Manchester City are pondering over making a move to sign Fiorentina hitman Dusan Vlahovic in the January transfer window, as manager Pep Guardiola looks to end the hunt for a striker, reports Italian outlet La Republicca. (h/t Get Italian Football News)
The Sky Blues were hugely interested in signing Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane as a replacement for Sergio Aguero, who left the club for free in the summer and joined Barcelona. However, they failed to land Harry Kane when it looked like the final piece in their jigsaw.
Come January, however, Manchester City may well be aiming to reinforce their attacking options by signing a centre-forward. There have been two primary targets on Pep Guardiola’s wishlist—Fiorentina’s Dusan Vlahovic and Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland.
According to La Republicca (h/t Get Italian Football News), Manchester City are ‘back in the race’ for Dusan Vlahovic, and will be ‘willing to meet’ Fiorentina’s asking price for Dusan Vlahovic. Vlahovic, 21, has established himself as one of the most coveted young strikers in Europe over the last 12-15 months.
He bagged an impressive 21 goals in 37 Serie A games last season and looks very much on course to better that tally this year, with 12 goals in 15 outings already under his banner. And having rejected a contract extension proposal from Fiorentina, it’s a matter of not if but when the Serbian leaves for a bigger European club.
The report adds (h/t Get Italian Football News) Vlahovic isn’t convinced by Arsenal’s project and prefers a move to Fiorentina’s Serie A rivals Juventus over any other options. With the 21-year-old’s contract with the La Viola running out in 2023, a bidding war is expected with Manchester City likely to be in the mix.
Man City have performed admirably well without a recognized number 9 this season, but Guardiola remains hopeful of finding a successor to Aguero next year. Come the winter transfer window, the Cityzens could finally act upon their huge interest in Vlahovic and lure him away from Fiorentina, finally putting an end to their number nine woes.