Transfer information is picking up around the Etihad Stadium just days after Hugo Viana formally started work at Manchester City having left Sporting Lisbon earlier than first agreed during the last Autumn.
The Portuguese official is due to replace Txiki Begiristain as the club’s director of football this summer while prospective targets for the summer market and contract talks with existing stars had been put on hold until the 41-year-old arrived at the club.
Now, with Viana and Begiristain working day-to-day alongside one another at the City Football Academy offices, plans for the off-season and transfer market are well underway with decisions already being weighed up on a number of stars.
With several names expected to make their way out of the Etihad Stadium exit doors come the end of the season, in addition to Kevin De Bruyne, several players will need to be brought in and a new report has pointed towards a possible double swoop out of the San Siro.
That is according to the information of journalist Rudy Galetti, who claims that Manchester City are eyeing the double signing of AC Milan’s Tijjani Reijnders and Theo Hernandez this summer, valued at €70 million and €30 million respectively.
The Dutch midfielder is said to be at the ‘very top’ of City’s shortlist in the centre of the park, while the view on Hernandez is that his asking price represents ‘good value for money’ given his experience at the highest level of the game.
The report claims that Manchester City will open formal talks with AC Milan over signing both players in the coming weeks, with the hope being that they can bring both stars into the Etihad Stadium for below a combined €100 million fee.
Should both players and respective deals manage to come to fruition, it would remain to be seen who could make way to allow for them to integrate into Pep Guardiola’s squad on a consistent basis next season.
Ilkay Gundogan has seen a contract extension clause in his initial one-year Manchester City contract automatically triggered having registered the required amount of appearances for the club this season.
However, a word of warning has already been issued by Pep Guardiola which would indicate that despite a further 12 months being agreed for the German, his future at the Etihad Stadium beyond the upcoming summer market is far from certain.
