With the goalkeeping situation finally resolving itself, attention at City has turned to the defensive side of the remaining summer business.
Right-back has been a position under quiet review for some time. City have been weighing up options in the market, and one name in particular has kept surfacing in recent weeks.
The problem, as is so often the case in this window, is the price. Selling clubs know City’s resources better than anyone, and valuations tend to climb the moment their interest becomes public.
It is a familiar ‘dance.’ City identify a target, the selling club names a number designed to end the conversation, and the two sides settle in to see who blinks first. Sometimes the deal gets done in the final days; sometimes it quietly dies.
Now, a fresh update from France suggests this particular pursuit has hit exactly that wall.
Manchester City put off by Chelsea valuation of defender
According to Fabrice Hawkins of RMC Sport, Manchester City are unwilling to match Chelsea’s £75m asking price for Malo Gusto.
Hawkins, reporting in French on Wednesday evening, indicates that the fee Chelsea have placed on the 23-year-old right-back is simply beyond what City consider reasonable for the deal.
It is understood Chelsea are in no rush to sell, and the size of the valuation reflects that stance. A figure of that scale for a full-back would represent one of the biggest defensive fees of the summer.
City are not the only club to have looked and stepped back, either. Hawkins also reports that Paris Saint-Germain, long linked with the France international, are no longer pursuing a move at that price.
To be fair, City’s caution makes sense. The club’s recruitment model has never been built on paying over the odds, however pressing the need in a given position.
Where this leaves the right-back search
Of course, walking away from one valuation does not mean the position is being ignored. City’s interest in Gusto reflects a genuine desire to add competition and quality on that side of the defence.
Gusto ticked plenty of boxes. Still only 23, already a France international, and with several seasons of Premier League experience behind him, he fits the age and profile City tend to target.
The former Lyon full-back arrived at Chelsea for a fraction of his current valuation, which tells its own story about his development in England. Quick, aggressive in the duel and comfortable in possession, he is precisely the kind of modern full-back every top club wants.
That, of course, is exactly why Chelsea feel able to hold out for such a figure. When a player fits the profile for half of Europe’s elite, the selling club rarely needs to negotiate against itself.
Interestingly, the situation may not be entirely closed. Asking prices have a habit of softening as deadline day approaches, and Chelsea’s stance could yet change if the player pushes for the move.
For now, though, the sensible reading is that City will explore alternatives or hold their position until the market moves. There has been no shortage of business already this summer, as the club’s latest round-up shows.
Supporters should not read too much doom into this update either. Walking away from an inflated price is usually a sign of a recruitment operation working properly, not one that has run out of ideas.
A £75m full-back was always going to be a stretch. Whether Chelsea blink before the window closes is now the question worth watching.
