Manchester City targeting deal for Rayan Ait Nouri
Manchester City are working on a deal to sign Wolverhampton Wanderers left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri, according to The Athletic.
City are also considering alternatives, but the Wolves man is understood to be at the top of their shortlist.
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Given their lack of options, which saw them deploy Josko Gvardiol and Nico O'Reilly heavily at left-back last season, it is no surprise City are in the market for reinforcement in that position.
Ait Nouri has impressed over the last couple of seasons, catching the eye of several top Premier League sides, including Chelsea and Liverpool.
He featured in 37 league matches for Wolves in the recently concluded campaign, scoring four times and providing seven assists.
His defensive work rate, combined with his flair going forward, has seen his stock rise significantly.
The Algerian is also capable of playing higher up the pitch as a wing-back — a trait Guardiola values highly in his fluid tactical setups.
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While City and Wolves are yet to reach an agreement over a deal for Ait Nouri, there is a growing expectation that he will move to the Etihad sooner rather than later.
Despite Ait Nouri having one year left on his existing deal, Wolves are expected to demand a fee in excess of £40 million for one of their prized assets.
City would ideally like to wrap up the majority of their transfer business before heading to the United States for the FIFA Club World Cup later this month.
They are also in contact with AC Milan and Olympique Lyon for the services of Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki respectively, as the erstwhile English champions look to bounce back from an underwhelming campaign last time out.
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New York Times
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For one head coach, who is well-versed in the Red Bull clubs and watches them closely, the answer to Arsenal's problems can be found in Leipzig. 'Normally, I like to work with the younger players to develop them, so I would go for Sesko,' the coach, speaking on the condition of anonymity to protect relationships, tells The Athletic. 'With younger players, you can mould their attitude, create the values you want and help them take the next step. Look at Barcelona, for example, they have a team full of young, exciting players. The same can be said for Paris Saint-Germain, who have just dominated the Champions League final. Advertisement 'Sesko's a player with a lot of speed. For his game to go to the next level, he needs consistency — especially against the ball, because strikers can sometimes be lazy — but he has the qualities needed to go to the next level.' It can be difficult for supporters to find common ground when it comes to who Arsenal should sign out of Gyokeres and Sesko, as is often the case when confronted with a binary choice, and people working in the football industry are no different. One agent, in contrast to the head coach quoted above, believes Arsenal would be better served targeting Gyokeres and dismissed the idea they would lose value because of the Swedish forward's age. 'If you sign a striker who is 27 years old (which Gyokeres turns this week) and, as a club, you have him for four years, then you've done well out of that deal,' the agent says. 'The reality is that clubs don't keep players for multiple years now anyway, so Arsenal have to decide who is going to help them win today, not in four years' time — and it is difficult to look beyond Gyokeres' record. 'If you had two players who had exactly the same output and exactly the same style, you would naturally go for the player who is four years younger. But in this instance, they are two players with completely different goalscoring records, so you sign the player that gets you over the line in terms of winning titles.' Another agent offered an alternative outlook. 'You just sign the best player, right?' they said. 'You take into account your style of play and who is better suited to your system. 'With every transfer, there is an element of not having a crystal ball. Someone like Sesko may not develop how you think he will, while Gyokeres may not be any good in the Premier League. But if there is that much of a question mark over each player, then maybe it's not the right one (in either case) and they should be looking elsewhere.' Arsenal had targeted Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins in January, while one agent ironically suggested they should take a look at Monaco's Mika Biereth. Biereth, 22, was at Arsenal between 2021 and 2024, although he did not feature for the first team and was loaned to RKC Waalwijk of the Netherlands in 2022-23, Scotland's Motherwell in the first half of 2023-24 and then Sturm Graz of Austria before joining the latter permanently last summer. In January, the Denmark international was sold to Monaco in a deal reportedly worth up to €15million (12.6m/$17.1m at current rates), and scored 13 goals in 16 Ligue 1 appearances. Les Reed, a former technical director at the Football Association and once vice-chairman of Southampton, has negotiated endless transfers and is well-versed in identifying which player to opt for once a shortlist of targets has been compiled. Berta joined Arsenal earlier this year as their new sporting director, having most recently worked for Atletico Madrid. He, along with Arteta, is going to have a crucial role in signing the club's new striker. So, how does the relationship between a sporting director and manager work? 'The important thing is clarity,' Reed, now heading up Reed Consulting, tells The Athletic. 'If you've done a good job and you've got the right people in place, everybody should be on the same page. 'If you take a club like Arsenal, the expectation is for them to win now, but there is a secondary expectation that they will be sustainable and continue to win.' Reed notes a 'key question' that will be asked internally is whether Sesko is ready, at this stage of his career, to lead the line at a club such as Arsenal and help them win the Premier League. 'That's going to be the big debate they'll be having,' Reed adds. 'The safe decision would be Gyokeres, because you know he's still scoring goals frequently and would probably be the answer now. But there's no guarantee someone experienced who is knocking in goals at the top level is going to come in and make that transition either. 'It's a fine line, but that's what Andrea is getting paid the big bucks for — to get it right, to satisfy his manager and the club's owners and fans.' On Berta, Reed notes the importance of a new sporting director wanting to hit the ground running, especially when everyone knows not having a striker ultimately played a part in costing Arsenal a shot at winning the 2024-25 title. It will be imperative for the Italian to get the decision right. And asked how it plays out if there are internal disagreements over which target should be chosen, Reed believes they are few and far between — especially when you narrow the pool of players down to only a handful. Advertisement 'If you're in disagreement at this stage, there is something wrong about the way you're working together and the way you're drawing up your shortlists,' Reed says. 'If you're working from a long list down to a shortlist, the sporting director and manager should both be involved in those discussions all the way to the point where, if you're down to two players, you are going to be happy with either one. 'And if you are happy with either player, then it would probably be easier to go with the coach's view.' What also needs to be considered is how any potential arrival impacts the wider squad. The head coach we spoke to who favours a move for Sesko, for example, raises the importance of selecting a striker who helps get the best out of other Arsenal players, such as Kai Havertz. The German was signed as an attacking midfielder but has been used predominantly as a central striker by Arteta. 'Havertz is the type of player Sesko needs around him,' the coach says. 'For me, Havertz's best position is the No 10 role and not a striker. So, if you want to play with a 10 and a striker, then Havertz and Sesko can work that way. 'From what I saw of Arsenal last season, they were a little bit more direct and if they had a target player like Sesko up front, and then Havertz in the No 10 position, then it could be interesting next season.' The one thing everyone seems to agree on is that Arsenal require a central striker this summer, but whether that is Gyokeres, Sesko or somebody else remains up for debate. Do Arsenal want to go for a proven goalscorer with no Premier League experience, or a still-developing 'project player' who could become a leading forward at the club for years to come? It's a big moment for Artera, Berta and the rest of the Arsenal hierarchy. (Top photos of Sesko, left, and Gyokeres: Getty Images)
