Manchester City distance themselves from Malo Gusto pursuit with right-back stance revealed | OneFootball

Manchester City have distanced themselves from reported interest in Chelsea right-back Malo Gusto, as per a new report from a club insider.

The Blues have entered the summer window without a recognised specialist right-back following Kyle Walker‘s permanent departure to Burnley last summer, with Matheus Nunes largely shouldering the workload in the position across the 2025-26 campaign under Pep Guardiola.

City director of football Hugo Viana is overseeing a wide-ranging rebuild at the Etihad Stadium ahead of incoming manager Enzo Maresca‘s first season in charge, with the right-back position one of several areas of the squad under active review.

City have monitored the market for a specialist in the role across two consecutive windows, ultimately deciding against making a move in either, but the consensus within the club has shifted going into this summer.

Report: Livramento ruled out, a new right-back still on City’s radar

According to BBC Sport’s Shamoon Hafez, sources at Manchester City have moved to distance the club from a move for Malo Gusto, despite the 23-year-old Chelsea right-back having been linked with a switch to the Etihad Stadium in recent weeks.

It has also been mentioned that a deal for Newcastle United’s Valentino Livramento, who had previously been mentioned as a target in reports from earlier in the year, has similarly been ruled out by the club, with the Magpies understood to be a party who do not wish to sell.

Crucially, however, Hafez’s report stops short of suggesting City have abandoned their right-back pursuit altogether, noting that a new signing in the position remains a possibility this summer as part of Viana’s remake of the squad Maresca is set to inherit from Guardiola.

What does City’s right-back search look like going forward?

With City officials not prioritising a swoop for Gusto and Livramento reportedly off the table, the identity of City’s preferred target in the position remains unclear – though the club’s need for a specialist is not in question given the makeshift solutions Guardiola was forced to deploy throughout last season.

Nunes – a natural midfielder – impressed beyond expectations as a converted right-back but his long-term future in that makeshift role under Maresca’s system remains to be seen, particularly as City pursue further midfield reinforcements of their own – as a deal with Nottingham Forest for Elliot Anderson nears completion.

Viana’s preference across his dealings so far has been for players who offer positional versatility alongside a clear technical profile – and whoever City identify as their right-back target is likely to fit that mould, rather than being a like-for-like replacement for the more defensively direct Walker.

Whether the Blues move quickly on a replacement or allow the window to develop before committing to a target remains to be seen but it seems as if the search is live, even as two of the most widely discussed names are now firmly out of the picture.