Man City dealt blow as potential De Bruyne replacement ‘agrees’ transfer after Guardiola made ‘call’
According to reports, Manchester City have been dealt a major blow as they are set to miss out on Bayer Leverkusen standout Florian Wirtz.
Man City are expected to be busy during this summer’s transfer window as the 2024/25 campaign has been disappointing for the Premier League side.
Pep Guardiola‘s team endured a severe decline around the New Year as they exited the Premier League title race and were Europe’s biggest spenders in January with a huge rebuild underway.
City’s form has improved in recent weeks as they have reached the FA Cup final and look likely to qualify for the Champions League, but upgrades are still required in several positions.
One of their priorities will be to sign a long-term replacement for Kevin De Bruyne, who will depart the club upon the expiry of his contract this summer.
Wirtz has been mentioned as a potential target, with a recent report claiming Man City have made a ‘decisive move’ to sign the £94m-rated Leverkusen star, who is Guardiola’s ‘great desire’.
The 22-year-old is one of the most talented attacking midfielders in the world and his form has been sensational this season with 16 goals and 13 assists in all competitions.
Wirtz could follow Xabi Alonso in leaving Leverkusen this summer after it was confirmed that this will be the head coach’s final season at the Bundesliga outfit.
Earlier this week, German journalist Christian Falk suggested Man City are ahead of Real Madrid in the race to sign Wirtz.
“I even heard that Real hasn’t even inquired about him yet,” Falk said.
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“I think Manchester City are trying with more zeal and determination than Real. Pep is even said to have called himself. Florian is apparently very impressed, but he’s still leaning toward Bayern.
“The Bayern leaning, verbal commitment, we’ve already reported on it, he wants to go to Bayern, that looks very good, but of course we always have to deal with the question of how it will be financed, and Bayern also have an idea.”
Falk provided another update on Friday evening, revealing Wirtz and Bayern Munich have ‘agreed on a transfer’.
He claims Bayern Munich ‘want to offer’ 100 million euros (approx £85m) to sign Wirtz this summer, but he ‘would wait until 2026’ if an agreement cannot be reached with Bayer Leverkusen over a fee with his contract running until 2027.
