Manchester City did not have the best of summer windows as the defending Premier League champions could not get their hands on Tottenham’s Harry Kane despite negotiating with the North London club throughout the summer.
City were in desperate need of a striker after parting ways with their record goal-scorer and club legend in Sergio Aguero. Having said that, the form and displays of Ferran Torres and Gabriel Jesus has been welcoming for Pep Guardiola.
While the attack most certainly looks sorted with Pep showing immense faith in Ferran Torres to lead the line, the Cityzens are now focusing their sights on the central defensive position in the midfield.
Club legend and skipper Fernandinho is likely to leave the club after the ongoing season and it is clear that the Sky Blues will need to bring in an able replacement for the Brazilian. The 37-year-old was set to leave this summer as a free agent until he signed a contract extension which is why it might be a bit unreasonable to think that he would stay beyond the end of the ongoing season.
Declan Rice has been one name that has been linked with the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City, and Chelsea. The 22-year-old has evolved into one of the better CDM’s in the game currently and his impressive performances in the recently concluded Euro 2020 were not unnoticed.
Rice is currently content at the London stadium but looks set for a departure as he is not said to be in favor of committing to a long-term future at West Ham United.
Chelsea were considered to be the favorites to sign the 22-year-old last summer and this summer as well but with the Blues bringing in Saul Niguez from Atletico, it seems that the reigning UEFA Champions League champions have given up on their pursuit of Rice.
It is understood that West Ham are likely to demand a fee in the range of £100 million to secure the services of the English midfielder and it is a sum that is not beyond the reach of both the clubs from Manchester. Having said that, it will be interesting to see how far City and United go to sign Rice, given that they’re both in contention to sign Erling Haaland next summer.
While Haaland’s €75 million release clause only becomes active next summer, the entire operation is going to cost a lot more due to the massive fee and wage demands imposed by the player’s agent, Mino Raiola.