Rodri reached a World Cup final, City moved to fast-track a midfield prospect, and two fresh names emerged in the winger search. Here’s everything that happened on Read Man City today in our Man City news round-up.
Heartbreak in Atlanta as three City players’ World Cups end
The day started with the fallout from England’s World Cup semi-final exit. Marc Guehi, Elliot Anderson and Nico O’Reilly all saw their World Cup dreams end as Argentina came from behind to beat England 2-1, with Anthony Gordon’s opener cancelled out by late goals from Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez.
Guehi started at centre-back, Anderson as the midfield anchor, and O’Reilly’s 82nd-minute cameo coincided with Argentina’s turnaround. James Trafford was an unused substitute for the entire tournament.
Talking points: Rodri reaches the final, Gusto edges closer
Our morning talking points covered the rest of Wednesday’s action. Rodri played the full 90 minutes as Spain beat France 2-0 to reach Sunday’s World Cup final — arguably his best performance of the tournament — while Rayan Cherki’s summer ended in the same match.
On transfers, Malo Gusto’s move to City is gathering pace again given his relationship with Enzo Maresca, though Chelsea’s £75m valuation remains the sticking point. We also explained why City settled on a £116m fee for Elliot Anderson as far back as January.
Bouaddi set for fast-tracked first-team role
Shortly after, we reported that City have told Ayyoub Bouaddi they’re ready to bring him straight into Enzo Maresca’s first-team plans rather than loan him back to Lille, a shift from City’s earlier thinking as they step back from Sandro Tonali and grow more hesitant on Bruno Guimaraes’ valuation.
Bouaddi’s camp are said to be talking to a number of clubs, with Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United all credited with interest and Lille holding out for around £85m.
Two fresh winger names emerge
The afternoon brought two separate winger stories. City are taking a close interest in PSG’s Ibrahim Mbaye, the 18-year-old having considered leaving Paris since the winter, with Dortmund and RB Leipzig also credited with interest and PSG holding out for around £40m.
Separately, City are among the clubs monitoring RB Leipzig’s Yan Diomande after Liverpool had an £86m opening bid rejected — Leipzig want more than £100m, a figure City aren’t currently willing to match, though the 19-year-old is said to have given assurances to City, Liverpool and United that he intends to join them.
