James Milner's injury not serious

Martin O'Neill today insisted James Milner's injury won't halt any move to Manchester City - as Gareth Barry urged his England team-mate to sort out his future.

Milner's back problem forced him to miss last night's 4-1 defeat by Benfica on the Algarve, as the Portuguese outfit retained the Guadiana Cup.

The England star, whose summer-long transfer saga is no closer to completion, is yet to feature in pre-season but Villa boss O'Neill said the injury is not serious.

Asked if it could threaten the deal, he replied: "No. The injury itself is just some back spasms which I'm sure most players would suffer at one stage or another.

"I don't think the doctor's thinking it's anything incredibly serious that will keep him out for a fairly lengthy time."

City are poised to up their bid for Milner, having had a £20m offer for the 24-year-old turned down in May, and ex-Villa captain Barry has urged his former team-mate to sort out his future as quickly as possible.

Barry was wanted by Liverpool two summers ago only to see the move blocked by O'Neill, before finally moving to Eastlands a year later.

"My advice to him would be to try to get the situation sorted as quickly as possible," said Barry. "It is tough to deal with and it does mess with your brain."

"He should speak to Martin O'Neill to try to get the situation cleared and then he can concentrate on what needs to be done for the season. He has a long career ahead.

"It's exactly the same situation as the one I was in. It is hard to say that Martin O'Neill or Villa are doing anything wrong.

"They have put a valuation on James and if it is not being met they are within their rights to turn offers down."