‘Man City plan to accept James McAtee offer’ after West Ham reveal
Man City are still open to offers for James McAtee come the end of the season despite his increased role in Pep Guardiola’s first-team squad.
That is according to former Man United and Blackburn chief scout Mick Brown, who remains very well-connected within the game, as he exclusively told Football Insider that City are planning to recruit new players in his position in the summer.
There are questions about whether the 22-year-old is of the desired quality to play a long-term role in this side with everybody fit and firing.
Between August and January, McAtee played just 26 minutes of Premier League football and featured in just three of 19 possible games.
In the eight games since the turn of the year, he has featured seven times and played 97 minutes of league football, seeing a marked improvement on his role in the squad.
However, incoming signings are likely to see that playing time reduced again, as Brown told Football Insider that McAtee will want to leave City if he isn’t given regular minutes.
Crystal Palace, West Ham and Bayer Leverkusen all targeted McAtee in January, among other clubs, but were unable to agree a deal for his signature.
Man City name James McAtee asking price amid exit rumours
Former City financial adviser Stefan Borson told Football Insider that Man City would demand a £30-35million offer for McAtee, which would represent pure profit on the books.
Brown, who has a wealth of experience in top-level player recruitment after over a decade at Man United during their most successful period, explained that interest is set to be revived in the summer as City are prepared to listen to offers.
“He’s not a replacement for De Bruyne, they don’t think he’s at that level,” he told Football Insider.
“Which is fine, it’s no slight on his talent because those are huge shoes to fill.
“But Manchester City want to be English Champions, they want to be European Champions, and that’s the level they’re looking to stay at.
“So they’ve got to bring in players of that quality.
“That’s going to be what they do in the summer, especially in the midfield, so where does that leave McAtee?
“It doesn’t look like his long-term future is at City.
“He’s struggling to get in the team regularly at the moment, so what will his role be when the injured players are back to their best?
“There was interest in him in January, and I’m told that won’t have gone away in the summer.
“City are going to listen to offers for him because it’ll help them to raise money and clear some space for their new additions.“
Pep Guardiola identifies five-man transfer shortlist at the Etihad
City spent £180million in the January transfer window, and are not expected to slow down come the end of the season as their squad still needs improvements.
Former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson told Football Insider that he expects Man City to spend big on transfers this summer regardless of the outcome of their 115 charges hearing.
That came after Brown told Football Insider that Guardiola has five big-name signings lined up amid concerns about a number of his key players.
The likes of De Bruyne, Ilkay Gungogan and Bernardo Silva are all facing questions about their long-term futures at the club and could be moved on in the summer.
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