Pep Guardiola confirms imminent contract renewal for star Manchester City forward | OneFootball

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has confirmed that the club are closing in on a new contractual agreement with star forward Savinho.

The Brazil international had been at the centre of speculation all summer, with Tottenham leading the chase for his signature and believed to have lodged multiple attempts at signing the player in a big-money deal.

However, Manchester City’s hierarchy consistently rejected advances, signalling that Savinho was considered too important to their long-term project, while Guardiola’s latest comments offer the clearest indication yet that the winger is staying put and highly-rated.

Since arriving at the Etihad Stadium from ESTAC Troyes in the summer of 2024, Savinho has quickly emerged as one of Manchester City’s most exciting young attackers, with an ability to play on both flanks, coupled with direct dribbling and explosive pace.

Manchester City’s decision to commit Savinho to a longer deal mirrors their approach with other homegrown and young stars, such as Rico Lewis and Nico O’Reilly in recent weeks, ensuring that the club has a strong foundation of talent secured for the coming years.

Speaking during the second-half of his post-match press conference following the 5-1 win over Burnley on Saturday afternoon, Pep Guardiola confirmed that Manchester City are closing in on a new deal with Savinho.

“We were so clear that we wanted to keep him. It depends on the offer, maybe the offer [from Tottenham] was not good enough for the club, I don’t know,” Guardiola told reporters from the Etihad Stadium.

He continued, “But of course, at his age, last season he played a lot of minutes, can play on both sides, right and left, has a pace that is unbelievable. So in those terms, he’s really good.”

One player who will be aiming to keep Savinho out of the starting line-up picture will be Oscar Bobb, who has been granted numerous opportunities to start on the right of Manchester City’s attacking trio so far this season.

“We need him, we need the guys from the bench,” Guardiola said of the Norwegian. “In the first one or two, two or three games, it was not good. And the guys who come from the bench, for example, Bernardo [Silva] gave us what we need in that position.”

The Manchester City boss continued, “So in that terms, we are really, really pleased with the impact from Oscar, because we know in the small spaces, he’s always really, really good. I don’t know if he scored or it was an own goal, but he was there, and that is what counts.”

Looking forward, Savinho’s imminent renewal could have a significant impact on Manchester City’s wider transfer planning, particularly as sporting director Hugo Viana continues to build the squad for a post-Pep Guardiola era in the coming years.

By keeping the winger tied down long-term, Manchester City effectively close the door on potential pursuits of high-profile alternatives such as Real Madrid’s Rodrygo, who was only ever considered if Savinho departed.

For Pep Guardiola, though, the focus remains on fostering competition within the squad. With Savinho, Bobb, Jeremy Doku, and Omar Marmoush all competing for wide roles, Manchester City possess one of the deepest collections of attacking talent.

The challenge now lies in managing game time and development to ensure each player thrives, while Savinho continues to try and justify the club’s faith in him as a future cornerstone of their project.