Manchester City are reportedly interested in signing Rafael Leao and willing to offer Joao Cancelo to land the Portuguese international.
According to a report from Calciomercatoweb, Manchester City could look to propose an exchange deal involving Joao Cancelo and 23-year-old Portuguese attacker Rafael Leao. It remains to be seen whether AC Milan are prepared to accept such an offer at the end of the season.
Rafael Leao’s contract with AC Milan expires in the summer of 2024, and AC Milan are reportedly keen on extending his stay at the club. It will be interesting to see if the Portuguese internaational is keen on committing his long-term future to the Italian club amid interest from the Premier League.
Manchester City could definitely use a quality left-sided attacker, and Leao has emerged as a top target. Recent reports have claimed that they are ready to offer a lucrative contract to secure the services of the AC Milan talisman.
The 23-year-old has the technical and physical attributes to thrive in English football, and he could prove to be an upgrade on players like Jack Grealish as well. The Portuguese international helped AC Milan win the league title last season and has been quite impressive this season as well.
Leao has nine goals and nine assists across all competitions, and he managed to make his mark at the 2022 FIFA World Cup with Portugal as well. Meanwhile, Joao Cancelo has been mostly used as a left-back for Manchester City, and it seems that the Premier League outfit are prepared to splash out on a specialist left-back and let him leave in the summer.
While the 28-year-old Portuguese international defender has been outstanding going forward, he remains a vulnerable prospect defensively. And Pep Guardiola has used Cancelo sparingly since the World Cup. So Manchester City are looking to cash in on him amid interest from Real Madrid.
Leao is widely regarded as one of the most promising young attackers around Europe, and he has a big future ahead of him. Moving to the Premier League could help accelerate his development, and a world-class manager like Guardiola will only help him improve further.
That said, swap deals are incredibly hard to pull off and that is why they are few and far between. It will be interesting to see if Jorge Mendes can help execute such an ambitious move involving the two Portuguese international in the summer transfer window.
Cancelo? Not a chance