Morgan Gibbs-White’s future has been put in limbo following the latest news out of Nottingham Forest.
Following an impressive season at the City Ground last time around, the midfielder is a player many Premier League clubs have been keeping an eye on this summer, and at one point, it looked like Gibbs-White was certain to be a Man City player for the upcoming campaign.
Any interest the Manchester club had remaining in the Englishman was put to bed on Thursday, as it was reported that Tottenham had agreed to pay the £60m release clause in Gibbs-White’s current contract, with the North London club hoping to have his medical completed by the end of Friday.
However, a twist has emerged in the story, which has given Man City a lifeline if they still have an interest in the Nottingham Forest star.
Morgan Gibbs-White celebrates during Nottingham Forest v Manchester City.
Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images
Morgan Gibbs-White’s transfer to Tottenham is off
A day after Tottenham reached an agreement with Nottingham Forest for Gibbs-White, Sky Sports’ Rob Dorsett is reporting that Forest are now considering the deal to be off.
The Midlands club are said to be consulting their lawyers regarding the transfer as they believe Spurs made an illegal approach to sign the 25-year-old.
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Nottingham Forest say they never gave permission for talks to happen and have cut all communication with Tottenham. Dorsett states that Forest are unlikely to be able to block the transfer; however, they can certainly delay it.
This could give Pep Guardiola a lifeline if he still has plans to make a move for Gibbs-White, and this saga will have made the Manchester club aware that there is a £60m release clause in the midfielder’s contract, as Man City were not willing to match the £70m they were quoted for the 25-year-old.
Man City fans would love to see Gibbs-White at their club; however, the Manchester outfit are unlikely to make a move for the midfielder as this latest update has shown that they were right about Nottingham Forest all along.
Man City were worried about Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis
The main reason Man City walked away from their Gibbs-White interest was that the Manchester club believed it would be better to sign multiple players with the £70m they were quoted for the midfielder, rather than signing just one.
It was also reported that Man City were in a rush to recruit a new number eight ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup, and they didn’t make a move for Gibbs-White because they knew negotiations with Nottingham Forest owner, Evangelos Marinakis, were unlikely to run smoothly and could prove difficult.
This update on the Englishman’s move to Tottenham shows that Forest do not want to let the 25-year-old go ahead of the 25/26 season, while also proving that Man City’s hierarchy were right about Marinakis, as the Greek owner has started to make things difficult for Spurs.