Manchester City are among a trio of Premier League giants tracking Vasco da Gama’s 16-year-old defender Breno Sales, according to new reports.
Manchester City pipped Arsenal to the signing of Jeremy Monga from Leicester City this summer.
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City are no strangers to shopping for exciting youngsters in Brazil, which has traditionally been one of the most fertile breeding grounds for world-class talent anywhere on the planet.
The latest name to catch the club’s eye - if reports are to be believed - is currently playing in the academy of one of South American football’s biggest and oldest institutions.
The player in question is not yet 17, and any switch to England remains some way off - but Enzo Maresca’s side are reportedly already jostling for his signature, and they are not the only Premier League heavyweight to have taken notice.
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A Premier League Trio Circling
As reported by Gustavo Tutinha and relayed by Sport Witness, Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal have all shown a keen interest in young defender Breno Sales.
Vasco have already rejected a €10 million (£8.7 million) bid for the teenager, though the identity of the bidding club remains unknown at this time.
Knocking back a bid of that size for a 16-year-old is a good indicator of how highly Vasco regard Sales. It seems that the trio of English suitors will have to pay a good deal more than that if they are to pry the player away from a club that clearly sees him as a valuable prospect.
Who is Breno Sales?
Sales’ path to the centre-back position has been unconventional, to say the least. Due to turn 17 in November, the Brazilian started out as a striker, dropped back to left-back, and now plays in the middle of defence.
His profile as a left-footed centre-back who is comfortable with the ball at his feet goes some way to explaining the interest from abroad.
Despite his background as a forward, he is already proving himself well beyond his years. Sales has featured for much of this campaign in Vasco's U20s, competing alongside and against much older players, and helped the side to the Brazilian U20 title this year. He has lifted the U17 Copa do Brasil in 2025.
He is also starting to build an impressive reputation on the international stage. A regular for his country at youth level, Sales lined up for the U17s at the South American Championship and is expected to feature at next month's FIFA U17 World Cup - another shop window for a growing queue of admirers.
Vasco Holding Firm
The problem Manchester City have is that Vasco are in a very strong bargaining position. Sales is under a professional contract that runs until the end of 2028, and the club’s recently improved finances mean they no longer feel obliged to part with their brightest academy products the moment European interest surfaces, as might have been the case in the past.
Instead they plan to hold on to the teenager, let him keep developing and watch his value climb. Their decision to reject a €10 million offer for a defender of his age is a fairly emphatic statement of that intent.
It could also emerge that this is simply groundwork for a transfer that will actually materialise several years from now, as has been the case for so many young South American prospects in the past. If he performs as expected at the U17 World Cup, the chase for Sales may only just be beginning.
Meanwhile, Manchester City return to Premier League action against Liverpool at Anfield on October 11, three days before a home UEFA Champions League encounter against Paris Saint-Germain.