According to Sky Sports, Manchester City are lining up a move for Southampton midfielder Mario Lemina, rated at £13.5m by Transfermarkt, if they miss out on Napoli's Jorginho, and their arch-rivals Manchester United, whose fans don't want Jose Mourinho to complete a big £40m deal this summer, should be watching developments closely.

What's the word, then?

Well, Sky Sports says that City manager Pep Guardiola has lined up alternative targets for the Italy international even though the Premier League champions remain in advanced talks to bring the 26-year-old to the Etihad Stadium.

Lemina and Real Madrid midfielder Mateo Kovacic are both on the Spaniard’s shortlist, although any interest will depend on the Citizens giving up on a player who was their top summer transfer target, as per Sky Sports.

Should they fail to get Jorginho and they do prise Lemina away from Saints, the Gabon international would be fighting the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva, Fernandinho and Ilkay Gundogan for a midfield spot.

Why should Man United be monitoring the situation?

Well, Jose Mourinho may have already strengthened his midfield with the addition of Fred from Shakhtar Donetsk, but further links to a move for £100m-rated Paris Saint-Germain star Marco Verratti suggest he isn't yet satisfied with his options in the centre of the park.

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With Michael Carrick retiring and Marouane Fellaini seemingly leaving when his contract expires at the end of the month, the Portuguese boss may well want another body in there – especially with club-record signing Paul Pogba still often flattering to deceive.

While Lemina was involved in a relegation battle with Southampton during the 2017/18 campaign, he often showed the ability that he has in his locker in terms of keeping possession, bringing the ball forward and taking on opponents – he also enhanced his reputation of being a dribbling king by successfully completing 55 of the 62 dribbles he attempted in 25 Premier League appearances, as per WhoScored.com.