Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis said Manchester City have told the Italian club they will not match Edinson Cavani's €63 million (£53 million, $82 million) release clause.
City are thought to be one of the frontrunners for the signature of the Uruguayan international, but De Laurentiis, speaking to reporters at the unveiling of new manager Rafa Benitez, admitted it is looking unlikely that Cavani will be moving to City this summer.
"Manchester City do not have money to pay for Cavani because they say we won't pay that," De Laurentiis said.
"Abu Dhabi (City's owners) say they would never pay €63 million (£53 million, $82 million) for Cavani."
Cavani has expressed his wish to join a big club ahead of next season, with Real Madrid his favored team. The likes of Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain have also been linked, with recent reports even suggesting the Blues were close to completing a move.
De Laurentiis admitted Cavani would find it difficult to turn down a move to a big club, but insisted the interested party would have to match the buy-out clause.
"With Edinson nothing has changed," he added. "Headlines I've read in the papers did not represent his words exactly.
"He could never deny the importance of a club like Real Madrid's, but don't forget that he made his name at Napoli.
"If a club like Anzhi (Makhachkala) enquire about him, maybe he says no, but other clubs like Bayern (Munich), Barcelona or Real Madrid could persuade him to leave.
"He knows that he has a contract and an obligation to us, and there is a buy-out clause.
"Cavani knows that at Napoli he is the most important player. I do not know whether, at Real Madrid or in other teams, he will be as important."
Meanwhile, Benitez was officially unveiled as new manager of Napoli and takes over from the popular Walter Mazzarri, who joined Benitez's former club Inter Milan.
The former Liverpool and Chelsea manager admitted he had spoken to Cavani a number of times and was not surprised by the interest generated in the prolific forward.
"I've spoken many times with Cavani -- he's a great player and for this reason, the world is talking about him."
