'Flabbergasted' - Man City shocked after £85million transfer bid rejected for another midfielder

Manchester City were reportedly left 'flabbergasted' after Bayern Munich midfielder Aleksandar Pavlović turned down a move to the club in the summer transfer window.

The Blues spent a whopping £320million on their midfield rebuild under new head coach Enzo Maresca, with Pavlović one of the players they identified as a potential reinforcement.

City ended the window with Nottingham Forest star Elliot Anderson, Lille wonderkid Ayyoub Bouaddi and Chelsea ace Enzo Fernandez, but it might have been a different story had Pavlović not rejected the chance to move to the Etihad Stadium.

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Aleksandar Pavlović turned down Man City transfer

German outlet Bild claim that Bayern youngster Pavlović was offered the chance to sign for City this summer.

The report claims that the Blues first made a €100m (£85m) approach for the 22-year-old back in March, when Pep Guardiola was still in charge of the club.

It is suggested that, at the time of the first offer, Pavlović was considered the top midfield target for City this summer, before they reevaluated their options when Maresca was appointed.

After they completed a deal for Anderson, the Blues reportedly wanted to sign either Bouaddi, Pavlović, or Barcelona youngster Marc Bernal. However, it quickly became apparent that a move for the German international was off the table.

“I heard they were flabbergasted," Christian Falk wrote. "They didn’t expect that. They probably would have been willing to negotiate a higher amount with Bayern as well. But there wasn’t even an official offer because Pavlović said, ‘No, I’m not coming anyway."

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What next for Aleksandar Pavlović?

Pavlović is a product of the Bayern youth academy and showcased his devotion to his boyhood club by rejecting interest this summer. Since he made his debut in 2023, the midfielder has made 102 appearances for the Bundesliga club, scoring eight goals and notching six assists.

The report states that not only does he have a deep affection for the club, but the midfielder has supposedly set to the target of winning the Champions League before he even considers his future.

“Pavlović is from Munich, he was born here. There are photos of him as a little boy in a Bayern Munich jersey. He still makes no secret of the fact that he’s a Bayern fan. And you can tell that every time you talk to him,” Julian Agardi added.

“He also has many good buddies in the dressing room: Tom Bischof, Lennart Karl, Nene Brown. And yet it’s remarkable that he rejected this offer outright. That shows that he has absolutely no thoughts of leaving but rather feels completely at home at Bayern and sees his future with the club.”

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