Petrov Bentley swap deal scuppered

Bulgarian international winger Martin Petrov will be staying at Manchester City although he wanted to move to Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur, his agent said today.

Petrov seemed set for a move to London with Spurs' David Bentley moving in the opposite direction, but the move broke down according to Luchezar Tanev, the player's agent "because, in the final reckoning, Manchester City rejected the deal mainly due to manager Mark Hughes's unwillingness."

Tanev told Bulgarian radio Darik: "I can say that Martin wanted to join Tottenham. You see that he has some problems at City and that's why he decided to look elsewhere and Spurs made an offer for him.

"But it's not the end of the world. He has one year of his contract left and we'll see after that."

Petrov, 30, who joined City two years ago, made a bright start to last season, but after sustaining a serious knee injury playing for Bulgaria last October, was out of the side until the closing weeks of the season and now faces a major battle to regain his place in City's starting line-up.