Peter Storrie, Portsmouth’s chief executive is meeting the Premier League today in an attempt to salvage the bungled transfer of Benjani Mwaruwari to Manchester City.

Porstmouth concluded the purchase of Jermain Defoe from Tottenham Hotspur after claiming City told them they had submitted the relevant forms for Benjani.

City say the transfer collapsed because the Zimbabwean arrived too late in Manchester to complete the deal before the midnight deadline. The Premier League is examining the timeline of the relevant paperwork.

Redknapp said: “Man City sent half the forms off and I’m not sure where it went from there. I know that Peter Storrie was told that the deal was done. Peter’s on the case this morning with the Premier League, seeing where we go with it.”

He added: “If [Benjani] is back then we’ll have to see where we go with that one. He’s a good player and we didn’t want to lose him. But we just needed to balance the books with him going and Defoe coming.”

However, City maintain the 29-year-old did not turn up in time to complete a medical. Paul Tyrrell, a City official, said: “Due to the late arrival of the player in Manchester, we were unable to complete the transfer,”