Manchester City are “close” to approving the sale of Ferran Torres to Barcelona for a fee that could rise to €60m (£50m), according to journalist Sam Lee.
The Athletic’s City correspondent believes the money raised from the deal will be used to fund a move for “a striker in the coming months”:
City and Barca are finalising a £46m (€55m) deal for Ferran Torres, could move north of £50m with add-ons. No players involved. City would double their money on fee paid to Valencia last summer. @TheAthleticUK https://t.co/rbB9CwGLlg
— Sam Lee (@SamLee) December 22, 2021
It is somewhat surprising that the Citizens have decided to offload Torres, considering his undoubted potential, but it seems their priorities lie elsewhere.
While Torres can play up front, he is not a traditional number nine, and it appears manager Pep Guardiola wants a player with a proven pedigree who can lead the line.
The three standout candidates to be signed are Tottenham’s Harry Kane (who City failed to snap up last summer), Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland (who is also interesting Liverpool & Manchester United), and Fiorentina’s Dusan Vlahovic (a player thought to be on Arsenal and Spurs’s list of targets).
