Brighton remain in pole position to sign Manchester City forward despite Burnley and Leicester City interest

Manchester City forward Cole Palmer remains set to sign for Brighton on loan this summer, amid fresh interest from Burnley and Leicester City.

The 21-year-old is expected to be allowed to leave the Etihad Stadium on a season-long loan for the new campaign, after the England U21 international made just seven starts for Manchester City last season.

Palmer was an unused substitute on 29 occasions for the Blues during the treble-winning campaign, but has struggled to ignite his Manchester City first-team career since his surprise debut against Everton in the Premier League in November 2021.

The winger scored just one goal for the Cityzens last season, but did feature prominently for England at the recent U21 European Championships, with Palmer’s deflected free-kick proving to be the winning goal in the final.

James Trafford, who also starred in the final against Spain, is set to complete a £19 million move to Burnley, and the Clarets also hold an interest in signing Palmer, but currently risk missing out on the forward.

Brighton remain in pole position to sign Palmer on loan this summer according to James Ducker, despite interest from both Burnley and Leicester City.

Manchester City begin their Premier League title defence at Turf Moor against Vincent Kompany’s side, while Leicester are now managed by Enzo Maresca, who left the Etihad Stadium to replace Brendan Rodgers at the King Power.

The Telegraph report that both Pep Guardiola and Txiki Begiristain are ‘admirers’ of Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi, and believe that the Seagulls’ style of play would be a ‘good fit’ for Palmer.

Manchester City are unwilling to sell Palmer, but are keen to provide regular first-team minutes for the 21-year-olds development through a season-long loan.

The AMEX Stadium will also house European football next season, after Brighton qualified for the UEFA Europa League.

Furthermore, there is an ‘expectation‘ that Palmer will still be allowed to leave this summer, despite the potential for Riyad Mahrez to depart the club, as Saudi Pro League side Al Ahli close in on the signature of the Algerian international.

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