Mancini, seemingly unaware that van Persie appears to be favouring a move to either Juventus or Man Utd, said: "For this question, speak to the man in charge. I am not in charge of this.

"It is important [to get players quickly] because, after what we did last year, we must continue to win. This year will be harder than last, so we need to improve our team. We have a man who works for this and we hope that they can do a good job."