Man City are reportedly eyeing a swoop for Real Betis left-back Junior Firpo, who has also been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid.
The 22-year-old has made quite the impression so far this season, scoring three goals and providing two assists in 18 appearances to emerge as a key figure for Betis.
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As they continue to climb the La Liga table while advancing to the knockout stage of the Europa League, they’ll look to their left-back to continue to impress.
However, that positive form has seemingly attracted interest from elsewhere, with AS previously reporting that Real Madrid have identified him as their top choice as a long-term successor to Marcelo.
Further, it’s added in that report that Firpo has a €50m release clause in his current contract, and so he certainly won’t be cheap if a deal is struck next year.
It appears as though Madrid will have competition for his signature now though, as The Mirror add that Man City are also keen, with Pep Guardiola given a selection headache in that department with Benjamin Mendy’s injury setbacks in mind.
It’s a far from ideal scenario for the reigning Premier League champions to continuously be left short in that key area of the pitch, with Fabian Delph continuing to fill in when required.
With that in mind, it would make sense to sign another left-back to cover Mendy’s absence and push him on his return to full fitness, although question marks could surely be raised over whether or not spending another €50m on Firpo is a sensible idea.
As noted by BBC Sport, they already splashed out on Mendy having signed him for £52m, and so it would arguably make more sense to bring in an experienced back-up option at a lower cost.
Time will tell though if they do indeed win the race to sign Firpo.
