Man City ‘closing in’ on £59m signing as Guardiola target ‘rules himself out’ of midweek clash

Jason Soutar
Andrea Cambiaso with the Man City badge
Juventus defender Andrea Cambiaso with the Man City badge

Premier League champions Manchester City are reportedly ‘closing in’ on the signing of Juventus and Italy full-back Andrea Cambiaso.

Man City are looking for a new right-back after Kyle Walker decided to leave the club.

Despite reported interest from Saudi Arabia, Walker has joined Juventus’ rivals AC Milan on a six-month loan with an option to buy.

The 34-year-old is keen to continue his England career and knew moving to the Middle East would put that in jeopardy.

Walker is currently on 93 caps and is desperate to reach a century. The Three Lions are not in action until March, which will be Thomas Tuchel’s first experience as head coach.

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City have been busy in the January transfer window, spending big money on Egypt forward Omar Marmoush and young defender Abdukodir Khusanov – who became the first Uzbek to play in the Premier League against Chelsea on Saturday.

Khusanov’s struggled on his debut and Pep Guardiola is keen to bolster his defence with another addition.

According to Mirror Football, Man City are ‘closing in’ on signing Cambiaso from Juventus in a deal worth around £59million.

Cambiaso has apparently ‘shocked’ the Serie A giants by ‘ruling himself out’ of their Champions League match against Benfica on Wednesday as he pushes for a move to the Premier League.

Guardiola’s side have failed with a £54.5m offer, with Juventus ‘demanding £75.5m’, though there is hope ‘a compromise will be hammered out this week’.

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Juventus head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed that Cambiaso still has ankle soreness and will not be fit for the Benfica clash, days after missing his team’s first Serie A defeat of the season at Napoli.

It is claimed by Mirror journalist Simon Mullock that Motta wants Feyenoord’s David Hancko to replace Cambiaso if he joins City.

Cambiaso joined Juve from Genoa for around 11 million euros in July 2022 and he spend the 2022/23 season on loan at Bologna before making 39 appearances for the Old Lady last term.

The 24-year-old has two goals and two assists in 28 appearances across all competitions this campaign and has impressed with his versatility.

He has played as a full-back on both sides, in right-midfield and on the right wing under ex-Bologna boss Motta.

Having impressed at club level, Cambiaso now has 13 Italy caps, playing three times as his country reached the last 16 of Euro 2024.

He scored his first international goal in a Nations League draw against Belgium last October before netting his second in a 3-1 defeat to Kylian Mbappe’s France in November.

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