Man City agree deal to sign Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic worth an initial £25m… with the Croatian to undergo a medical soon
Manchester City are set to land their first reinforcement of the summer after agreeing a £25million fee with Chelsea for Mateo Kovacic.
The Croatian is still to undergo a medical at the City Football Academy but the two clubs have completed talks over a move that includes £5m in additional clauses based on performance.
Pep Guardiola has been an admirer of Kovacic for some time – City first looked at him in 2018 – and believes he can play anywhere in his midfield.
There remain question marks over the futures of Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva, while Kalvin Phillips is insistent on proving himself at the Etihad Stadium, as reported by Mail Sport last month.
Therefore, Kovacic will add depth to City’s midfield line ahead of the 2023-2024 campaign and help Guardiola’s side maintain their dominance in the league.
Man City have agreed terms with Chelsea to sign their Croatian midfielder Mateo Kovacic
Manchester City have agreed to sign the Croatian midfielder for £25m with £5m in bonuses
Kovacic’s departure will bring his five-year spell at Stamford Bridge to an abrupt end
Kovacic will undergo his medical at the Etihad once he returns from international duty with Zlatko Dalic’s side – having lost the he UEFA Nations League final at Spain.
Pep Guardiola’s side discussed personal terms with the midfielder before he linked up with the Croatia national team and completed talks while away.
Kovacic’s departure will bring his five-year spell at Stamford Bridge to an abrupt end, having initially joined on-loan from Real Madrid.
During his time with the club, Kovacic has added a fourth Champions League trophy to the three he won in Madrid, as well as the Europa League in 2019.
The 29-year-old has featured 221 times for the Premier League giants, scoring on six occasions and providing 15 assists.
However, Kovacic grew frustrated with the situation under Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter and interim manager Frank Lampard.
Kovacic will undergo his medical at the Etihad once he returns from international duty with Zlatko Dalic’s side – having lost the he UEFA Nations League final at Spain
Kovacic (right) grew frustrated with the situation under Thomas Tuchel (left), Graham Potter and interim manager Frank Lampard
The Blues finished the 2022-2023 Premier League season in 12th, a staggering 27 points off fourth place.
Kovacic labelled Chelsea’s disastrous campaign as ‘really bad’ and made his desire to leave the club clear – despite having another year left on his deal.
Kovacic also took the opportunity to heap praise on Manchester City ahead of Croatia’s Nations League semi-final against the Netherlands.
He said Guardiola’s Treble-chasers a ‘top team and hinted he would be interested in joining the Premier League giants.
Meanwhile, Guardiola has been eager to sign a new midfielder given the likes of Gundogan has been stalling over his contract extension.
More to follow…
