Man City ‘working hard’ on record-breaking deal for Bundesliga colossus; talks scheduled ‘next week’

Manchester City are ‘working hard’ to sign RB Leipzig centre-back Josko Gvardiol this summer, as Pep Guardiola eyes defensive reinforcements. 

The Croatia international is thought to be keen on a switch to the Premier League but the Cityzens may have to submit a huge offer to secure his services.

Gvardiol certainly has the ability to slot straight into Guardiola’s starting XI. So, it will be interesting to see if the manager gets his man.

Man City have had a simply remarkable season. With a win over Inter Milan in the Champions League final, they secured a historic treble and cemented their reputation as the best team in Europe.

Nevertheless, Guardiola is tipped to make several signings. Interestingly, he seems to be focusing on improving his defensive options at the moment.

As previously reported by TEAMtalk, Aymeric Laporte could depart the Etihad this summer, amid interest from Tottenham and others.

If Laporte does leave, Man City will have to bring in at least one new centre-back. Now, they have reportedly ramped up their interest in one of Europe’s most highly-rated young players.

According to transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano, Man City are doing everything they can to sign Gvardiol this summer.

On Twitter, he wrote: “Man City are working hard on Gvardiol deal, talks very advanced on player side but not yet on clubs side.

“Talks between Man City and Leipzig will follow next week.”

With personal terms not expected to be a problem between Man City and Gvardiol, the only thing left to negotiate is a transfer fee. Although, this will be far from easy.

Indeed, as previously reported by TEAMtalk, RB Leipzig will demand at least €100m (£85m) for the 21-year-old. This would make him the most expensive defender of all time, surpassing Harry Maguire.

This season Gvardiol made 41 appearances across all competitions for the German club. In the process, he helped keep 14 clean sheets and scored three goals.

Also, he already has 21 caps for Croatia under his belt. So, there is no doubt that he can perform at the highest level.

With that in mind, it will be interesting to see if Man City do pay the £85m required to sign Gvardiol this summer.