United and City Face Uphill Battle In Pursuit Of Barcelona Midfielder

Manchester United and Manchester City have been dealt a blow in their pursuit of Andres Iniesta with the Barcelona midfielder's father hinting that he will sign a new deal with his current club.

Iniesta's contract with the Catalan giants finishes in 2015 and the 29 year old is believed to be considering his future as both City and United monitor the situation.

Talks are ongoing over a new deal but Iniesta's father has insisted that it is likely he will stay at Barcelona despite the interest from two of England's biggest clubs.

Jose Antonio told radio programme 'La Xarxa', via AS: "Anyone who knows Andres, who has spent 18 years at Barcelona, shouldn't doubt his words."

He continued: "Andres is still vital to Barcelona's style of play."

United were in the market for a big-name midfielder in the summer transfer window and had hoped to land Iniesta's teammate Cesc Fabregas. They put in two bids but the situation was particularly curious as both the club and player insisted he didn't want to leave Barcelona.

United eventually signed Marouane Fellaini but it would appear they still require more depth in the middle of the park particularly after being thrashed 4-1 by bitter rivals Manchester City at the weekend.

And City could be rivalling United for Iniesta, despite the Spain international turning 30 next year; his skill and experience would no doubt be an asset to any top club in the world and Manuel Pellegrini will equally be aware of the fact that they don't want their title rivals to strengthen significantly in the next year.

But with contract talks continuing between Iniesta and Barcelona both Manchester clubs may have to look elsewhere in order to bolster their midfield.