MANCHESTER CITY have decided Craig Bellamy can be sold after completing the €35 million transfer of David Silva to fill his position on the left side of attack.

Bellamy was one of City’s more impressive players last season but has not convinced Roberto Mancini he merits a place in a team that aspires to be regarded as authentic title challengers, and his inability to get on with the former Internazionale manager has counted against him.

The two men clashed on several occasions after Mancini’s appointment last December, and the club held an internal investigation after Bellamy was overheard allegedly saying something detrimental about the Italian after the 2-0 home defeat against Everton in March. Nothing was proven but their relationship has been fractious and potential buyers will not be discouraged from bidding now Silva is officially a City player. The Spain international passed his medical examination after flying into Manchester yesterday.

That leaves Bellamy facing a decision about whether to stay and fight for his place, having effectively won a similar battle with Robinho, or leave a club where he is not expected to feature prominently.

If the latter is the case, he might also have to consider taking a pay cut to help engineer a move. Bellamy, who turned 31 this week, earns €115,000 a week and when the Tottenham Hotspur manager, Harry Redknapp, was asked about his admiration for the Wales international he suggested it would be out of the London club’s price range. “City bought him for £12 million (€14.2m) and the player must be on considerably high wages,” he said. “I just don’t see it happening.”

City have also signed Jerome Boateng and Yaya Toure and are trying to put in place deals for Aston Villa’s James Milner and two more attackers, Mario Balotelli of Internazionale and Edin Dzeko of Wolfsburg.

Roque Santa Cruz, the injury-plagued Paraguayan, does not feature in Mancini’s plans, while Robinho and Stephen Ireland have asked to leave and the club will also listen to offers for Nedum Onuoha.

However, City have no intention of selling Micah Richards, rumoured to be a target for Liverpool’s new manager, Roy Hodgson, and are not looking to move on Shaun Wright-Phillips despite his erratic form during an unresolved contract dispute last season.

At Liverpool, Fernando Torres could be fit for the start of the season, as the thigh injury that ended his involvement in the World Cup final is not as serious as first feared.

Torres suffered only a small tear to his left thigh and has been told to have three weeks off before undergoing a rehabilitation programme aimed at getting him fit for Liverpool’s opening game, against Arsenal on August 15th – if he decides to stay at Anfield in the face of interest from Chelsea.

Liverpool’s head of sports science and medicine, Peter Brukner, said: “He had an MRI scan which confirmed a small tear. He should be able to resume training within two to three weeks and play within three to four weeks.”

• Guardian Service