Manchester City are working on a deal to sign Fred, the Brazil midfielder, from Shakhtar Donetsk.

The Premier League leaders have identified the 24-year-old as a primary defensive midfield target as they seek quality long-term cover for Fernandinho and with Yaya Toure expected to be released when his contract expires at the end of the season.

City have not prioritised the recruitment of a defensive midfielder in this month’s transfer window but they do want a player who can fill the “No. 6” position that Fernandinho, another Brazilian, occupies in place for the start of the summer, ideally before the World Cup commences in mid-June.

Yet City are conscious that the price for Fred has increased significantly since they first entered into informal discussions with Shakhtar last year and hope to secure a breakthrough before the costs continue to escalate amid reported interest from Manchester United, Arsenal and others.

Sergei Palkin, the Shakhtar chief executive, is thought to have travelled to Manchester in the wake of the clubs’ Champions League match in Ukraine on Dec. 6 as talks over a potential deal continued.

City and Shakhtar, who sold Fernandinho to the Manchester club for £30 million in 2013, have a good working relationship but hopes of signing Fred for a similar fee have faded and the price is now thought to have risen to in excess of £40 million.