Manchester City demand swap deal for Barcelona superstar in exchange for Raheem Sterling - Reports
Manchester City have reportedly demanded a swap deal involving Pedri from Barcelona for Raheem Sterling. The Catalan club have been interested in Sterling since last summer, but a deal couldn't be made.
According to El Nacional, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has proposed a new deal for Sterling's transfer. It involves Golden Boy 2021 winner Pedri moving to Manchester.
🚨 Guardiola proposes swap deal involving Barcelona’s Pedri for Man City ace Raheem Sterling
#MCFC #PremierLeague
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Raheem Sterling has been on Barcelona's list for quite some time. Reportedly, a swap deal was proposed last summer as well involving Ousmanne Dembele. But injuries to the Frenchman meant the deal couldn't materialize.
Sterling joined Manchester City in 2015 in a record breaking £44 million transfer from Liverpool. In his 309 appearances since then, he has scored 118 goals and made 88 assists.
Sterling, however, seems to have fallen out of favor at Manchester City in recent times. With the arrival of Jack Grealish in the summer and brilliant displays from Phil Foden, Sterling has mostly been restricted to the bench.
He has made 17 appearances overall this season, scoring four. This includes the recent equalizer he scored in Manchester City's 2-1 win over PSG in the Champions League.
Sterling has also been linked with Arsenal and a return to his old club Liverpool in January or next summer.
Manchester City-target Pedri out for Barcelona until January due to injury
Pedri is reported to be out until at least New Year 2022 due to a thigh injury. Apparently, he has had muscular discomfort for a few months now. This was aggravated due to the extensive load on the 19-year-old.
He was a key figure in Spain's EURO 2020 campaign that saw them make the semis. For both Barcelona and Spain, Pedri played 73 games last season.
#AS | 🚨🚨
🔹Bad news: 2021 is over for Pedri, he won't play until January 2022.
🔸Pedri's recovery process will start from scratch again as the club discovered some issues that aggravated his injury.
🔹They want to prepare him physically and mentally for the next year. https://t.co/y2DYF1g8Hc
Pedri's Golden Boy 2021 award shows how impressive he has been for club and country. Barcelona will be hoping to have him back fit as soon as possible.
However, fitness is not the only worry for Barcelona. Manchester City's Pep Guardiola has also set his eye on Pedri as a potential City player. It will be interesting to see where the young Spaniard decides to play next season.