City may aim to replace Robinho with Ronaldinho

It seems that fiscal heavyweight Manchester City is keen to recruit a new marquee signing if, as appears increasingly likely, Robinho is Barcelona-bound.

Former World Player of the Year Ronaldinho, currently flourishing under the tutelage of fellow national Leonardo at AC Milan, is being linked once again with a mega-money move to the Citizens.

According to Catalan daily Sport, the Citizens will press Milan for an answer regarding the availability of Ronaldinho and, should the response be positive, they will green-light the sale of Robinho to Barcelona.

Robinho has been consistently linked with a move away from the City of Manchester Stadium, and is allegedly regarded as a replacement for Thierry Henry, despite the Frenchman's current form on the left of the Catalan club's attacking trio.

City previously tried to seal a deal for Ronaldinho, prior to the Brazilian's switch to Serie A; however, the 29-year-old spurned Mark Hughes' advances.

A swoop for Ronaldinho's fellow national, Maicon, is expected to fall through, though, as the player's agent has distanced his client from the City speculation.

The Eastlands side has also been linked with moves for Henry, Yossi Benayoun and Franck Ribery. --Goal.com