Fans' favourite Valeri Bojinov insists that he wants to stay at the City of Manchester Stadium - but he will seek a meeting with Mark Hughes to discover where he stands in the manager's pecking order next season.
Bulgaria striker Boji recovered from an injury-ravaged season to score at Tottenham in the final away match of the Premier League campaign before leading the attack in the World Cup qualifier against Republic of Ireland.
But the former Fiorentina prospect signed by Sven Goran Eriksson sees daily mounting speculation that Hughes is in the market for more than one quality goalscorer whose arrival would threaten Bojinov's chance of playing.
Boji said: "I enjoy being here, and I'm very happy with City because they stood by me through injury. I would like to stay, and if I can I will, but you can't guarantee you will play and next season is very important for me."
He has been linked with an eventual return to Serie A, and he added: "As they say, anything is possible. I don't think any player stays at one club forever. I respect the team but I have questions I will have to ask the gaffer."
The powerful 23-year-old striker, who ruptured his achilles warming up for the opening match at Aston Villa, is desperate to put last season behind him - and keen to repay Blues fans for their unwavering support.
He said: "That was a big injury, but I'm better now. You want to play more games but that depends on the boss. I played 11 games and I enjoyed them, but I need to stay clear of injury, and I need a very good pre-season.
"Getting the goal at Tottenham was important to me. It was very difficult not to be training and not to be with the team. Every striker loves to score, so I was happy with the goal but not the result. I thought I'd get the winner."
