Lazio want quick solution

Kolarov, 24, had been linked with Internazionale and Real Madrid but press reports in England insist he is set to join City in a £15 million deal.

Reja wants the saga to stop, and would be happy for the player to leave so long as he has time to plan for a replacement.

"We either sell him or keep him," the former Napoli boss said. "He has been destined to leave for about a month now and yet he is still here.

"We still haven’t sorted out where he will be playing and I hope that a final decision will be made soon.

"We need to understand whether he will leave or whether he will be staying."

Planning is vital for Reja, whose other left-back options - Luciano Zauri and Riccardo Bonetto - are expected to leave the club after recent loan spells away, while Stefan Radu is preferred on the left side of a three-man central defence.

"It’s clear that if we sell him then we do need an alternative in that part of the pitch," added Reja.

"However, I don’t want players to be signed until other players have been sold.

"I’ve got around 26 or 27 players at this moment in time and we need to get rid of some because I don’t want to be managing a squad of 30."