Juventus Brace For €90 Million Bid From Manchester City For Star Defender

With Raheem Sterling’s £47.5 million transfer to Chelsea almost complete, Nathan Ake could be set to join his Manchester City teammate in London this summer.

It has been widely claimed that Manchester City are open to the Dutchman’s sale, providing Thomas Tuchel’s side can agree to a valuation ranging from £40 million to £50 million.

The Sky Blues could either recoup or profit off the 27 year-old’s departure, as he was brought in for £41 million from Bournemouth in the summer of 2020.

However, this would arguably leave Manchester City somewhat light at the back, with only Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte and John Stones as their senior centre-halves.

As a result, it has been reported that Pep Guardiola would want the addition of a replacement for the potentially outgoing Nathan Ake.

One name that has been reported on multiple occasions is Matthijs de Ligt.

The Juventus defender has attracted interest from three of the European elite such as Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Chelsea.

A €120 million release clause is in place to initiate the former Ajax man’s exit, but it has been claimed that the Italian giants would be willing to sanction his sale for a lower fee.

However, a common opinion amongst a number of fans remains whether Manchester City will target the Dutchman, considering his stock has fallen since his move to Turin in 2019.

While one can speculate for hours, a new revelation has emerged from Italy that details whether the club would be keen on the 22-year old’s coup in the summer.

As per a report by Tutto Juve, Manchester City would be willing to offer €90 million to sign Matthijs de Ligt.

Further details suggest that Pep Guardiola’s plan is to build a team with the best young players in the world, after the arrivals of Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez and considers the two-time Serie A champion as one of such candidates.

While the transfer fee is nothing short of staggering, it has been mentioned that the deal is doable due to the profit gained from player sales by City.

With Raheem Sterling and Nathan Ake set to fetch a combined fee close to a £100 million, alongside the sales of the likes of Gabriel Jesus, Romeo Lavia, Gavin Bazunu, Darko Gyabi and Samuel Edozie, the Sky Blues could flex their financial muscle on de Ligt without breaking a sweat.

Considering Ake has been the Premier League champions’ fourth-choice centre-back for two successive campaigns, de Ligt will be expected to play the same role in sky blue next term.

Despite all signs pointing to a move for the imperious defender making sense, it is improbable that Manchester City will make such a handsome investment on a player that is likely to be an understudy next season.