• Striker fears he will be left on substitutes' bench • 'If [City] force you out, you have to follow your destiny'

Emmanuel Adebayor has threatened to leave Manchester City before the end of the transfer window. The striker is ready to move on if there is an offer for him before 31 August as he fears spending a large part of the season on the substitutes' bench if he stays.

"If you're in a team and you're not playing, and there is a team that comes in for me, then I will definitely be on my way out because I'm a footballer and I love playing," he told talkSPORT.

"If I don't have a chance to play here there will [be] a lot of chance to play somewhere else. If they [Manchester City] force you out then you always have to follow your destiny."

The striker was speaking after City's 2-0 win over Timisoara in the Europa League last night and is not the first of Roberto Mancini's players to voice their concerns over a lack of playing time. Shay Given's future is also unresolved with the goalkeeper having been displaced as No1 by Joe Hart.

Juventus, who today sold the Brazilian forward Diego to Wolfsburg for €15.5m (£12.7m), have been linked with a move for the unsettled striker while Milan are also looking to strengthen up front. City are unlikely to sell to a rival English club.

Adebayor added: "The season is going to be very long and very difficult for myself. I'm a footballer and have to keep going and not give up. I need to keep fighting for myself and enjoying my football."

City said at the beginning of August they had no plans to sell Adebayor.