TBR Football can exclusively reveal how confident Manchester City are of completing a deadline day deal to sign Nico Gonzalez.
Manchester City’s latest talks about Gonzalez with Porto led to the Portuguese giants insisting that the Premier League champions must pay the Spaniard’s £50 million release clause to sign him.
However, Gonzalez wishes to sign for Manchester City before the ongoing winter window draws to a close — having famously turned down a move to the Etihad Stadium when he was a teenager.
With Mateo Kovacic and Ilkay Gundogan struggling to fill the Rodri-shaped hole in the middle of the park, Pep Guardiola has no viable solutions to replace the Ballon d’Or winner in midfield.
Man City confident of signing Nico Gonzalez on deadline day
The good news for Manchester City supporters is that Graeme Bailey — TBR Football’s chief correspondent has been informed by sources at the club that they are confident of signing Gonzalez now.
Pep Guardiola is eyeing a new midfielder to come into his City squad and the Sky Blues believe the former Barcelona midfielder is well capable of replacing Rodri for the time being.
TBR Football also understands that the English giants expect Gonzalez to make an instant impact provided he signs for them on Monday.
Manchester City were open to paying Gonzalez’s release clause worth £50 million and considering how highly they rate the 23-year-old, it might be sensible for them to splash the cash — with their place in the top four in the Premier League far from confirmed, as things stand.
Nico Gonzalez could play in three roles for Manchester City
Pep Guardiola tends to favour players who are versatile — with Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden and Manuel Akanji becoming mainstays under him due to being able to play in multiple positions.
At Porto this season, Gonzalez, who is a natural defensive midfielder has mostly played in a double pivot or further forward as well.
| POSITION | APPEARANCES |
| DEFENSIVE MIDFIELD | 1 |
| CENTRAL MIDFIELD | 20 |
| ATTACKING MIDFIELD | 8 |
Playing alongside Alan Varela, the Spaniard’s partnership has been a massive contributor to his side both defensively and offensively.
If Manchester City do end up signing Gonzalez, his tactical malleability could make him a favourite for Pep Guardiola.
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