Manchester City are thought to be leading Real Madrid in the race to sign Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham, according to ESPN.
What’s the latest Man City news on Bellingham?
Bellingham appears to be a man in real demand heading into the summer window, with City seemingly real admirers of the England international. Reports back in February claimed that those at the Etihad Stadium were starting talks over a move for the 19-year-old and were thought to be the frontrunners at the time.
Since then, there has been speculation of a midfielder leaving Manchester over the coming months, with Ilkay Gundogan reportedly having his heart set on joining Barcelona.
Bellingham and Florian Wirtz have been marked as potential replacements for Gundogan, and it looks as if there is a positive feeling around the Etihad at a move for the former of the two Bundesliga midfielders.
ESPN shared an update regarding Bellingham’s situation in the last 48 hours after it emerged that Premier League rivals Liverpool had backed away from a transfer.
They stated that City are leading the race for the player and are ‘growing increasingly confident’ they can get a deal done. Dortmund haven’t given up hope of keeping the Englishman for a further 12 months, with any move away likely to cost more than £130m, which would be a club record at the Etihad.
Haaland to help Man City sign Bellingham?
City have reaped the rewards of signing a star player from Borussia Dortmund last summer in Erling Haaland, with the striker scoring an incredible 45 times in 39 games so far this season.
The 22-year-old knows Bellingham well following his time at Dortmund, and there had been speculation that he has told the midfielder to join City, so he could be in his former teammates' ear once again over the coming months.
A new central midfielder is seemingly needed in Pep Guardiola’s squad, especially as City would be without a central midfielder if Gundogan departs this summer. They have a number of defensive and attacking midfielders, so Bellingham, primarily a central midfielder, could be an excellent addition in both the short and long term.
Described as a “superstar” by Roy Keane, Bellingham appears to have everything in his game, contributing to 17 goals this season and topping Dortmund’s charts for match rating and tackles made per 90, as per WhoScored. It could set back City a record transfer fee, but it looks as if they are keen and confident of winning the race.