Romano reveals Man City plan for Morgan Gibbs-White as Nottingham Forest stance emerges
Fabrizio Romano has confirmed Nottingham Forest star Morgan Gibbs-White is one of Manchester City’s ‘priority targets’ as their transfer plan begins to take shape and the Cityzens plan for life after club icon Kevin De Bruyne.
City are looking to the future after it was revealed that attacking midfielder and club legend Kevin De Bruyne would leave as a free agent this summer.
The Belgian will arguably go down as the Citizens’ greatest player but it seems there is no room for sentimentality when it comes to the 33-year-old, who will head to pastures new in the coming months.
As a result, City’s attention has turned to Gibbs-White, who has developed a glowing reputation at Forest, where he has helped turn them from Premier League relegation candidates to European football dreamers.
The 25-year-old is reportedly valued at a whopping £100 million (€117.5m, $132.7m) by the Tricky Trees but whether or not Pep Guardiola’s side will fork out that much remains to be seen.
Now, Romano states that City will plough ahead with advancing a Gibbs-White transfer and while personal terms should not be an issue, Forest will dig their heels in on keeping him.
He tweeted: “Manchester City plan to advance on Morgan Gibbs-White deal in the next weeks as he remains one of the priority targets. No issues are expected on personal terms but work to do with Nottingham Forest as they still hope to keep MGW.”
DON’T MISS: Kevin De Bruyne in talks to secure dream next move after Man City
Is Gibbs-White a good fit for City?
The England international is certainly a talent, with the former Wolves man scoring five goals and bagging nine assists in 30 Premier League games this season.
He has just over two years left on his contract and while there is not a huge amount of time left on that deal, Forest will ask for a hefty sum to secure his signature.
Gibbs-White has thrived for Forest in a side that has the joint-lowest possession stats (39.8 per cent) with already-relegated Ipswich Town.
The former Sheffield United loanee seems to thrive in moments and creating chaos, rather than a side that dominates the ball – something City rely on.
He may yet be a success at the Etihad if he joins Guardiola’s team but it may be a big style shock for the ex-Swansea City loanee, as was the case with Jack Grealish when he joined from Aston Villa in 2021.
Forest sit sixth in the Premier League, whereas City are third and seem destined to secure a spot in next season’s Champions League. That is far from guaranteed for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side, and if they don’t make it to Europe’s top football competition, a move could be in the offing.
