The Manchester City Project

Joleon Lescott's move to Manchester City edged closer today. Lescott trained on his own away from the rest of the Everton squad and has been dropped for the European game on Thursday against Sigma Olomouc. Everton have declined to comment on the defenders absence.

Lescott will not feature in the European game on Thursday after missing team training today and being left out the Everton squad for the match. Lescott recently handed in a transfer request and also asked not to be picked for the 6-1 loss to Arsenal on Saturday. The public absence of Lescott from training could signal to Manchester City that Everton are now willing to do business - rather than disrupt their season any further. City are now believed to be in the process of making a third bid now that the amber light flashes.

Moyes will be disappointed to lose Lescott - however the transfer would enable him to look into the transfer market to bolster his thin squad. It has been reported that Moyes has enquired about two Spurs players - full back Alan Hutton and Midfielder David Bentley. The enquiry within the last 24 hours would again suggest that Everton are now resigned to losing Lescott and gaining some transfer funds.

The silence emanating from Everton regarding the absence of Lescott is uncharacteristic of a club that has used every opportunity to publicly deny the sale of Lescott. Everton said of the situation : "We will not be making any comment on this."

Expect Lescott to be a City player by the end of the weekend.