AFC Bournemouth have accepted a £41 million offer from Manchester City for defender, Nathan Ake. The Holland international is now set to discuss personal terms with the Etihad Stadium club, with a deal expected to be completed in the coming days.
City are looking to get their business done early. now that their Champions League ban has been thrown out. They are also closing in on Valencia winger Ferran Torres for £21 m.
Ake, 25, has been one of Bournemouth’s star performers since making his loan move from Chelsea a permanent one in 2017. He moved to the south coast for a club-record £20 m but the club now look set to double their money despite dropping down to the Championship.
Central defence has been an area Pep Guardiola has been keen to strengthen since losing Vincent Kompany at the end of last season and failing to adequately replace him. Fernandinho, typically deployed as a central midfielder, has slotted into a back four on occasion but Ake now looks set to be a long-term partner for Aymeric Laporte in Manchester.
As well as moving early for Ake, City are closing in on a deal for Valencia winger Ferran Torres, 20, who has been identified as a replacement for Leroy Sane.
Valencia wanted £40m for Torres but reports suggest the initial fee will be substantially less, with The Guardian reporting a £24.5m deal.
Guardiola accepted a rebuild was vital this summer after they finished runners up to champions Liverpool, ending the season 18 points behind. After their ban from European competition was thrown out by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, Guardiola has been allowed to press ahead with his rebuild by targeting two young and exciting players in defence and attack.
The transfer window is open until October 5 but with the 2020-21 season commencing on September 12, Guardiola appears keen to get his targets in early in a bid to integrate them into his system.
Speaking about transfer business to the club site recently, director of football Txiki Begiristain said: ‘We are working a lot, we have to be ready.
‘It will be a strange window because people have to move fast, we have to bring players who can improve our squad but also it means that maybe someone can leave.
‘It will be strange also because we have the Champions League so we have to wait to move forward until the Champions League is finished. We might have less time than ever but we’ll have time to make the changes we need to improve the squad.’
