DAVID MOYES has told Manchester City they are doomed to failure in their attempts to take Joleon Lescott from Everton.

The Eastlands club have been tracking the England international for months as Mark Hughes aims to assemble a title-challenging squad backed by billionaire Abu Dhabi owners.

Having already signed Gareth Barry, Roque Santa Cruz and Carlos Tevez this summer, City are increasingly confident Lescott will become the next big-money arrival.

But Moyes is determined to hold on to his most prized squad members with Lescott among several players tied to long-term contracts.

And when asked about the centre-back’s situation at last night’s first Shareholders Forum – where Everton announced a record turnover of almost £80million – Moyes said: “I said at the end of last season that no players will be sold at Everton and I don’t feel as though I have to say any more than that.

“Players will only be sold at my discretion and I said at the end of the summer I don’t want to sell any players.

“Every year I feel my job is to make progress and Bill (Kenwright) has always supported me. The only thing I ever asked for when I came here was that Bill didn’t take any of my good players away from me. And he has never done that.”

Moyes conceded it was unlikely Everton would make any big-money signings during the transfer window.

The manager suggested the club would instead invest in younger players, with Everton still hopeful of signing Sheffield United duo Kyle Naughton and Kyle Walker for a combined £8m.