Manchester City have ‘intensified’ their contacts with RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol as he eyes a big move away from the German club in the summer.
That’s according to SportBILD, who say the Croatian ‘wants to take the big step’ to a club a capable of winning titles.
The newspaper explains that Leipzig recently celebrated their return to the Champions League places in the Bundesliga as they know that missing out on the competition would mean them having to deal with €30-40m in lost revenue.
It would also mean the club would be forced to sell some of their top stars ahead of schedule, and that would naturally include Gvardiol.
At the moment RB Leipzig don’t want to sell anyone after already losing Christopher Nkunku to Chelsea but the reality is that departures are ‘imminent’ anyway.
He missed out on a move to Chelsea last summer and does not intend to do so again, thus talks with Real Madrid and Manchester City ‘have intensified’ since the World Cup.
Leipzig’s ‘pain threshold’ for a transfer has always been over €100m and that has not changed but if they do not reach the Champions League, the pressure to sell will increase and so will Gvardiol’s desire to move.
In that scenario there is a fear that his price will be forced to shift downwards, and the likes of Manchester City could get him for far below the €100m that Leipzig have always wanted.
That depends on where Leipzig first, a situation we’re sure those in charge at the Etihad are keeping a close eye on after intensifying contact with Gvardiol post Qatar.
