Inter & City talks over Eto'o, Maicon & Tevez

Inter & City talks over Eto'o, Maicon & Tevez

The Italian giants have told the big spending Premier League outfit that they are prepared to offer the Brazil right-back in a player-plus-cash exchange for Tevez worth €45m.

Inter would then be willing to sell Eto'o to the Eastlands side as president Massimo Moratti seeks to free up some finances in order to rebuild the ageing squad inherited by new coach Gian Piero Gasperini.

The development raises the possibility of Inter losing three of their top earning stars to the Premier League in one summer, with Wesley Sneijder also being wooed by Manchester United.

"Eto'o is now on the market because he is the highest earner at Inter and Moratti wants to make serious cuts. Roberto Mancini is interested in signing Eto'o," an Inter source told Goal.com

"Inter want Tevez, but are not ready to pay €45m for him. The club want to insert Maicon into the deal and value him at around €10m. If this deal can happen then Eto'o, who is valued by Inter at €40m, could move to Manchester City in a straight cash deal which the club prefer."

The source added that reports of Eto'o and Gasperini falling out were wide of the mark.

"That is just rubbish. There was no fight between Eto'o and Gasperini. The situation at Inter is that no one is unsellable. Moratti wants to sort out the club's finances and getting some of the top earners off the books is key to this."

Manchester City are resigned to losing Tevez by the end of the summer but did not plan on buying another forward following the acquisition of Argentina international Sergio Aguero last month.

But Mancini has made it known that he feels Inter's interest in Carlos Tevez gives City the ultimate bargaining chip in pushing through a deal for Eto'o, 30, whom they tried to sign three years ago.

Mancini, who alongside transfer czar Brian Marwood and technical chief Mike Rigg forms City's 'player acquisition group', is yet to convince other senior figures at the club of the merits of spending so much on Eto'o.

The Italian signed Maicon when he was Inter coach in 2006 and views the 30-year-old as an improvement on current right-backs Micah Richards and Pablo Zabaleta, as he prepares the team for their first campaign in the Champions League.