Manchester City are “not going to bid” for Barcelona left-back Alejandro Balde, according to Sport.

The Catalan publication claims that the Premier League champions have effectively ended their interest in the player, who they wanted as part of the negotiations for Joao Cancelo last year.

It now appears that the Cityzens will demand straight cash if Barca want to sign Cancelo on a permanent basis this summer after his loan at the Camp Nou expires

Balde’s future also remains up in the air, though, as despite putting pen to paper on a new contract back in September (which has a €1bn/£860m buyout clause), his club need to raise funds to balance the books.

He could make the switch to another Premier League club

Sport say that, despite City ending their pursuit of Balde, the fullback may yet make a move to England with Chelsea said to be circling ahead of the summer.

Despite beating Pep Guardiola’s side to the signature of Marc Cucurella eighteen months ago, the Blues are not satisfied with their options on the left-hand side of defence and they see Balde as a potential solution.

What are City’s plans for the January transfer window?

The Manchester club are not expected to be active in terms of incomings. The club are thought to be considering a bid for another winger, but there is unlikely to be much movement on that front until the end of the season.

There could be some outgoing loans and sales. Kalvin Phillips is the likeliest to leave the Etihad in the next couple of weeks with reports suggesting that there are at least five teams vying for his services.

Serie A giants Juventus are believed to have joined the likes of West Ham, Newcastle, Crystal Palace and Everton in pursuing the England international’s signature.