Stefan Borson drops verdict on Man City agreeing Marc Guehi ‘swap deal’
Manchester City are pushing to sign Marc Guehi as they look to bring in defensive reinforcements this month.
Man City have been hit hard with injuries in recent weeks, with six first-team players currently sidelined.
Josko Gvardiol is set to miss several months after suffering a fracture to his leg in the 1-1 draw against Chelsea on 4 January, while Ruben Dias is out for the next few weeks after picking up a hamstring injury in the same game.
Man City have now turned their attention to Guehi, who is out of contract at Crystal Palace on 30 June.
Meanwhile, Nathan Ake has been linked with Palace as they scour the market for potential replacements for their captain.
Why Nathan Ake could turn down Man City exit offer
Former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson exclusively told Football Insider a “swap deal” would be difficult to agree for Guehi and Ake before the transfer window closes on 2 February.
Guehi has been linked with several Premier League clubs in recent weeks, with Palace believed to be looking for around £35million to sanction an exit.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the chances of a swap deal taking place, Borson said: “I think City would happily do a deal, but swap deals are really hard to do.
“Is Ake going to want to move the other way around and uproot his whole family? I mean, he’s going to look at it and go, ‘I’ll just stick around for now, thanks. Why do I need to leave now? I’ll leave in the summer. I just don’t need to go now’.
“If I was Ake, that’s what I would do.”
Ake prediction made after crushing Man City injury news
Borson expects Ake to turn down a move as he’s likely to feature heavily for Man City over the coming weeks following Gvardiol and Dias’s injuries.
“I don’t think the manager would say, ‘I’m not going to use you’, I think the likelihood is Ake is going to play a lot of games,” said Borson.
“City have got at least six weeks let’s say without Dias and Gvardiol, so Ake is going to play. I think he probably just says no.”
Ake started in Man City’s 2-0 victory over Newcastle United in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final clash on Tuesday (13 January).
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