OH what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.

So said Sir Walter Scott 200 years ago - he would have fitted in neatly to the world of high-powered football transfers.

As tangled webs go, the one being weaved by Samuel Eto'o's agent and his club Barcelona is among the knottiest - and the hopes of City fans everywhere are being caught in its treacherous threads.

The question of whether Eto'o will join Manchester City is rapidly turning from an affair to a saga, and is in danger of becoming an epic.

Already the snipers are relishing the chance to stick it to City, harking back to the Kaka fiasco in January.

But the simple fact is that this is none of City's making - they are innocent bystanders who may take some of the flak as a public row between Eto'o's agent Josep Maria Mesalles and Barcelona threatens to turn explosive.

The two parties are playing an elaborate game, both trying to emerge from the situation with reputations intact and wallets fatter.

It is of little consolation to City or their hopeful fans, as the story twists and turns, and the club can only look on and wait, knowing it has done all it can to bring the Cameroonian superstar to Eastlands.

The deal, mooted months ago, picked up pace at the weekend when City lodged a £25million bid for Eto'o, quickly accepted by the club.

Barca have been keen to off-load Eto'o for some time, knowing he has just one year left on his contract and could walk away next summer for nothing - and with the prospect of a huge signing-on fee from his next club.

Manager Pep Guardiola made it plain he wanted to cash in on the former Real Madrid man, and lined up Valencia's David Villa and Brazilian wonder kid Keirrison as replacements.

But president Joan Laporta is worried that allowing such an iconic figure to go might affect his chances when he is up for re-election next summer.

And that is where the fun and games began.

As far as City were concerned, this has been nothing like the Kaka affair. The Blues have been methodical and discreet in their dealings with Barcelona and with Eto'o.

Offer

But at the weekend Laporta blabbed to a Catalan radio station that Eto'o had received a "stratospheric offer" from City - a clear indication that the two clubs had already agreed a fee for the player.

He claimed that the deal would make Eto'o the world's best-paid player, something which City, and Eto'o's agent, strenuously deny. The Blues claim that Eto'o's deal would put him firmly in the top bracket, but the figure is nothing like the outlandish claims of £250,000-a-week. Laporta was trying to paint a picture of greed, with Eto'o as the man who would forego the glory of Barcelona for the hard cash of City.

There were reports emanating from Barcelona claiming that Eto'o wanted a £12.5m loyalty "bonus" from Barca for being sold before then end of his contract, something Mesalles strenuously denies.

The Barcelona-based sports newspaper El Mundo Deportivo toed the club line, saying: "City have few aspirations and he (Eto'o) gives the impression of seeking to be the best-paid player in the world."

That "few aspirations" line will come as news to City's ambitious owners!

Mesalles held the ace that if Barca refuse to stump up some of the cash, Eto'o could wait for a year and hoover up a fortune, leaving them with nothing.

Mesalles decided to call a press conference yesterday to outline his client's position.

And when the news came through that Barcelona had made Eto'o a new two-year contract offer late on Monday night, City fans began to fear the worst, feeling like the club had been used as a pawn in the agent's attempts to eke more cash out of Barca.

Then Mesalles invited Barcelona's sporting director Txiki Begiristain to attend the press conference, and City's deal appeared to be dead in the water. The image that invitation conjured up was of a cosy reunion, a few back-slaps and handshakes, and Eto'o signs a new, improved offer to keep him at Camp Nou.

But that mood changed rapidly as the day dawned, and it appeared that Barca's new contract offer was on the same terms as Eto'o's current deal. What had appeared to be an olive branch began to look more like a slap in the face.

Mesalles held up his mobile phone to show that the new offer had been made in a short text message at 11.35pm on Monday night - possibly too late, and certainly too little.

Posturing

It was a clumsy piece of posturing from Barca, perhaps intended to make it look to their support that they were being reasonable towards the player.

Mesalles began by saying that Eto'o wanted to stay at Barcelona, again a statement which immediately made Blue hearts sink.

Then came the rider. Mesalles added that the player was being forced out against his wishes, and claimed that Begiristain and director of football Raul Sanllehi had both told him that Eto'o did not figure in the club's plans for next season.

But Barca manager Pep Guardiola, who had been thought to be the main mover behind the bid to cash in on Eto'o, then contradicted his superiors by telling the player how delighted he was with him - little wonder, as he had just scored the first goal in the Champions League final defeat of United!

The news of Barca's new contract offer refused to dismiss Mesalles' suspicions.

He said of the offer: "I don't know if everything changed in the space of an afternoon, I don't know if they really want Samuel to stay of if they just want to make money out of him.

"He would be delighted to stay if they want him and we will study their offer if it is serious, but if they don't want him we will do all we can to help Samuel find a new club."

And then came some more fuel for the hopes of the breathless City fans as Mesalles said: "In theory he wanted to play in the Champions League, but if Manchester City have an offer accepted, we would be delighted to go there."

The ultimate choice will fall to Eto'o, still on his holidays, but whether his pride has been battered to the point where he refuses to contemplate a return to Barcelona remains to be seen.

For now, City still appear to be in the driving seat. Such public squabbles have done nothing to improve relationships between Eto'o and his club - and Barca are driven by the need to cash in now.

Don't be too surprised, once the posturing and posing is done, to see Eto'o sign on the dotted line for City.

What do you think? Have your say.