The Manchester City fans in the Transfer Tavern are growing tired of speculation regarding Jorginho’s potential move to the Etihad Stadium.
At the beginning of the transfer window it appeared that Txiki Begiristain would wrap up swift deals for both Riyad Mahrez and Jorginho to start the transfer window in assertive fashion, but Man City are yet to conclude deals for either of the aforementioned players. Meanwhile, City’s neighbours have completed two deals for Fred and Diogo Dalot to bolster their squad ahead of an intriguing season.
Although Jorginho’s arrival would undoubtedly be a beneficial addition to the squad, there is a looming feeling at the club that he is not quite up to the immensely high standards they set last season. The 26-year-old is far from a household name, but that’s exactly what the club need ahead of the new season to ensure their dominance continues.
With that in mind, the City hierarchy should turn their attention towards a player who would represent more of a marque signing and generate plenty of interest among their fan-base across the world, namely Mateo Kovacic of Real Madrid (valued at £27 million by Transfermarkt). According to a recent report from The Daily Mail, City will consider making a bid for either Kovacic or Mario Lemina if they fail in their pursuit of Jorginho.
However, City should abandon their pursuit of Jorginho and instead make a bid to sign Kovacic to add a signficant layer of quality to their midfield options. Whilst Napoli’s lynchpin is more of a deep-lying playmaker, Kovacic is an all-action box-to-box midfielder who appears well-suited to replace Fernandinho in the years to come.
The 24-year-old struggled to break into Zinedine Zidane’s first-team last season amid competition for a starting berth from the likes of Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro, and he was limited to just 10 La Liga starts as a consequence. Although a new manager is set to take over at Los Blancos in the coming weeks, Kovacic will undoubtedly be frustrated by his lack of opportunity in the Spanish capital and should be open to a move to Manchester this summer.
If that proves to be the case, Guardiola should do everything in his power to secure his services, as he would bring extra quality, greater hype and huge shirt sales to the club in comparison with the less sensational Jorginho.
Man City fans – thoughts? Let us know below!
