Manchester City: Riyad Mahrez to City
Hot on the heels of the announcement of Laporte’s arrival, the whisper wheels turned again. Now it seems that Manchester City are interested in Leicester City’s Algerian winger, Riyad Mahrez. On the back of the Leroy Sane injury, it would seem to make sense, especially as there is no previous European football to cup tie the player.
Liverpool, and a number of other clubs have expressed an interest, so City will have to move quick, which is what they have seemingly done. Reports were that City had made an initial bid of £50 million, although Leicester value their star at more than £70.
With less than 24 hours to go until the window slams shut, and with no intention of selling, it seemed as if the ball was in Leicester City’s court. However, it now appears that the player himself is trying to force a move away from the KP. Handing in a transfer request Claude Puel will now have to rethink his plans.
Kia Joorabchian is a name some Manchester City fans might remember, and he was involved recently in the transfer of Courtinho to Barcelona. Also the agent of Riyard, Kia was instrumental in the Robinho purchase and the facilitating of Carlos Tevez moving to the blues.
The pluses for Manchester City are numerous. Firstly, he will be available for Champions League football, which is something Alexis Sanchez may not have been. Mahrez has won the Premier League and has shown he can perform in the hustle of the English game.
Yes, he turns 27 in less than a month, but he’s still two years the junior of the Chilean we almost ended up with. The only real downside I think is his participation with Manchester City could push the development of Phil Foden and Brahim Diaz back, with senior appearances likely limited by the arrival.
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Personally I am not sure there is enough time to get the deal across the line. That said, if the player completely throws his toys out of the pram, maybe they can be convinced to cash in on an unhappy player.