From Spain: Barcelona make Manchester City defender ‘top target’ amid Bayern Munich uncertainty

Barcelona have made Manchester City’s Joao Cancelo a priority target for the summer transfer window, as per reports.

Cancelo joined Bayern Munich on loan till the end of the season in January after losing his place in Manchester City’s starting XI and falling out of favour with Pep Guardiola.

The Portugal international has four years left on his Manchester City contract but recent reports in England have indicated that Guardiola is highly unlikely to welcome the defender back to the Etihad Stadium at the end of his stint in Germany.

A departure is likely for Cancelo in the upcoming transfer window and there will no doubt be a range of suitors for the three-time Premier League winner.

His versatility and natural ability made Cancelo a key outlet for Guardiola over the course of City’s 2020/21 and 2021/22 league winning campaigns but the chances of a reconciliation and a way back into favour for the former seems a tall order as things stand.

Moreover, the emergence of academy star Rico Lewis and the form displayed by the pair of Kyle Walker and John Stones at right-back in the second half of the season would give Guardiola encouragement over his options in the position.

As per Fernando Polo, whose information has been relayed by Reshad Rahman on Twitter, Barcelona have made Joao Cancelo their top target at right-back ahead of the summer transfer window.

Bayern Munich have an option to sign Cancelo on a permanent deal for a fee reaching €70 million beyond the summer.

However, it remains to be seen if Barcelona can table an acceptable bid for Cancelo amidst their financial restraints, with City likely to demand a significant fee for a player whose existing deal in the north-west runs till 2027.

The trio of Aymeric Laporte, Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva have all attracted interest from Barcelona as well, with plenty of movement expected at the Etihad Stadium at the end of the season.