Manchester City are interested in signing Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni this summer. He is a promising young talent and could make a perfect partner to Ruben Dias in the long term.
A recent report from FCInterNews (via Manchester Evening News) revealed that City have spoken to the representatives of the player after being impressed by his displays for the Serie A outfit this season.
However, they aren’t the only club interested and face a battle against local rivals Manchester United and Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich.
Bastoni moved to Inter from Atalanta back in 2017 for £28m in what was a huge fee for a relatively unproven player at the time. He stayed in Bergamo for another season as part of the deal before spending a further campaign out on loan at Parma.
He has made 30 appearances in the Serie A this term and has played a key part in Inter’s push for the Scudetto, proving himself to be a reliable player at the top level despite only being 23-years-old.
It’s a very similar story to Dias who moved to The Etihad Stadium in 2020 from Benfica for £65m. Nobody could have predicted just how good he was at the time, but he helped the Citizens reclaim their Premier League crown and was rewarded by being named the league’s player of the season.
City could repeat this success by signing Bastoni, if you compare the statistics of both players he already excels in some areas.
Dubbed “special” by Squawka reporter Muhammad Butt, he has tackled a higher percentage of dribblers this season at 58% compared to 44% for Dias. The Italian is also impressive in the air having won 63% of his aerial duels which beats Dias’ 60%.
It makes sense for Guardiola to sign a player like Bastoni, and at such a young age he could form a partnership with Dias that would help guarantee City stay successful even after the Spanish manager leaves.
Further lure towards the player is unearthed when you see that he was described as a “phenomenon” by Serie A expert Conor Clancy in an interview with Football FanCast. On that evidence, he is clearly blessed with mesmeric talent but rated at £54m, he won’t come cheap.
A key characteristic needed to be a successful defender in a Guardiola side is composure on the ball, and with 272 touches in the defensive penalty area this campaign Bastoni has also shown he is comfortable with the ball at his feet.
It will take a big fee to persuade Inter to sell, but the chance to play in the Premier League and under one of the world’s best managers is surely something the player wouldn’t turn down.
IN other news: Huge blow: Big behind the scenes Man City claim emerges, it’s bad news for supporters…
from FootballFanCast.com https://ift.tt/UHvA6Ok
via IFTTT