Galatasaray eyeing sensational double Manchester City midfielder swoop | OneFootball

Galatasaray are eyeing a double swoop for Manchester City midfielders Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan this summer, as per a new report.

Silva faces an uncertain future at the Etihad Stadium as he enters the final 12 months of his current contract, having been linked with a departure every summer since 2020 owing to his long-standing desire of moving closer to his homeland in Portugal.

The Portugal international has attracted interest from Barcelona since the years of the COVID-19 pandemic but the La Liga giants’ failure to cough up Manchester City’s asking price for their star midfielder has meant a transfer has always been unrealistic.

City are in for a big summer of changes after finishing in third place in the Premier League and exiting the UEFA Champions League at the Round of 16 stage in the recent season, with incoming sporting director Hugo Viana eyeing four to five new signings.

Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak outlined the club’s ambitions to secure the arrivals of their major summer signings in time for the FIFA Club World Cup – which begins in the United States on June 14.

City have scheduled medicals for AC Milan’s Tijjani Reijnders and Wolves’ Rayan Ait-Nouri for this weekend after agreeing deals to sign the pair – and remain in advanced negotiations with Lyon for France international Rayan Cherki, who impressed on his senior international debut in France’s 5-4 defeat to Spain in the UEFA Nations League semi-final this week.

The expected arrivals of Reijnders and Cherki could mean Manchester City allow another midfield exit from their ranks after telling Kevin De Bruyne he is not part of their plans for the 2025-26 campaign, with the Belgian expected to complete a two-year move to Napoli.

Silva will turn 31 in August and represents the best of Guardiola’s trophy-laden tenure at the Etihad Stadium, playing an indispensable role across the Catalan’s midfield, attack and even defence from time to time since joining from AS Monaco for £43 million in 2017.

However, as reported by Fotomac and relayed by Turkish Football, Galatasaray have initiated formal contact with Manchester City over the possibility of signing Silva in the summer transfer window, which will shut on June 10 and reopen after the Club World Cup ends in mid-July.

It remains to be seen whether Manchester City will entertain offers for Silva having already parted ways with De Bruyne this summer, though this would represent the ideal time for a sale as the Portuguese enters the final 12 months of his contract.

Ilkay Gundogan expects to stay at Manchester City into the new season after meeting the conditions of an appearance-based clause entered into his contract when he sensationally returned to the Etihad Stadium after a year at Barcelona last summer.

However, Manchester City are understood to still being open to listen to offers for the German and Galatasaray are also monitoring Gundogan’s situation at the Etihad Stadium as they look to pull off an incredible double swoop of City midfielders in the coming months.