Manchester City back in for Aston Villa's James Milner

Although Villa rejected a £20 million offer from City for the 24 year-old last month, the Eastlands club are determined to secure at least one major signing before flying to the United States on July 12 for their pre-season tour and training camp. Milner met Villa owner Randy Lerner and manager Martin O'Neill last Monday in an hour-long meeting to discuss his future. While the former Leeds and Newcastle player failed to commit himself to a new contract during the talks, Villa remain hopeful that they can persuade him to stay at the club and will not entertain offers lower than £30 million for the PFA Young Player of the Year.  Related ArticlesWorld Cup puts transfer deals on holdManchester City set to miss out on David SilvaMaicon wants Real Madrid moveManchester City close in on Jerome BoatengJohnson looks to Euro 2012Sport on televisionCity's interest has not faded, however, and senior officials believe they can see off Sir Alex Ferguson's long-standing admiration of Milner and beat neighbours Manchester United to the player's signature should Villa decide to sell. While City and Villa remain some distance apart with their respective valuations, the gap is not viewed as unbridgeable by the Manchester club. And with attempts to sign Valencia's David Silva and Wolfsburg forward Edin Dzeko yet to show signs of bearing fruit, City are aware of the need to make an impact signing to add to the imminent £11 million arrival of Hamburg's Germany defender, Jerome Boateng. With England's World Cup preparations now fully under way in South Africa, however, City have resolved to shelve any move for Milner until England's campaign is completed to avoid distracting the player. Talks are continuing with the representatives of Yaya Touré, the Barcelona midfielder, over a move to City. Touré, the brother of City captain Kolo, is on international duty with Ivory Coast ahead of the World Cup. -- Select your Telegraph Fantasy World Cup team now for your chance to win more than £30,000. Play now

Source: Telegraph