Guardiola another hurdle in Liverpool’s bid to sign La Liga starlet on £20k-a-week

Transfer News: Manchester City to battle Liverpool for Barcelona starlet Gavi

According to the Mirror, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola is keeping a close eye on Barcelona midfielder and Liverpool transfer target, Gavi.

The teenage midfielder is currently engaged in contract talks with the Catalan outfit, where he earns £20k-a-week. So far, Barca have been far off what the midfielder’s camp is demanding, and have only offered a deal which would see him earn £33,000-a-week.

That sum perhaps doesn’t reflect their viewpoint on Gavi, but rather their financial issues. Amidst such a situation, Liverpool, PSG, and Bayern Munich have all been keeping tabs on him.

And now, Guardiola’s Man City seem to have entered the race. They admire the 17-year-old with the Spaniard a clear admirer of him.

It seems that all suitors for Gavi would be keeping a close eye on his contract situation at Camp Nou. Once that reaches a conclusion, then they can have a fairer picture of what can be done.

The same applies to the Reds. PSG have a number of central midfielders while Bayern have all but announced a deal for Ryan Gravenberch from Ajax.

City and the Reds, meanwhile, look like teams that can use a player of Gavi’s age profile. The Cityzens are poised to see Fernandinho leave sometime in the future given his age while Ilkay Gundogan turns 32 this year.

Thiago Alcantara and captain Jordan Henderson, meanwhile, are into their 30s and James Milner has been reduced to appearances off the bench. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is far removed from first-team action while Naby Keita’s fitness record is a concern at times.

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A player like Gavi could really future-proof this midfield. Even in the short term, the Spaniard has shown he can hack it on the big stage, and has already featured several times for Luis Enrique’s Spain.