Manchester United are reportedly eyeing a deal for Barcelona prodigy Nico Gonzalez, who was once close to joining Manchester City.
Spanish publication Sport are reporting another troublesome situation for Barcelona. The Catalans have been dealing with a small exodus of players from their academy system. And another seems to be on his way, with Nico Gonzalez on the radar of Manchester United and Manchester City.
Nico Gonzalez is one of the best up-and-coming midfield talents in Las Masia. The player has been tipped for a bright future in football. Nico plied his trade for the Cadet A squad in the 2017-18 season. But, his future could be away from Barcelona, judging by the recent reports.
Nico Gonzalez came close to calling it quit earlier. The Barcelona talent was reportedly on his way to Manchester City. Nico’s father, Fran, a former player himself, had been coaching at the Etihad since 2016, which is when the links between the club and Nico surfaced.
Manchester United are set to swoop for Barça starlet Nico Gonzalez #mufchttps://t.co/JjPAu0a52u
— SPORT English (@Sport_EN) July 5, 2018
Nico seemed to have one foot in Manchester City. But, Fran is not associated with Manchester City anymore, thus canceling any hopes of a move to Etihad. His contract with the recently crowned Premier League champions has expired and the former player has taken his leave. But, City’s neighbours, Manchester United have emerged as a potential suitor now.
The link between Manchester United and Nico Gonzalez is reported to be David Harrison. The coach was there at Manchester City when Fran arrived. But, Harrison soon left for Manchester United. Still, the two are reported to have a good relationship, which is the base of the rumour.
The report goes on to say that Manchester United had set their sights on Mario Soriano. But, the Atletico Madrid youngster has decided to stay put, which has seen United divert their attention to Nico Gonzalez.
Barcelona seemed to be in good stead for a while after being ready to meet Nico’s demands of a faster track to the first-team. The midfielder was supposed to be one of the three Cadet A players to jump straight into Juvenil A, not having to ply their trade in Juvenil B. This would enable Nico to represent Barcelona in the UEFA Youth League as well.
? [SPORT] | Manchester United comes for Azulgrana Nico González
?Nico has several offers on the table and has not signed the renewal yet
?United is the best placed if he decides to leave and it would be the fifth casualty of the Masia leaving this summer pic.twitter.com/uRTXmw0VGx
— BarcaTimes (@BarcaTimes) July 5, 2018
But, there has been no improvement in terms of getting the youngster to commit to Barcelona, which has seen the club not include him in any of the squads yet. Nico’s departure will come as a huge blow to the club, with the player becoming the fifth youngster to reject the notion of continuing at Barcelona and accepting a move abroad.
Joel Lopez recently made headlines by agreeing a switch to the Premier League. And it seems, Nico Gonzalez is soon to follow suit. Manchester awaits the young prodigy.
