Javier Garrido set to leave Manchester City for Lazio in £2.5m deal

Manchester City have begun trimming their squad by holding talks with Lazio over the sale of the left-back Javier Garrido for £2.5m. The defender is available at Eastlands following the arrival from the Italian club of the Serbia international Aleksandar Kolarov. Lazio had hoped to sign Luca Antonelli from Parma as Kolarov's replacement but that deal fell through, prompting them to turn to Garrido. "We are a step closer to the definitive agreement for Garrido," the Lazio president, Claudio Lotito, admitted. Garrido was signed by Sven-Goran Eriksson in the summer of 2007 from Real Sociedad for £1.5m, but found his chances limited under Eriksson's successor Mark Hughes and more recently Roberto Mancini. Mancini has admitted that City will need to trim their sizeable squad, particularly with the Premier League's new 25-man squad rule, and Garrido could be the first to depart Eastlands.