Inter Milan are considering making a move for Manchester City defender Pablo Zabaleta in January, sources have told ESPN FC.
The Italian club sent a delegation to City's Champions League clash with Barcelona on Wednesday night to watch the Argentina defender.
However, Zabaleta, who was City's captain on the night, lasted just 57 minutes before being taken off with an injury.
The 31-year-old is one of a number of City's players whose contracts run out at the end of the season.
But Inter are understood to want to get a deal done when the transfer window opens in January after a run of four games without defeat that leaves them 11th in Serie A.
However, they could face competition from Italian rivals Roma, who were linked in the Sun newspaper with a triple swoop for Zabaleta and fellow City defenders Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna.
All three players are in their 30s, in the final year of their contract and free to talk to foreign clubs about a summer move in January.
Zabaleta was linked with a move to Italy before the start of the season but said new City manager Pep Guardiola had told him he wanted him to stay.
"I have only one year left on my contract and so some teams were aware of my situation and probably were looking to make an offer and I did receive an offer from some clubs. But I didn't decide anything until coming back to preseason, meeting the new manager and having a conversation," he said in September.
Zabaleta has been with City since he left Spanish side Espanyol in an £8.5 million move in August 2008 shortly before Sheikh Mansour took over the club.