Manchester City have stepped up their interest in Mateo Kovacic ahead of a potential summer move for the Chelsea midfielder.
Telegraph Sport reported in February that Kovacic was one of the midfielders on City’s target list. And discussions are now thought to have been held with Kovacic’s representatives as City lays the groundwork for a possible bid.
Kovacic, 29, is among a series of players at Stamford Bridge with 12 months left on their contracts and Chelsea are keen to avoid a situation where they all enter their final year.
It remains to be seen whether new Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino fights to keep Kovacic, who has been a key player for the club since arriving from Real Madrid, initially on loan, in 2018 and then sealing a permanent £40 million move.
But Chelsea needs to reduce a bloated squad and raise cash after spending more than £550 million on new signings over the past year.
With a year left on his deal, Kovacic is in a strong position to determine his next move and the midfielder — part of a golden generation of Croatian players — would still fetch a sizeable fee.
Pep Guardiola wants to freshen up his midfield this summer and is a keen admirer of Kovacic, who is considered an attractive option given his experience, quality and price.
The extent of the surgery City makes in that area during the window is likely to be influenced by the futures of Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva. Guardiola wants to keep both players and they have been offered new deals.
Borussia Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham has been City’s long-standing No. 1 midfield target, but Real Madrid appear to have stolen the march over them in pursuit of the England international, whose future has yet to be resolved.
City are mindful of the age profile of the nucleus of their midfield. Gundogan is 32, the same age Kevin De Bruyne turns at the end of June. Bernardo will be 29 this summer.
City like to plan their windows at least 18 months in advance but it remains to be seen how much work they undertake in this window.
With the Premier League’s disciplinary case against them likely to take years to resolve, City are pressing ahead as normal and have the funds to embark on a huge spending spree if they so wish given their large turnover and the hefty sums recovered through sales in the past couple of years.
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