Manchester City seen as ‘likeliest destination’ for £80 million Crystal Palace star

Premier League champions Manchester City are being described as the ‘likeliest destination’ for one of the division’s most exciting attacking midfield talents.

That player is Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze, whom the Treble winners chased towards the back end of the last summer transfer window at a time when City officials were coming to terms with a long-term absence for Kevin De Bruyne following hamstring surgery.

Manchester City ultimately settled for Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Matheus Nunes after it became clear that Crystal Palace would not be settling for anything other than their £80 million valuation of the talent.

The firm stance from the side of the Selhurst Park club is understood to have come after Manchester City had failed with a £60 million bid for Eze on deadline day, despite talks between both clubs at an advanced stage and the player keen on a link-up with Pep Guardiola.

However, Eze’s hopes of a switch to Manchester City may still be alive, according to the latest reports, as Etihad bosses look towards what is expected to be a busy transfer window of activity following the conclusion of the ongoing season.

According to the information of The Independent’s Miguel Delaney, Tottenham are aiming for a wide forward as their major summer signing in the coming months, with Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Pedro Neto and Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze their two main targets.

However, the report states that any decision may be out of the north London club’s hands, with Manchester City currently seen as the ‘likeliest destination’ for Eze, following on from interest from within the Etihad Stadium last summer.

City are claimed to be wanting to make a signing in the area operated in by Eze, and have been trailing the 25-year-old for ‘a long time’. In turn, it is further detailed the the player himself is currently ‘more swayed’ by a move to Manchester, ready for a step up to Pep Guardiola’s side.

Eze has endured somewhat of a stop-start season with Crystal Palace due to fitness problems, amassing 20 appearances for the south London club across all competitions, scoring five goals and providing a further three assists in that period.

Other names on Manchester City’s attacking midfield shortlist could include the likes of Bayer Leverkusen’s ever-impressive talent Florian Wirtz, as well as Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala, however both players would command enormous price tags given their recent performances.

Wirtz in particular is a crucial cog in Xabi Alonso’s Bundesliga conquering Bayer Leverkusen side at present, and with a German top-flight title well within reach this season, the player could cost in excess of £130 million this summer.