Nottingham Forest have cranked up their interest in Manchester City midfielder James McAtee, according to the Daily Mail.
The 22-year-old is poised to leave Man City this summer, and Forest are in a decent position to snap him up if they can fend off the competition.
The Tricky Trees are firmly in the mix, but they have Bundesliga trio Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen, and Eintracht Frankfurt to deal with.
West Ham United have also been keeping an eye on McAtee’s situation as well as Serie A clubs Fiorentina, AS Roma, and Atalanta.
McAtee wants a fresh challenge as he looks to take the next step in his career after failing to work his way into Pep Guardiola’s starting line-up.
He played a starring role in England’s Under-21 European Championship.
The former Sheffield United loanee was on the fringes throughout last season, but he returned three goals despite managing just three starts in 15 Premier League games.
Unfazed by his lack of game time at Man City, McAtee took the Euros by storm, contributing to England’s success with a goal and two assists in six games.
His tally could have been significantly higher, but he missed three big chances.
McAtee has impressed when given the chance at Man City, but he doesn’t fit into Guardiola’s long-term vision.
A fresh challenge is what he needs, and Forest are primed to take advantage.
Guardiola has repeatedly waxed lyrical about McAtee’s potential, but also understands that the player needs playing time, which he cannot guarantee.
Man City are open to letting McAtee leave, but they value him highly and will only accept bids of more than £25 million for the Euros winner.
McAtee has just one year left on his contract, so Man City will prefer to sell this summer rather than lose their academy graduate on a free transfer.
Forest could act on their long-standing interest, especially with Morgan Gibbs-White close to completing a shocking move to Tottenham Hotspur.
The North Londoners have already scheduled a medical for the Forest skipper, but McAtee would be a fine replacement for Gibbs-White.