Man City are expected to target a talented Wolves star - but could the Old Gold still benefit?
Eight-time Premier League winners Manchester City are expected to be in the market for a left-back this summer as they look to bridge the gap between themselves and champions Liverpool after a subdued 2024/25 season.
City picked up just 71 points across the entirety of the campaign and failed to win any form of silverware for the first time since Pep Guardiola’s debut season after falling short in the FA Cup final, the fourth round of the League Cup and the knockout stage play-offs in the Champions League.
It marked a season to forget after four consecutive title triumphs and leaves Guardiola with plenty to do if he’s to restore City to their all-conquering best.
City are in the market for a left-back, and despite having Croatian international Josko Gvardiol in that position at present, it’s suspected the club could go after highly-rated Wolves star Rayan Ait-Nouri to fix a key problem within their squad.
Why Manchester City are interested in Rayan Ait-Nouri
Reliable transfer guru Fabrizio Romano claims that City have emerged as serious contenders to sign Ait-Nouri this summer – with transfer talks underway.
Romano posted on X:“Understand Manchester City have asked for deal conditions for Rayan Aït-Nouri at Wolves. He’s high on the list for left back position with contacts expected to continue.”
The Algerian is understood to be a target for City due to his immense technical qualities which have seen him record an impressive four goals and seven assists from 37 league matches.
Ait-Nouri is blessed with excellent speed, an eye for goal, and pinpoint crossing accuracy which makes him hugely appealing to Pep Guardiola in a season where his side have struggled to hit the heights expected of them in front of goal.
Josko Gvardiol currently occupies the left-back role and has proven he can find the net with five goals. However, his best position prior to joining City was at centre-back for RB Leipzig and it’s expected that the 6ft5 defender will move back there next season to partner Ruben Dias due to John Stones and Nathan Ake’s poor fitness record in recent months.
Ait-Nouri’s Wolves contract expires next year and though the Old Gold have the option to extend the Algerian’ contract by a further 12 months, it’s understood that City see this as the perfect time to pounce with the 23-year-old reportedly being valued at £45m as per TEAMtalk.
The intriguing summer swap deal Man City could look to strike
Our sister outlet Birmingham World, has exclusively confirmed that James McAtee ranks highly on Wolves’ list of potential replacements for Matheus Cunha, with the Brazilian looking set to complete a £62.5m move to Manchester United.
McAtee is highly rated from past loan spells at Sheffield United and has shown flickers of quality in small doses when given the chance to shine for Man City in cameos from the bench. The England Under-21 international has an overall record of seven goals in 23 appearances this term, which is more than respectable to say he’s started just seven matches across all competitions.
McAtee is believed to be valued at around £25m but Wolves could potentially pay nothing if they sell Ait-Nouri to City for in excess of £20m will getting hold of the 22-year-old as part of the deal.
Of course, the final decision could lay with McAtee, who is believed to be the subject of long-term interest from Bayer Leverkusen along with a whole host of other top-flight sides including newly promoted Leeds United and Europa League holders Tottenham Hotspur.
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