on to other targets.