Hugo Viana and Pep Guardiola awaiting Daniel Levy transfer decision on Tottenham star | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola has set his sights on acquiring the services of Tottenham’s Archie Gray as the summer window progresses, as per a new report.

It’s been a busy window of transfers at the Etihad Stadium since last month, with Rayan Ait-Nouri, Tijjani Reijnders, Marcus Bettinelli and Rayan Cherki all joining in prior to Manchester City’s FIFA Club World Cup campaign in the United States.

City have spent just under £300 million on new signings since January, showing real intent to challenge for all trophies in the seasons to come after Pep Guardiola endured the most challenging year of his managerial career last term.

Manchester City recorded a third-place Premier League finish with 71 points last term, crashed out of the UEFA Champions League at the Round of 16 stage and lost the FA Cup final to Crystal Palace – rounding off a sobering year by all accounts at the Etihad Stadium.

City have allowed Kevin De Bruyne to join Napoli on a free transfer after deciding against offering the Belgian a new contract. Scott Carson has also been released, with James McAtee set to leave the club for a fee that could lie between £25-30 million.

Jack Grealish and Kalvin Phillips have been told to find new clubs before the 2025-26 Premier League campaign begins as newly-appointed director of football Hugo Viana orchestrates a revamp of Guardiola’s squad.

Kyle Walker has joined Burnley in a deal that could be worth £5 million, with Manchester City eyeing the addition of a new right-back. Newcastle’s Valentino Livramento is of interest but a transfer will prove to be very difficult owing to the finances involved and the length of time remaining on the 22-year-old’s current deal at St. James’ Park.

After addressing their long-standing issues at left-back with the signing of Ait-Nouri from Wolves, it remains to be seen whether Manchester City can find a suitable right-back to alleviate their concerns in another position that has been an Achilles’ Heel for Guardiola in recent seasons.

The Real Tolmie’s Hairdoo has reported on X that Manchester City’s data analytics team have recently flagged Tottenham’s Archie Gray as a potent candidate to be brought to the Etihad Stadium as the summer transfer window progresses.

Guardiola is understood to be a huge admirer of Gray, who joined Tottenham last summer after coming through the academy ranks at Leeds United. The Manchester City manager is also reported to have spoken personally with the 19-year-old Englishman before Gray moved to Tottenham.

A midfielder capable of playing in a number of defensive positions, Gray’s ability to cover for Ange Postecoglou’s defensive absentees was one of Tottenham’s finer silver linings last season as the north Londoners recorded a dreadful 17th-place Premier League finish.

It remans to be seen whether Tottenham chairman Archie Gray would consider an approach for Gray, who has five years remaining on his current contract at Tottenham. It is worth noting that Manchester City have played this game with Levy previously, most recently when they were interested in signing Bayern Munich forward Harry Kane in 2021.