Manchester City enter the race to sign one of the World’s leading prospects
Manchester City had a disappointing summer window, to say the least and that is a fact. The Cityzens failed to sign their key target in Harry Kane and their inability to do so is hurting them at the moment.
It is unlikely that City would go for Kane next summer since Erling Haaland’s release clause worth €75 million will be activated and the defending Premier League champions are considered to be in the pole position to sign the prospect. Having said that, Juve’s de Ligt also has a €150 million release clause that gets activated in the summer of 2022.
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As per a report from CalcioMercato (relayed by Fichajes), City have entered the race to sign Matthijs de Ligt next term.
The Dutch defender is considered to be one of the world’s best and at the age of 22, he is one of the leading prospects in European football. MdL has fallen down the pecking order under Massimiliano Allegri in Turin and has only played 662 minutes this season. The Dutchman is also said to be looking for a switch of clubs as he looks to take his career forward.
Juventus are struggling at the moment and are currently 8th in the Serie A table, 14 points behind the league leaders in Napoli and 4 points behind the fourth-placed Atalanta. Not only does the Old Lady’s UEFA Champions League qualification hopes lie in jeopardy, but they also face the risk of losing one of their best players.
It is understood that Juventus are open to selling Matthijs de Ligt next summer but only if a club matches the €150 million valuation.
While the source does report that Manchester City are in the race to sign de Ligt as the Cityzens are looking to offload Nathan Ake next term, it is highly unlikely that City would want to spend that big a fee on the 2-year-old, given how solid their defense has been in the last couple of years.
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Aymeric Laporte, Ruben Dias, and John Stones have been doing the job for Pep Guardiola on a consistent basis and I don’t see City moving ahead with this deal for the Dutchman.
City are considered to be the favorites to sign Erling Haaland in the summer of 2022 and even though his release clause is set at €75 million, the entire operation is set to cost around €120 million; taking into account the agent fee and the massive wages that Haaland’s agent Mino Raiola is said to be demanding for his client.
It is very likely that City would rather spend the €150 million on bringing in a striker of Haaland’s quality to finally put an end to their persistent number nine woes.