Turning their attention towards the summer, Manchester City have now reportedly joined the race to sign a bargain World Cup winner who could replace Kevin de Bruyne.
Man City transfer news
The Blues weren’t afraid to splash the cash during the January transfer window, welcoming as many as five fresh faces in Omar Marmoush, Vitor Reis, Abdukodir Khusanov, Juma Bah and Nico Gonzalez. And they’ll likely approach without fear once again in the summer transfer window as they look to rebuild a side which has been a shadow of its historic best.
Even with victory in their grasp against Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League tie, it was Ederson’s turn to endure an out-of-character moment by sending his pass straight back towards the La Liga giants, who instantly profited to level things up before Jude Bellingham netted a late winner. Within the space of 12 minutes, City had gone from leading to taking a 3-2 defeat to the Bernabeu.
With plenty of work to do, Pep Guardiola and those above him at The Etihad look destined to endure a busy summer transfer window which could yet end in the arrival of a World Cup winner.
According to reports in Spain, Manchester City are now entering the race to sign Paulo Dybala, who has a release clause as cheap as €12m (£10m) this summer. The Argentine attacking midfielder, at that price, would be an undeniable bargain and could yet see the Cityzens replace De Bruyne in intelligent fashion.
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As things stand, the Belgian is set to bow out as a free agent at The Etihad at the end of the season, bringing to an end an iconic tenure at the Manchester club. Leaving a gaping hole in the middle of the park, Dybala could quickly emerge to ease any of Manchester City’s concerns.
“Phenomenon” Dybala would be surprising option
If De Bruyne really is to bow out of Manchester City at 33 years old, then Dybala would be a surprising option for the Citizens to turn to. At 31 years old, the Argentine wouldn’t solve Guardiola’s problem for long and instead add another ageing midfielder to a side full of stars at the back end of their peaks.
Even if Dybala is yet to show signs of following in the footsteps of the likes of Ilkay Gundogan, who has struggled this season, City wouldn’t have the chance to enjoy the peak of his powers for long enough to make any deal worthwhile this summer. Instead, they should set their sights on rising stars such as Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz.
The AS Roma man could still have a decision to make this summer, however, and could yet bow out as a hero at his own club in the coming months. Once described as a “phenomenon” by Roma legend Francesco Totti, Dybala certainly has plenty of fans in Italy.
