Man Utd ponder summer swoop for David Villa

Manchester United are said to be preparing a summer raid for Valencia striker David Villa after he indicated that he was amenable to a move overseas.

United are concerned that Wayne Rooney's current foil, Dimitar Berbatov, is not cutting the mustard and have now decided that the Englishman needs different, if similarly overpriced, partner. Sir Alex Ferguson has apparently dispatched his brother Martin - United's chief European scout - to run the rule over Villa.

The Old Trafford boss was sniffing around the striker last summer but baulked at Valencia's £45m asking price. But if the Spanish club fail to qualify for the Champions League then the striker may ask to leave and club could decide to cash in and put a more realistic price on his head.

Money is tight at United but Ferguson has been told that funds will be available for the right players at the right price. The upshot could be some interesting haggling between the two clubs.

Reports in several papers suggest that Shaun Wright-Phillips is locked in a contract dispute with Manchester City after the England winger claimed he was undervalued at Eastlands. The Guardian says that Wright-Phillips "turned down a new contract" and negotiations have reached an impasse.

The 28-year-old Wright-Phillips still has two-and-a half-years to run on his existing contract, which nets him £60,000-a-week, but the deal was agreed shortly before the Abu Dhabi United Group's takeover established "a new pay ceiling" at the club. So Wright-Phillips feels he is missing out on the riches on offer to the likes of Emmanuel Adebayor, Carlos Tevez and Kolo Toure, all of whom are said to earn in excess of £100,000-a-week.

The Guardian says that Wright-Phillips feels he has one major contract left in him and he wants it to be a good one. But the paper goes on to say that the Sky Blues "have no intention of increasing his pay so significantly, on the basis he will be 30 when his contract expires".

City's chief executive, Garry Cook, and football administrator, Brian Marwood, are said to be digging their heels in, despite the fact Wright-Phillips says he doesn't feel "appreciated" by the club and wonders if he shouldn't take his services elsewhere.

Wright-Phillips' truculence is just the latest in a string of problems to plague Roberto Mancini in recent weeks. The City boss has lost Patrick Vieira for three matches after a ban for dangerous play, he is barely on speaking terms with Craig Bellamy after a furious bust-up and Stephen Ireland's form continues to be a cause for concern.

Chelsea should also have cause for concern, according to a report in Portuguese sports newspaper A Bola. As reported on The First Post yesterday, Benfica star Angel di Maria has been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge, but according to A Bola. the Blues face "stiff competition" from Real Madrid and Barcelona for the 22-year-old Argentine midfielder, set to be a star in the World Cup this summer.

City have sent Peter Kenyon to Lisbon this week to deal directly on their behalf, but the Portuguese paper says that move has been interpreted as a hostile act by the Spanish giants and they are pressuring Di Maria's agent, Jorge Mendes, to "delay any agreement until he's heard from them". Reports suggest that Chelsea are willing to pay as much as £36m for Di Maria, who joined Benfica from Rosario Central in the summer of 2007.

The Daily Mail says Birmingham boss Alex McLeish is "continuing to monitor" Red Bull Salzburg striker Marc Janko. The 26-year-old was watched by City's scouts last week and they were impressed by what they saw of the Austrian striker.

Janko has scored 67 goals in 92 games for Salzburg and at 6ft 5in he is a formidable handful for opposition defenders. According to the  Mail, McLeish has been on the tail of Janko for over a year and has no problem with the asking price of £6m, which he sees as "decent value" for a player whom he believes would thrive in the Premier League ·