Guardiola weighing up moves for Nathan Ake and Samuel Umtiti: Manchester City Transfer News Round-up, December 12th 2019

Hello and welcome to the Manchester City transfer news roundup for the day. It’s an interesting time at the Etihad right now as Pep Guardiola’s side seem to be faltering in their quest to retain their Premier League crown, but all is well on the UEFA Champions League front as they have qualified for the knockout stages comfortably. With just weeks to go before the January transfer window opens, rumours suggest Guardiola is about to strengthen his hand going into the Spring, so without further ado, here are the main headlines regarding the current Premier League champions.

Umtiti to join from Barcelona?

Unsurprisingly, given their defensive woes as of late, a lot of the recent stories floating around are linking City with buying at least one central defender. One story to emerge today suggests that Pep Guardiola’s side could be interested in buying French World Cup winner Samuel Umtiti from Barcelona.

Umtiti has fallen out of favour at the Nou Camp due to a knee issue and the form of Clement Lenglet, and Matt Law suggests – via L’Equipe – that he could be headed to the Etihad in a deal worth around £46m.

Ake’s choice – City or Chelsea?

Another central defender being linked with a January move is Bournemouth’s Nathan Ake. The Dutch international has impressed ever since his move to Dean Court, and Sky Sports are reporting that while Chelsea seem to be in pole position to sign him, City could also be interested.

The problem for the Citizens’ hopes? Chelsea have a £40m buy-back clause in Ake’s contract that was inserted when they sold him to the Cherries back in 2017, and thus a deal would be far easier to reach between the two sides.

The other issue is Ake’s fitness; the Dutchman picked up a hamstring injury in Bournemouth’s loss to Liverpool last weekend, and it’s unknown how long he’ll be sidelined for. If it's a long-term issue, perhaps a January move would make no sense anyway.

Could Leicester's Soyuncu replace Vincent Kompany?

The Sun is reporting – via the more reliable Sunday Times – that City are looking at Leicester’s Caglar Soyuncu as a potential long-term replacement for Vincent Kompany, who left the Etihad in the summer. Turkey’s Soyuncu has been a revelation this season, and his partnership with Jonny Evans has helped Leicester to maintain their record as the Premier League’s stingiest defence.

The report – which also suggests City are looking for a long-term replacement for midfielder David Silva – does state that the move could be made in the summer, however. And to potentially scupper the plan, the Leicester Mercury is now reporting that the Foxes are currently in talks with the Turk over a new contract, meaning any move to the Etihad could be unlikely.

Does Guardiola actually want anyone?

The problem with all of the above rumours is that Sky Sports is reporting that Pep Guardiola himself has stated that he doesn’t want any new arrivals to the Etihad in January. Despite the club’s injury problems – particularly at the heart of their defence – the report is quoting the Spaniard as stating:

“I don't want any players in January. We cannot do it in summer, we cannot do it in January.

“When an incredible opportunity comes in January for the next four or five or six years, maybe we can think about it. But that is not possible. Normally the players we think could be interesting, [clubs] are not going to sell them.

“We could not sign a centre-back [in the summer]. We decided to adapt Fernandinho in this position and that's all. Sometimes the club wants to try to do the best but sometimes we cannot. We have to adapt with the players that we have.”

If the above is true – and isn’t simply Guardiola’s way of pressuring City’s board into opening their purse strings – then perhaps it’ll be a quiet January window in the blue half of Manchester after all.