01 Aug 2020 13:09:18
Hi Ed002,

Any chance of an update on the list of transfer targets?

We look set on Ferran Torres as a Sane replacement and Ake as a rotation option/ Laporte cover are both good solid buys (assuming they are confirmed imminently) but I'd think there's more to be done.

Cheers,
TheManOfMeat.

{Ed002's Note - This is likely to be a little out of date:

Available and Outbound:

Zack Steffen (G) it looks like another loan in Germany as the WP situation won't have changed
Claudio Bravo (G) out of contract
Pedro Porro (RB) Braga and Sporting want the Manchester City player on loan
Issa Kaboré (RB) Will go on loan to Mechelen
Oleksandr Zinchenko (LB)
Joao Cancelo (LB) Valencia, Inter and Spurs provide options
Nicolas Otamendi (CB)
Ko Itakura (CB) will go on loan to Gronigen
John Stones (CB) will be allowed to leave
Aleix García (CB) released
David Silva (AM) will leave in the summer.
Leroy Sane (LW) BM have been unable to address the LW position in the summer of 2019 and added 30 year old Perisic as a short-term solution - the target remains Sane and discussions have progressed well but the clubs are a long way apart on price as he enters the last year of his contract.
Jayden Braaf (LW/RW) another seen as a possible Sancho replacement by Borussia Dortmund - RBL and Fortuna Dusseldorf are also keen. Manchester City will look to hang on to him.
Slobodan Tedic (F) signed in January but will likely be loaned out.
Thierry Ambrose (S)

Looked at and Incoming:

Putting aside the timing, MC will look to a RB, LB, CB (probably 2) and S soon, perhaps a Silva replacement and a Sane replacement
Mikki van Sas (G) Dutch kiddie.
Yan Couto (RB) had to pay over the odds for the kiddie who will be sent on loan.
Georgios Vagiannidis (RWB) Greek youngster who Manchester City pushed for, who Monaco gave a trial to but who Inter signed.
Sergi Roberto (RB/RM) could well happen.

Nicolas Taglifico (LB) possible option for Manchester City – interest from elsewhere.
Alejandro Grimaldo (LWB) is seen by Napoli as a viable replacement for Faouzi Ghoulam and is a possible option for Manchester City, but he is not top of their list. Spurs are keen to add him but they have financial difficulties and I doubt money would stretch to him.
Ben Chilwell (LB) price will be an issue.
Ryan Ait-Nouri (LWB) expensive Angers kiddie with interest from Bayern Munich and Manchester City amongst others.
Aaron Hickey (LB) Hearts player who is attracting interest from the Premier League and is of an age where he could become Home Grown. Crystal Palace, Southampton, Manchester City, Everton and Newcastle have shown some interest.

