Espanyol manager Manolo Gonzalez has tipped in-form striker Roberto Fernandez to earn a move to Manchester City if he maintains his remarkable goalscoring form.
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Roberto Fernandez has burst into life at the start of the new and ongoing La Liga season, bagging six goals during his opening six games to establish himself as one of the division’s most dangerous strikers.
It represents a stunning leap forward in output for the 24-year-old, who managed just seven league goals across the whole of last term.
Born in Andalusia, the former Spain Under-21 international came through a series of youth academies in his homeland before a spell at Portuguese side Braga, and joined Espanyol in 2025.
His electric start to the campaign has quickly turned heads - not least those of his own manager, who has now tied the player with a move to one of the biggest clubs on the planet.
Gonzalez tips Fernandez for Manchester City switch
Speaking ahead of Espanyol’s clash with Rayo Vallecano, Espanyol manager Manolo Gonzalez was quizzed on his striker’s hot scoring streak and could not resist name-dropping Manchester City, albeit whilst urging a degree of caution.
“If Roberto [Fernandez] achieves this goal average, and this is his true potential, he’ll be at Manchester City next year,” Gonzalez said.
“It’s not normal for a top-flight striker to score in every game; maybe now he goes two or three games without scoring and we’ll say he’s playing very badly. What Roberto is doing right now is very, very difficult.”
The Espanyol boss went on to make light of the interest his players might attract should their fine form continue.
“If they want to sign Roberto and five more players in the winter transfer window, it means we’ve done things well,” he added.
“If they want to sign 10 players at the end of the season, it means things have been done very, very well. What worries me is that he continues to play at his level.”
What it means for Manchester City
It is worth stressing that Manolo Gonzalez’s comments amount to a glowing endorsement of his player rather than any indication of concrete interest from the Etihad Stadium.
Manchester City’s recruitment team often cast a famously wide net, however, and a prolific young striker excelling in La Liga is precisely the kind of profile they - and plenty of others - will be keeping tabs on.
Enzo Maresca’s side are, of course, superbly stocked up front, with Erling Haaland the undisputed focal point of the attack. However, City’s long-term planning has often revolved around identifying elite young talent before their value soars, and the club has already been credited with interest in a string of promising attackers ahead of future windows.
A forward hitting the ground running in one of Europe’s top divisions will do his prospects of joining that conversation no harm at all. Any future move would carry an added wrinkle, too, with Braga understood to be due 50 per cent of any transfer fee Espanyol receive for the forward.
For now, though, this is little more than a nod to a player enjoying a breakout moment. With Espanyol next in action against division strugglers Elche, Roberto Fernandez will have another opportunity to add to his tally and keep the growing hype rolling.
Whether his name genuinely reaches the top of Manchester City’s striker shortlist remains to be seen, but he has certainly announced himself as one to watch.