Manchester City's primary left-back target Marc Cucurella returned to Brighton training on Monday morning.
The Catalan defender - who has recently been enjoying his time away from football following the conclusion of the 2021/22 season - has been at the centre of a high-profile transfer saga.
Etihad Stadium officials are understood to be hot on the trail of the La Masia graduate, and their interest is only expected to intensify over the course of the next few days and weeks.
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Pep Guardiola is wanting a more traditional and natural left-back to take on the reigns from next season, after using Oleksandr Zinchenko, Joao Cancelo, and Nathan Ake in the role over the last few months.
The Brighton & Hove Albion defender is now seen as being the perfect candidate for that position.
While Manchester City prepare their opening offer for the 23 year-old left-back, the man himself seemed in high spirits as he returned to training with his current employers on Monday ahead of pre-season.
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Brighton & Hove Albion's media team and camera crew were on hand to capture the moment Marc Cucurella first arrived through the training ground doors.
Cucurella was greeted by the sound of "Cucu!" as he stepped into the building, with the Brighton defender being a popular character within the club's dressing room.
The Manchester City transfer target laughed, before responding to his teammates with a yell of "Siuuuuuuu!" - the world-reknowned celebration of Manchester United star, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Brighton's camera crew then asked Marc Cucurella how he was, to which he responded, "Very good, very happy!"
Then came the moment all Brighton fans were waiting for; questions over whether he would have had a haircut over the summer.
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Cucurella responded, "No, never!"
"Yes because today we sleep for a long time!", the defender responded when it was pointed out that his haircut looked even more curly than onlookers are used to.
Make of that what you will, if there is even anything you can make of it.
Prior to his arrival back on the south coast, Marc Cucurella had already been teasing the idea of a Manchester City transfer.
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Not only had the defender 'liked' the Instagram post of Fabrizio Romano confirming Kalvin Phillips' move from Leeds United to the Etihad Stadium, but he also engaged with City Xtra on Twitter.
Hitting like on a separate post, City fans were quick to make their assumptions, despite work still being done in the background to try and convince Brighton to sell their prized asset.
Topics:Β Marc Cucurella, Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester City, Manchester City Transfer News & Rumours, Manchester United, Premier League, Brighton And Hove Albion, Football
