Samir Nasri's arrival at Manchester City yesterday pushed Shaun Wright-Phillips further down the pecking order at Etihad Stadium, but the winger is prepared to see out the final year of his contract with the club and move on a free transfer next summer unless one of four interested Premier League clubs match his wages.
The England international has held talks with Wigan Athletic, Bolton Wanderers and Stoke City, but a deal has yet to be struck as the offer does not match the reported basic salary of between £60,000 (Dh360,900) and £70,000 he earns at City. Queens Park Rangers have also joined the race to sign the 29 year old.
Despite staking his claim for a place with two goals on the club's tour of America, Wright-Phillips is resigned to leaving the Abu Dhabi-owned club, where he has spent 10 years of his career, and has not ruled out a move abroad but, in the autumn of his career, he is not willing to alter his salary expectations and would be content to play a peripheral role at City before leaving at the end of the season.
With Uefa's Financial Fair Play regulations looming, City would prefer Wright-Phillips left on a permanent basis so they receive a transfer fee and remove his wages from their soaring wage bill but they may be forced to subsidise his wages, as they did when Craig Bellamy moved to Cardiff City on loan last season, to facilitate the move.
Nasri signed a four year deal after leaving Arsenal for a reported £24 million, and the France international could make his debut on Sunday against Tottenham Hotspur.
Nasri scored 15 goals in all competitions last season and will wear the No 19 shirt for his new club.
Gareth Barry, has hailed Nasri as a "fantastic player" whose arrival at City will help them win trophies.
Roberto Mancini already has a wealth of options available to him but Barry knows they still have to improve to build on last season's FA Cup success and challenge for silverware on a regular basis.
"It's great. If you are going to win trophies you need fantastic players and he is another of them," Barry said of Nasri, who posed for photographs and signed autographs for City fans outside of Etihad Stadium yesterday.
"Anyone of that quality who comes into our squad is going to help us."
Barry added: "I've not known anything like it before - maybe you could talk about the England squad, where it's full of great players and you find it tough to get your place. It's going to be one of those seasons at club level now.
"We just hope we can go far in all competitions. We might have to be patient sometimes if you're asked to miss out on certain games. We all realise we're not going to be able to play every game."
Mancini, meanwhile, has said that the midfielder Daniele De Rossi would be "absolutely perfect" for City. De Rossi is under contract with Roma for one more year but the Italian club announced earlier this week they were hopeful of agreeing an extension in the next few days.
Mancini acknowledges there is a good chance the 28 year old will remain at the Stadio Olimpico but has made no secret of his admiration for the player, saying he would still like to sign another midfielder despite the arrival of Nasri.
"I need something else in midfield because we have limited options," Mancini told The Sun.
"I have Barry, De Jong, Milner and Toure - but if you consider the number of games in the league, the Champions League and the FA Cup that is not enough.
"Daniele De Rossi would be absolutely perfect for this team and I rate him as one of the best midfielders in the world.
"But I also have the suspicion that he will stay in Rome his entire career, just like Francesco Totti has done."