Kalidou Koulibaly (CB) age and cost are against a deal
Caglar Soyuncu (CB) Leicester don't want to sell.
Nathan Ake (CB) Manchester City and Spurs are keen on taking Nathan Ake. He is well known to Mr Mourinho and HG. Manchester City have made a suitable offer and a move could well go ahead.
Jose Gimenez (CB) Atletico have serious money problems that they can resolve by selling one of Oblak or Saul but will fight to keep Koke and Gimenez. Manchester City and another PL side have each been quoted the full €120M cash payment required to even have Gimenez consider a move. Not going to happen at that price.
Diego Carlos (CB) Manchester City had dropped their interest in preference of two others - but it could return. Real Madrid has a sustained interest, but the focus is seeing what funds can be raised and then returning for DC or another. Barcelona have him on their list of CBs but money is going to be an issue this summer and they will look to horse trade using Ivan Rakitic. Priority is, like Real Madrid and get any transfer completed and then see where they are (they have already deferred their two major purchases to next summer). Liverpool has declared an interest in taking DC in the summer. If this happens, I think it would be the big move for the club this summer and would leave Gomez picking up pieces across the defence. No longer viable for Liverpool to include Xherdan Shaqiri in a deal.
Renzo Orihuela (CB) had a medical at Manchester City and will join the City Football Group rather than Manchester City as rules prescribe he cannot move to England under part ownership. He will be placed perhaps initially at Montevideo City Torque (Atlético Torque) before a move to, perhaps, Girona. And then we will see for the future.
Boubacar Kamara (CB) Marseille do not want to sell but Manchester City have been in regular contact with Marseille and may well look for an early conclusion. Milan and Lyon will likely not have the funds to make an offer. Unless something significant changes he will spend next season in Marseille as a Marseille owned player.
Ruben Dias (CB) Expect a move to recruit Ruben Dias regardless of talks with two other sides. Benfica will want a premium and I suspect Manchester City will throw money at him.
Nnamdi Collins (CB) kiddie from Dortmund who Manchester City are keen on who would best be served by staying where he is.
Pau Torres (CB) Villareal will sell at the right price but I am not sure that will be forthcoming this year. Barcelona are talking to his club and Manchester City have a declared interest and Arsenal have asked Santi Cazorla to talk with the player but have not made a formal approach - perhaps due to having to clear the decks with the CBs first and interest in others. I would have thought there is no chance of a move to Arsenal.
Milan Skriniar (CB) Asking price is huge but Manchester City could look to including a player in the deal. Barcelona, Real Madrid and Manchester United have been put off due to the price.
David Alaba (CB/LB) Bayern Munich have offered David Alaba a new contract but he has so far not agreed to sign it and is entering the final year of his existing deal. The club has had to use a makeshift defence this season and is being pressured to sell another player they wish to hang on to, but will sell Alaba this summer if he does not agree a new contract - letting them turn their attention to fixing the bigger defensive issue once they have dealt with their transfer priority. Real Madrid considered Alaba as an option and if available could look again - but money is an issue for them. Barcelona have also been interested in the past but have other priorities and again money is an issue. Manchester City have other preferred options. He won't be moving to Inter who have offered the option and will hold out as long as he can to see if Real Madrid or Barcelona call for him - but both have priorities in other positions in a financially difficult market.
Duje Caleta-Car (CB) Manchester City have made a general enquiry about availability of the left sided CB when they were speaking to a representative of Marseille about another player. Talks have continued on a general basis with the representative who was in lockdown in England. Previous interest of Sevilla has gone. Marseille don't want to sell but do have FFP issues they must address and have some serious personnel issues to be overcome as well.
Alessandro Bastoni (CB) wanted by Manchester City and Barcelona - Inter say no.
Luiz Felipe (CB) Milan have asked for talks - Inter, Manchester City and Juventus are also interested and have funds available. Money is driving Barcelona to look to alternate options and LF may well become the well-priced first choice target - but Lazio will resist a sale if they can.
Tanguy Kouassi (CB) moved elsewhere – scratch him.
Dayot Upamecano (CB) never a serious option and staying where he is
Dael Fry (CB) could move to Burnley.
Lucas Martinez Quarta (CB) was recommended to Milan by Geoffrey Moncada in 2019 but the club failed to act. Now Inter are interested and Manchester City would like to bring him in to the larger fold with perhaps a loan to Girona an option. River Plate are open to a sale.
Armel Bella-Kotchap (CB) as versatile across the defence but a little raw, he has the potential to have a fine career ahead of him. Another one to keep an eye on regardless of what happens.

