A second Manchester City star is expected to follow Riyad Mahrez to Saudi Arabia this summer as a deal for Spanish defender Aymeric Laporte to join Al-Nassr is thought to be progressing.
The arrival of Josko Gvardiol has pushed Laporte further down Pep Guardiola’s pecking order, and the defender is likely to see even fewer than his 11 Premier League starts from last season should he stay.
He was thought to be catching the eye of both Tottenham and Arsenal this summer, having been made available for transfer, but now the 29-year-old appears to be Saudi bound.
As per the Athletic, Manchester City have accepted a bid for the defender from Al-Nassr, believed to be in the region of £16m. Laporte, meanwhile, is ‘open to the possibility’ of joining the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Marcelo Brozovic and Sadio Mane at the Saudi side.
Following the news that star man Kevin de Bruyne could miss the rest of the calendar year thanks to a hamstring injury picked up midway through the season opener, City are expected to spring into action in the transfer market in the coming days.
They are in talks with West Ham over a move for Lucas Paqueta, though they have seen one bid already turned down, believed to be in the region of £70m. West Ham themselves are keen to keep hold of the Brazilian but Paqueta would like the move.
In better news, midfielder Bernardo Silva and defender Kyle Walker are both now expected to stay at the club and sign new contracts after seemingly being set for the exit door earlier in the transfer window.
