‘Nottingham Forest set to step up James McAtee interest amid Gibbs-White breakthrough’
Nottingham Forest could be set to step up their interest in Manchester City midfielder James McAtee following the latest breakthrough with Morgan Gibbs-White.
McAtee is a product of the Manchester City youth system and showed plenty of promise last season, notching seven goals in 27 appearances across all competitions.
However, only nine of those outings came from the start, with the midfielder seeing just 342 minutes of action in the Premier League.
Given he turns 23 years old in October, McAtee must think carefully about where he plays his football next season for the good of his career and future development.
James McAtee facing uphill battle for minutes at Man City
As if it wasn’t already hard enough for McAtee to get playing time, Man City have added Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki to their squad this summer.
What’s more, Football Insider revealed on Wednesday (9 July) that the Cityzens have already agreed personal terms with Forest star midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White.
Gibbs-White comes fresh off a season in which he notched seven goals and eight assists in 34 Premier League appearances to help Forest qualify for Europe — while also breaking into the England squad.
His arrival would only make it more difficult for McAtee to get a look-in under Pep Guardiola.
James McAtee could replace Morgan Gibbs-White at Nottingham Forest
Thankfully, McAtee may have an immediate solution to his problem.
The youngster’s exploits in limited minutes last season — along with the quality he showed on loan at a poor Sheffield United side a year earlier — mean he is a player in demand.
Football Insider revealed on 2 July that Forest and Newcastle are among the teams keen on McAtee this summer.
What’s more, former Man City financial advisor Stefan Borson has told Football Insider that a quick deal can be struck to seal McAtee’s exit.
| 2024/25 Premier League stats | Morgan Gibbs-White | James McAtee |
| Appearances | 34 | 15 |
| Goals | 7 | 3 |
| Assists | 8 | 0 |
| Minutes | 2,822 | 342 |
“The reality is, City have got to get rid of a lot of footballers,” he said (9 July).
“The squad is now bloated and, like many of the other teams, these are players where a lot of them are on decent money.
“McAtee will be on obviously the lower end wage-wise, but he can be sold quite quickly now. He’s a player that there is a lot of demand for.
“His wage expectations will not be excessive for the clubs that he’s speaking to, the German clubs, for example, and you know the reality is he’s not going to play for City anymore.”
While McAtee will be frustrated at not making the grade at City, he will likely be more than happy to go straight in as Gibbs-White’s replacement at the City Ground.