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Manchester City ramp up interest in highly-rated Sporting defender

By Rohan Sengupta

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - APRIL 10: Gabriel Jesus, Ederson, Nathan Ake, Benjamin Mendy, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Raheem Sterling of Manchester City observe a two minute silence in memory of HRH Prince Phillip, The Duke of Edinburgh who passed away recently prior to during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Leeds United at Etihad Stadium on April 10, 2021 in Manchester, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Tim Keeton - Pool/Getty Images)
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - APRIL 10: Gabriel Jesus, Ederson, Nathan Ake, Benjamin Mendy, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Raheem Sterling of Manchester City observe a two minute silence in memory of HRH Prince Phillip, The Duke of Edinburgh who passed away recently prior to during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Leeds United at Etihad Stadium on April 10, 2021 in Manchester, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Tim Keeton - Pool/Getty Images) /
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According to a report from the Sun, Manchester City have already started making plans to sign Sporting Lisbon’s highly-rated teenager Nuno Mendes.

A product of the famed Sporting Lisbon academy, Nuno Mendes, 18, has been a revelation for the club this season under Ruben Amorim. He has played a key role behind Sporting Lisbon’s first league title triumph since 2002, registering a goal and an assist in 28 Liga NOS appearances.

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Nuno Mendes’ fine performances down the left flank for the Portuguese giants haven’t gone unnoticed, with Manchester City keen to sign him this summer. The Sky Blues have already made initial contact with the 18-year-old starlet’s agent Miguel Pinho, the Sun adds.

The report further claims that the Mancunian club are willing to include right-back Pedro Porro as part of the deal to sign Mendes, with the City defender already at Sporting Lisbon on loan since August 2020.

Pedro Porro, who’s had an impressive campaign along with Mendes in Sporting colours, doesn’t appear to have a future at Manchester City under Pep Guardiola and looks all set to join the Portuguese champions permanently as part of the Mendes deal.

Manchester City are enjoying a fantastic season having won the Carabao Cup and the Premier League title in some style. They will cross swords with Chelsea in the Champions League final in Portugal later this month, as Pep Guardiola aims to guide City to its first-ever treble.

While the Cityzens have been rock solid at the back after a slow start to the campaign, Guardiola apparently isn’t convinced with his options at left-back. Joao Cancelo and Oleksandr Zinchenko have shared the left-back duties this season, with the latter starting the crunch Champions League’s second-leg victory over Paris Saint-Germain at the Etihad Stadium.

Guardiola’s reluctance to use Benjamin Mendy much despite the left-back keeping himself fit for the majority of the campaign should concern the French international, especially with City chasing Nuno Mendes.

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Mendes, who has played a starring role in Sporting’s title win, has a £60million release clause in his new contract which he signed back in December 2020. City are likely to face a stiff challenge in securing the teenager’s signature, with the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United, Napoli, Real Madrid and Juventus all believed to be keeping tabs on him, the report states.

All in all, the Cityzens’ growing interest in the exciting Mendes signals a potential end to Mendy’s time at the Etihad Stadium, with the Frenchman having had a frustrating time with recurrent injury problems ever since arriving from AS Monaco in 2017. It apparently looks like Guardiola has finally given up on Mendy and wants to replace him with Mendes next season.

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