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Manchester City are ready to exploit an astonishingly low buy-out clause in Fabian Delph’s new contract.

MirrorSport can reveal Aston Villa and England midfielder Delph is available for only around £10million under the terms of the deal he signed in January.

Delph had relegation-threatened Villa over a barrel when he shocked many fans by staying on fresh terms barely five months ago.

He was due to be a Bosman this summer, which would have allowed him to quit for nothing. But Villa did not want to see him leave on a free and also did not want to sell in the winter window, when they were fighting the drop.

After signing the contract, Delph said he couldn’t bring himself to walk out for nothing this July after owner Randy Lerner’s support through various injuries.

(Image: Neville Williams)

While low, the clause would still mean Villa doubling their money on the fee they paid Leeds for Delph in August 2009.

And with Lerner set to sell the whole club this summer, Delph will now have no such dilemmas about leaving.

It is another potential hammer-blow for the Villans, who also face losing star striker Christian Benteke to Liverpool as he has a £32.5m buy-out clause.

Delph finished the season in outstanding individual form to help Villa retain top flight status while also reaching the FA Cup final.

But deposed champions City want him to bolster their midfield as boss Manuel Pellegrini rebuilds his squad after a raft of departures.

The Mancunian Blues are also on a well-documented mission to sign more ‘home-grown’ players.

Under Premier League rules, clubs can name no more than 17 foreign players over the age of 21 in their squads.

City’s homegrown ranks have been depleted by the departures this summer of James Milner, Frank Lampard, Dedryck Boyata (who is Belgian but counted as home-grown) and Scott Sinclair leaving.

It has led to Pellegrini targeting Delph, as his hopes of landing Arsenal’s Jack Wilshere are slim.

(Image: Action)

Delph's likely exit will be a huge blow to boss Tim Sherwood, who made him captain after being appointed in February and hailed him as one of the best midfielders in the country.

It is also daunting scenario for Villa’s owners-in-waiting, who are believed to have American links.

They have negotiated an exclusive six-week period to complete their takeover and an agreement is expected next month.

Lerner has consequently rejected bids from a wealthy Chinese consortium keen on the club.

As revealed by MirrorSport in April, the Far East group were also speaking to West Brom and remain in negotiations with Albion chairman Jeremy Peace.