Manchester City ‘are ready to hijack Liverpool’s move for £70m Alexis Mac Allister’, as Pep Guardiola views Brighton star as an ‘ideal replacement if Ilkay Gundogan leaves’ this summer
- Liverpool have long been tracking the Argentine as they plot midfield revamp
- But City would be able to offer the World Cup winner a Champions League spot
- Guardiola is eyeing replacements for his captain Gundogan, and Bernando Silva
Manchester City are believed to be looking to derail Liverpool’s plans of luring World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister to Merseyside with a move for the Brighton midfielder, according to reports.
Mac Allister has long been linked with the Reds, who are plotting a midfield revamp after an up-and-down season that has seen Jurgen Klopp’s players secure European football at the last but look set to miss out on a Champions League spot.
Liverpool are said to be advanced in their talks with the Argentina international, with incoming sporting director Jorg Schmadtke keen to ink a deal within his first month of arriving at Anfield.
But the Premier League titleholders could yet be the fly in the ointment as they begin to plot their own movements in the upcoming transfer window.
Pep Guardiola and sporting director Txiki Begiristain have reportedly drawn up a list of their top targets over the summer as they look to extend the success of their jaw-dropping 2022/23 campaign.
Alexis Mac Allister has caught the attention of the Premier League champions Manchester City
Pep Guardiola (left) has drawn up a list of summer transfers that could derail the plans of his opposite number, Jurgen Klopp (right)
As per the Mirror, Mac Allister is heavily favoured as the club look to replace captain Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva, both of whom are said to be moving away from Manchester during the window.
The 24-year-old is joined on the wish list by his Brighton team-mate, 19-year-old starlet Julio Enciso who has dazzled for the Seagulls since making his Premier League debut this season.
Also fancied in the midfield is Bayern Munich’s Joshua Kimmich, whilst RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol – once coveted by Chelsea – could prove a worthy replacement for out-of-favour Aymeric Laporte.
City have also kept an eye on West Ham captain Declan Rice, who is set to move on from the London Stadium in a potential £100m move to a top-flight rival, with Arsenal the current frontrunners.
Unlike Liverpool, City can sweeten any potential deal for Mac Allister with the promise of Champions League football next season, after topping the table with three games to spare.
Julio Enciso (right) is another talent on the south coast that has made Man City’s wish list
Lifting the trophy at the Etihad for the third consecutive year in a row inducted Guardiola into an elite club of managers who have completed the feat in English football, including Herbert Chapman, Bob Paisley, and Sir Alex Ferguson.
Brighton are keenly aware they are likely to lose their midfielder – albeit for a fee that could reach up to £70million – as well as Moises Caicedo during the upcoming window.
Speaking ahead of Brighton’s 3-1 victory against Southampton, head coach Roberto De Zerbi said that it could be a ‘possibility’ that they lose big players including Mc Allister and Caicedo, adding: ‘We are Brighton and I know the policy of my club, and we have to be ready to bring in other good players with the right characteristics.’
Brighton have made a head start on the window, signing Watford’s Joao Pedro at the start of May, and the club is in advanced talks with Liverpool’s James Milner and Borussia Dortmund midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud.
