According to reports, Pep Guardiola has ‘sanctioned’ Manchester City’s ‘unexpected’ hijack of Arsenal and FC Barcelona for a new goalkeeper.
Man City need to be active during this summer’s transfer window as they are coming off a very disappointing campaign under head coach Pep Guardiola.
The Cityzens headed into the 2024/25 campaign as the favourites to win the Premier League for a fifth consecutive season, but they exited the race for the title before the New Year amid a dire run of form.
City went from challenging for the title to facing an uphill battle to qualify for the Champions League.Their performances gradually improved over the past five months as they sealed third spot, but they were deservedly beaten by Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final.
Guardiola’s side were comfortably Europe’s biggest spenders in January as their rebuild was brought forward, but they still have a lot of work to do.
One summer priority for Man City will be to sign a new goalkeeper amid reports linking Ederson with a move to the Saudi Pro League.
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While at the Etihad, Ederson has consistently been one of the Premier League’s standout goalkeepers, but he became a weak link this season, and his backup, Stefan Ortega, also struggled.
With Ederson seemingly nearing an exit and Ortega not good enough to be Man City’s No.1, they are reportedly scouring the market for a new first-choice goalkeeper and could hijack Arsenal and Barcelona for their preferred target.
Arsenal and Barcelona are favouring a move for Espanyol standout Joan Garcia following his breakthrough campaign in La Liga and he is available for an affordable £25m fee due to his release clause.
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It has been suggested that the Spaniard could come in to compete with or even replace David Raya at Arsenal, but Man City could ‘scupper’ any potential ‘deal’ with other clubs.
This is according to an outlet in Spain, who suggest that Man City have ‘entered the market with force’ for Garcia as Guardiola has given this signing the ‘green light’.
Man City are deemed an ‘unexpected rival’ in the race to sign Garcia, who is considered a ‘reliable’ replacement for Ederson.
Barcelona feel he would be the ‘natural heir to Marc-Andre ter Stegan, but they are ‘fearing the worst’ amid interest from Man City, who would offer him a long-term contract with a salary much higher than what he could have’ at the Nou Camp.