The summer transfer window hasn’t even closed yet but Man City are already thinking ahead to what business they might do in the January transfer window.
By then, the Cityzens will know the state of play in the Champions League and how well they’re doing in their quest to retain their Premier League title.
Pep Guardiola should also have John Stones and Kevin De Bruyne back from injury and, notwithstanding injuries to other key players, will hopefully have a full-strength squad to choose from for the assault on the second half of the 2023/24 season.
Whether or not that’s the case, it’s obvious that the club want to continue to evolve and improve their first-team squad, and to that end, the club are hopeful of one deal coming off.
According to Sky Sports, City will resurrect the deal for Lucas Paqueta subject to the outcome of the Football Association enquiry into irregular betting patterns.
Though any switch clearly hinges on the findings, West Ham will also perhaps be keeping their fingers crossed that the deal can go ahead.
With a rumoured sale price of around the £80m-£85m mark, that would provide a timely financial boost for the Hammers.
Clearly, Paqueta is one of their most creative players, but he’s made no secret of wanting to join City, and so earning themselves a pretty penny, particularly if they’ve not had a great season to that point, could well help David Moyes to add to his squad and give it a kick up the backside.