Winger Jared Polec has told his AFL club Port Adelaide that he wants a trade to North Melbourne.
Polec has long been linked with the Kangaroos but until Thursday hadn't informed Port of his intentions.
"Contract talks between Port Adelaide and Polec have reached an impasse," the Power said in a statement.
"Jared has indicated to the club his preference is to be traded to a Victorian club if a new agreement at Port Adelaide cannot be reached."
North's football manager Cameron Joyce said Polec had told him he wants to join the Kangaroos.
"Jared has indicated his intent to cross to us during the trade period, provided a deal can be reached with Port," Joyce said.
"If everything pans out as we expect, we would be delighted to have Jared as he will add some elite qualities to our team.
"We'll sit down with Port Adelaide in the coming weeks and hopefully agree to a mutually beneficial trade.
"It's no secret that we've been aggressively pursuing midfielders in particular,.
"We know Jared will complement our current players and will add some real depth to our group."
Polec could claim Port's club champion award after consistently excellent performances in a season where his club missed the finals.
The Power was understood to have offered the 25-year-old a three-year deal before North Melbourne tabled a five-year multi-million dollar contract.
South Australian-born Polec was drafted by Brisbane in 2010 and spent three years at the Lions before, citing home sickness, he was traded to Port for the 2014 season.
He has played 90 games for Port and 106 AFL games overall.
