The Cobblers had a bid accepted for Akinde, who has recently returned to the Championship club after a loan spell at Bristol Rovers.
But the striker, who is out of contract at Ashton Gate in the summer, was only interested in a loan move to Northampton so Cobblers manager Ian Sampson has turned his attentions elsewhere.
"We had a change of mind regarding the player we were looking at, but Sammo has acted very quickly to get a bid in for another player which has been accepted," Cobblers chairman David Cardoza told the Northampton Chronicle & Echo.
"It is a player we were looking at not so long ago and one that quite a few clubs have been keeping tabs on.
"We thought with Akinde we could have got him in and developed him but it wasn`t to be. The player we`ve bid for now is a bit older but he`s got much more of a solid record."
Source: PA
Source: PA