Benjani Mwaruwari

Manchester City have confirmed that they failed with their bid to sign Portsmouth striker Benjani on transfer deadline day.

City had a bid accepted by Pompey for the Zimbabwean hit-man early on Thursday.

A work-permit was also obtained by City as they looked on course to complete a deal which was reportedly worth around £9million.

However, the deal was delayed and Benjani did not arrive at City's Carrington training headquarters until an hour before the deadline.

With Jermain Defoe going to Pompey as Benjani's replacement it seemed everything was going according to plan.

But while Pompey managed to complete Defoe's capture, City admitted defeat in their bid to sign Benjani.

"Due to the late arrival of the player in Manchester we were unable to complete the transfer," said City spokesman Paul Tyrrell.