Manchester City are “close to” securing the signature of Leicester City midfielder Tyrese Noubissie, according to Manchester World.
The website reports that the “talented” teenager has also been pursued by the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea.
However, Noubissie has decided to turn down offers from those three teams in order to make the switch to the Etihad Stadium.
While compensation with the Foxes is still to be worked out, Manchester World claim there shouldn’t be any last-minute hitches and the youngster should become a City player very soon.
City’s youth recruitment drive
The treble winners have already signed Spike Brits from AFC Wimbledon this summer, while they are also reportedly keen to secure the services of both Sunderland keeper Toby Bell and West Brom’s Jamal Jidoh.
Coincidentally, with Jidoh, City will also have to see off United and Chelsea (in addition to Tottenham) to snap up the 16-year-old so it appears there is a fierce battle going on to get the best players from youth teams in the lower leagues.
City have shown that they give youth players a chance
Noubissie’s decision to make the move to City is unlikely to be just down to money. The Premier League champions have a strong, recent track record of giving young players their debut for the senior team.
The most famous example is, of course, Phil Foden but manager Pep Guardiola has also given first-team opportunities to the likes of Cole Palmer, James McAtee and Rico Lewis over the past few seasons.
If he does sign on the dotted line as expected, Noubissie will be looking to follow the same path as those players. He is said to possess a great deal of pace and technical ability so he should fit right in with the rest currently coming through the ranks at academy level.
