Premier League Rumors: Sky Blues Tried But Failed To Lure Werner To Etihad Stadium
KEY POINTS
- City tried to get Timo Werner to play for Red Bulls
- Werner turned down Manchester City, preferred Blues
- Guardiola is looking to add more offensive talent next season
Timo Werner of RB Leipzig is expected to join Chelsea FC soon, although sporting director Oliver Mintzlaff has revealed talks have yet to seal the deal. However, it may only be a matter of time before that gets done with The Red Bulls only hoping that the German defender finishes the current season at the Red Bull Arena.
Given that no deal has been officially sealed, there are some who hint that some other team may sneak in. One team that could do so is Manchester City. Ironically, the Sky Blues were never mentioned as a potential landing spot for Werner. But it turns out that the Citizens were another team negotiating for the services of the 24-year-old striker. Unfortunately for them, Werner snubbed them and preferred to play for Frank Lampard.
It turns out that Lampard secretly flew to Germany to personally talk to Werner along with sporting director Petr Ctech, the Telegraph reported. That move appeared to be the one that sealed it with Werner convinced to move to Stamford Bridge soon. With Werner off their list, Pep Guardiola will have to target someone else to reinforce his offensive options in the summer.
Guardiola has several other targets in mind. The list includes Jadon Sancho and Leroy Sane. As far as Sancho, City may be in for a rough time trying to convince the 20-year-old to join Man City. Sancho has been widely linked to a move to Manchester United and it appears that will happen soon. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is saving up funds to possibly bring in the English striker for a record deal worth $120 million.
Aside from Guardiola's targets, he also needs to address the players on his end. One of them is Leroy Sane, someone who has hardly played at all this season. The 24-year-old midfielder suffered a torn ACL when the Citizens played Liverpool in the FA Community Shield. But even before that, Sane was linked to a possible move to Bayern Munich.
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If Sane moves, that means Guardiola will have to skim further on available offensive talent. With Werner off the table, City may have to crowd other clubs after the current season. Given the financial issues plaguing most teams, Guardiola is likely to have limited opportunities on who to target as well.
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