ROMANO SAYS MAN CITY WILL GO ALL OUT TO SIGN THE “PERFECT” £55 MILLION STAR
Following the transfer of Oleksandr Zincehnko to Arsenal, Fabrizio Romano has stated that Manchester City will make a strong effort to get Marc Cucurella from Brighton & Hove Albion.
Speaking to the Wondergoal Podcast, the Sky Sports Italia journalist revealed that Pep Guardiola is a huge fan of the Spanish fullback and views him as the perfect replacement for Zincehnko, however, Brighton could demand as much as £55m for their star defender.
Cucurella only signed for Brighton last year but has already made a huge impact in the Premier League, with the Spanish youth international one of the breakout stars in England last season and already drawing huge interest from the likes of City, who are looking for a left-back this summer.
Indeed, City has been looking for a natural left-back to fit Guardiola’s system for some time, and it appears that the Catalan manager has settled on Cucurella as the player who could hold onto the position for many years to come, but only if they can strike a deal with Brighton to sign the 23-year-old.
Whilst the Premier League champions have spent heavily this summer, City has seen more players leave the club in the form of Gabriel Jesus, Raheem Sterling, and the aforementioned Zinchenko, and according to Romano, Cucurella is Guardiola’s ideal candidate to replace the Arsenal-bound Ukrainian.
Romano said: “The main target has always been, and still is Marc Cucurella from Brighton. It depends on the fee, because it is around €60m-65m (£50m-£55m), and I don’t see Manchester City paying this money for Cucurella. They want to sign him. They love him. Pep Guardiola and people inside the club are convinced that Cucurella will be absolutely perfect for Manchester City’s style.”
Cucurella had a successful debut season with Brighton in England, and with City wanting to add a left-back this summer, the Seagulls’ defender appears like the perfect choice to fill this position and challenge Joao Cancelo for it.
Although the price is steep, it is justified by Brighton, who just signed Cucurella a year ago, and it is clear that City has the resources to meet Graham Potter‘s asking price for his star fullback, who may be a perfect fit for Guardiola’s system in the future.
