City target De Bruyne

Manchester City are firmly pressing ahead in their interest for Wolfsburg's Kevin de Bruyne.

Manchester City are firmly pressing ahead in their interest for Wolfsburg's Kevin de Bruyne.

Published Mar 31, 2015

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Manchester City are firmly pressing ahead in their interest for Wolfsburg’s Kevin de Bruyne.

City’s director of football Txiki Begiristain is understood to have met De Bruyne’s advisers for a second time to discuss their chances of making a deal happen.

The Bundesliga side want to keep the Belgium international for at least one more season as they plan a crack at the Champions League next year. However, City, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain are all interested in signing the former Chelsea midfielder this summer.

De Bruyne’s agent Patrick de Koster has hinted it would take a bid close to £40million for Wolfsburg to consider selling.

Talking last week he said: ‘Clubs who are ready to bid 30million euros for Kevin have no sense of reality. A player like Kevin has a market value of some €50million, €55m or even €60m by now.’

De Bruyne, 23, cost Wolfsburg £16.7m when he signed in January 2014 from Chelsea and has scored 14 goals for his club this season.

City defender Aleksandar Kolarov has admitted he’s tempted by a return to Italy after starting just 11 Premier League games this season.

The 29-year-old Serb, who cost £16m from Lazio in 2010, fuelled the speculation while praising the job compatriot Sinisa Mihajlovic has done as manager of third-placed Sampdoria.

He told Sky Italia: ‘I’d like to return to Italy, but it’s difficult. ‘I’m happy for Mihajlovic. He’s doing very well, as are Lazio.’

Meanwhile, Yaya Toure has suggested he may be about to step away from international football, after claiming ‘my target is done’.

Toure captained the Ivory Coast to glory in this winter’s Africa Cup of Nations, their first major trophy in over two decades, and could now follow his brother Kolo in retiring after suggesting that the Elephants’ new generation should be allowed to flourish.

‘My future?’ he said. ‘You have to wait. Now, my target is done. The time of the youngsters will come soon. We need to let them.

‘It’s always beautiful when everything is going in the right way. I’m delighted with the trophy of 2015. Now I will wait a couple of days before we decide my future.’ – Daily Mail

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