Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis is hopeful Manchester City will bid to sign Morgan Gibbs-White, amid interest from Tottenham, talkSPORT understands.
The England international has been at the centre of an ongoing transfer saga, which saw Spurs initially activate his £60million release clause, and he was expected to have already completed a move.
However, the deal has since been put on hold, with Forest lodging a legal complaint over the north Londoners' approach.
Forest chief Marinakis claims Spurs' efforts to sign the attacking midfielder are illegal, and the matter is now being looked into.
There is still a belief that Tottenham could resurrect the transfer, depending on the outcome of the legal challenge.
And while they remain hopeful of adding Gibbs-White to new boss Thomas Frank's squad, Marinakis favours another move altogether.
The Greek businessman is said to want Man City to rival Spurs in their pursuit of the 25-year-old.
This is due to a previous understanding between the Forest duo, with Gibbs-White telling Marinakis at the end of last season that he would only leave the City Ground for a certain level of club.
With Spurs finishing 17th in the Premier League last season, despite winning the Europa League, Marinakis does not believe they fit into this category, hence his anger over a potential move to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Should the Citizens' make a play for Gibbs-White, it wouldn't be the first time during this transfer window.
The Englishman was was a target of City's earlier in the summer, with Forest demanding huge money for their star.
talkSPORT previously reported that the Reds had slapped a £100m price tag on Gibbs-White over a potential move to the Etihad, who have since gone on to sign three midfielders.
City shelled out £34m to sign Rayan Cherki from Lyon, with widespread reports claiming they opted for the Frenchman as a cheaper alternative to Gibbs-White.
Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola has also snapped up Tijjani Reijnders [£46.3m] and Sverre Nypan [£12.5m], following club legend Kevin De Bruyne's departure to Napoli.
Forest's hope for City to join the race for Gibbs-White comes amid their interest in their league rival's young star James McAtee.
The Reds were previously said to be one of a number clubs battling to sign McAtee, who wants to leave the Etihad in search of regular game time.
Forest had planned to use City's interest in Gibbs-White as a bargaining tool in their pursuit of the playmaker.
Wherever Gibbs-White ends up plying his trade next season, there can be little doubt over the quality he would add to a team.
He was one of the Premier League's standout midfielders last term, scoring seven goals and providing a further eight assists in 34 games, as Forest qualified for the Europa Conference League with a seventh-place finish.
While the transfer saga around him rumbles on, Gibbs-White has remained professional, returning to the east Midlands for pre-season.
The former Wolves man featured in the first-half of Forest's 0-0 draw with Monaco on Saturday, while footage of him enthusiastically clapping supporters at half-time later emerged.
Marinakis and Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo will be hoping this represents a possibility that Gibbs-White could still remain at the City Ground.