Fernandinho could be on his way out of Manchester City this summer as his contract is up in the coming months and it doesn’t appear that he’ll be offered a new deal, so the Citizens will need a replacement.
City have been linked with Douglas Luiz, Denis Zakaria and Ismael Bennacer, but Tuttosport (h/t Sport Witness) say Sassuolo midfielder Manuel Locatelli is also on their radar.
Where will Manchester City finish this season?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
The 23-year-old has made 86 appearances in all competitions since joining from AC Milan in 2019, scoring five goals with 10 assist (Transfermarkt). Locatelli has been a regular for Sassuolo this season, making 21 appearances across the board and has all the required qualities to replace Fernandinho.
Locatelli has completed 82.9% of his 1740 passes, made 58 tackles, blocked 33 shot/passes/crosses, made 40 clearances, had 18/21 successful dribbles, made 35 interceptions, won 39/71 aerial duels, created 25 chances and averaged a tackle or interception every 20 minutes (WhoScored).
He’s made more tackles than Rodri (47) (WhoScored), so he’d improve the midfield if signed. If City want the Italian international, they’ll have to match his €40m (£34.4m) asking price and pay him in excess of £20k-per-week/£1.04m-a-year.