With Manchester City still without their Sergio Agüero replacement, the hunt for Harry Kane or a player of his ilk continues.
Whether they do land the England international remains to be seen, but there are alternatives out there, such as Erling Haaland (if his release clause becomes an actual thing) or Dusan Vlahovic.
The latter was reportedly already the subject of at least one bid from Manchester City in the summer, but Fiorentina, where the Serbian currently plays, stood firm and decided to keep him for this season.
As well as that, they have been trying to tie the striker down to a new contract, something that is proving far tougher than originally planned.
With his current deal running out in 2023, serious worries are starting to set in in Florence, as they want to avoid losing him on a free or be forced to let him go at a cut price.
Rocco Commisso, their owner, spoke to TuttoMercatoWeb about the situation, where he vented his frustrations at how the matter is being dealt on the player’s end.
Revealing that he has been sent back and forth between Vlahovic and his agents, with each telling him to speak with the other, the American businessman is a bit surprised the forward hasn’t taken him up on his offer.
He said: “He’s taking a great risk, I told him. We have offered him a five-year contract at €40m gross. I was working a year to make what he would be earning in two to three days”.
Asked if he was getting annoyed, he replied: “A little bit, yes. Fiorentina isn’t just Vlahovic, the group is there and we want to keep it focused. I would like it to be done immediately. I would have liked the question to be resolved after the last international break, but it didn’t happen”.
This will be music to the ears of Manchester City, who will be most likely keeping tabs on the situation, perhaps also being in contact with the player’s agents, which is why there might be some reluctance to agree terms with Fiorentina.
We’ll have to wait and see, but this is starting to get very interesting ahead of the January transfer window.