Douglas Luiz (DM/CM) but Manchester City have the option to buy him back if Aston Villa put him up for sale - which I doubt they would do unless they are relegated.
Sandro Tonali (DM/CM) – Not going to happen.
Saul Niguez (CM)
Ismael Bennacer (DM) Manchester City, PSG and Real Madrid have enquired but the player wants to stay in Italy and will need persuading.
Houssem Aouar (CM/AM) Manchester City approached Lyon about Aouar and Ndombele last summer and it was made clear that only one of those two key players would be allowed to leave then - Ndombele. Manchester City maintain an interest in HA but he is not their first choice for central midfield. Juventus also maintain an interest but again he is not first choice for them. The interest of Barcelona has gone. Arsenal has an interest but have a financial issue due to stupidity and will need to sell to bring in funds - they are also less attractive without Champions League football and I would strike Aouar from the list. I expect the player will stay another season at Lyon.
Fabian Ruiz (CM/DM/AM) is seen by Real Madrid as a replacement for Kroos and/or Modric but is not first choice - but they could still turn to him and are keeping their interest known to Napoli - and crucially Real Madrid have a player Napoli want who could be part of a trade – but Real Madrid do not have the money. There have been discussions with his agent with Manchester City who see him as one of several options to the long-term replacement of Fernandinho. There have also been discussions with Bayern Munich but they are ideally after a DM and AM and although Ruiz often plays an DM role his value is as a CM player. Napoli have also met and spoken with Barcelona seen as a replacement for Arturo Vidal and/or Ivan Rakitic as they try and rebuild - but the realistic €60M asking price (not the €100M Aurelio De Laurentis is demanding) is still an issue for them. I expect he will stay where he is for at least another year.
Filip Krastev (CM) Bulgarian kiddie
Diego Rosa (CM) another kiddie from Gremio - not moving until he is 18 and then it will likely be to Lommel or Girona for a while before joining Manchester City. The club need to keep an eye on him because of the HG quota.
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (CM) Manchester United has not shown any interest in Milinkovic-Savic this season and have been difficult with Pogba and his agent in looking to leave - and that never tooks good in the eyes of players or agents. Juventus are looking at other options but he remains on the list. The player will be offered to PSG but there are issues holding up commitments from them at this time and they will look for a cheaper solution. Right now it seems unlikely and the price would be about €100M to Manchester United. Lazio have a replacement in mind but could lose him elsewhere. Real Madrid see him as the preferred option to Pogba - where interest is waning as Manchester United are stuck in the "stupid" cycle. Manchester City see him as an option to their preferred choice but could well turn to him. Every chance he will stay where he is unless he is available at a reasonable price.
Hakon Evjen (RW/CM/AM) Manchester City lost out on the player when he headed to AZ in January but will continue to watch him.
Thiago Almada (AM/RW/F) - The situation is a little bit complicated but Manchester City have been in discussions over the player since early 2019 and have accepted any move may be complicated and may involve a long-term "loan" to Sporting. Plan B was a loan to Girona. Inter Milan, Juventus, Liverpool, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Leeds, Barcelona, Arsenal, Manchester United, PSG and Zenit St Petersburg have had scouts watch the player. Concerns exist that whilst skilful, he may not be suitable for the more robust European leagues. In January 2020 discussions were held with Atletico Madrid. Atletico Madrid looked to an offer, but the amount and payment terms were not what Velez Sarsfield were looking for. He really needs to stay where he is for a couple of years – and I think he will.
Nicolas De La Cruz (AM) Manchester City spoke to River Plate about the player but stepped back - concerns he may not get a work permit and even though well liked, a reluctance to take on someone who is not HG and never will be as padding. Roma has an interest in the player.
Mohamed Ihattaren (AM/RM/RW) at the end of 2018 five clubs were invited to watch MI including Chelsea, Barcelona, Olympique Lyon, Benfica and Manchester City.
Kai Havertz (AM) another David Silva replacement - but heading elsewhere.

Ferran Torres (RW/LW) Agreement has been reached.
Jadon Sancho (RW/LW) a potential David Silva replacement - but strong interest from elsewhere and hugely expensive.
Facundo Pellistri (RW) Newcastle, Lyon, Maritimo, Manchester United and Oviedo have looked Pellistri but a Work Permit would likely be difficult to obtain in England. Manchester City have also sent scouts to watch him on more than one occasion. His agent has approached Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid to gauge interest in Spain - which would likely be the preferred destination but Lyon have made an offer and are negotiating for him as a Bertrand Traore replacement. A third party approached Chelsea and Juventus when they were watching a Copa Libertadores game he was playing in.}
Ibrahim Said (RW/AM) Porto, Manchester City, Sporting, AEK Athens are pushing for the kiddie who also impress scouts from Chelsea, Liverpool, Union Berlin and Braga at the U17 World Cup.
Antonio Marin (LW/F) Dinamo Zagreb kiddie interesting Chelsea, Manchester City, Milan, Villarreal and Juventus.
Mikel Oyarzabal (LW/F) is seen by Manchester City as an option as a Sane replacement but Real Sociedad have placed a significant fee on the player. Bayern Munich would look to him if they could not sign Sane. Mikel Oyarzabal can be ruled out.
Kingsley Coman (LW/RW) not getting as much game time as he wants and could consider options from other Champions League clubs. Manchester City could be an option but he won't be first choice to replace Sane. Scratch him.
Leon Bailey (LW) another Sane replacement option. Scratch him.

Rodrigo Moreno (S) Barcelona will potentially return to RM if Martinez is not possible which could spark Manchester City looking at him again. Available but injured right now.
Kang-in Lee (F) available and Manchester City have been watching him.
Sontje Hansen (S) Ajax kiddie – worth keeping an eye on.
Lautaro Martinez (S) Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico, Chelsea, Manchester City and Bayern Munich have all scouted him but a move to Barcelona, who see LM as a potential Suarez replacement, is proving difficult to complete. Inter want at least €80M in a single cash payment - and that will prove difficult for most clubs. Manchester City see him as a potential Aguero replacement.

1.) 05 Aug 2020
05 Aug 2020 22:34:55
Dead interesting read Ed, any chance of one of these on the Liverpool page? Cheers :)

{Ed002's Note - We’ll see how the time goes.}

2.) 05 Aug 2020
05 Aug 2020 23:28:38
I won’t beg haha, I’ll take that ;)

Thanks mate, look forward to it if and when!