Manchester City have accepted an offer for an undisclosed amount to allow Aymeric Laporte to join Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr.
According to BBC, Aymeric Laporte is closing on a move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr after Manchester City accepted an undisclosed offer. The Manchester City outcast had dropped in the pecking order under Pep Guardiola, who has already signed Josko Gvardiol as a replacement.
Aymeric Laporte was an excellent signing for Manchester City when the club paid a then-record £57 million fee to sign him from Athletic Club. But the Spanish international has not been started games regularly in the last few seasons, leading to speculation about his future this summer.
When he arrived, Laporte became an undisputed leader at the back. But Guardiola has brought in enough reinforcements over the year to negate the Spaniard’s influence. The rise of Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji has further diminished Laporte in the pecking order, leaving the defender with no choice but to leave the club for a new challenge.
Plenty of clubs were linked since the window opened, as Manchester City reportedly sought £30 million to sell the Spaniard. Tottenham, Chelsea, and Barcelona have seen links with the defender, but now Al-Nassr have found an agreement to sign him.
🚨 Manchester City accept offer from Al Nassr for Aymeric Laporte. 29yo Spain centre-back into final 2 years of contract + thought to be open to possibility. #MCFC willing to sell, with Saudi Pro League club #AlNassr pushing to get deal done @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/vTsZT2idii
— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) August 16, 2023
On Tuesday, Manchester City hesitated to sell Laporte to Arsenal amid links with the defender. On Wednesday, they have accepted an undisclosed offer from Al-Nassr to sell the £57 million outcast to the Saudi Pro League.
Personal terms are not understandably a problem for Al-Nassr in convincing the defender to join some well-known faces, formerly at European clubs. If Laporte agrees, he will play alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane, Alex Telles, and Marcelo Brozivic at the Saudi side.
Meanwhile, Manchester City have already signed a replacement by investing heavily in Josko Gvardiol. The Croat joined in a massive deal from RB Leipzig a few weeks earlier and was essentially considered a starter under Guardiola.
The Croatian international’s arrival further put Laporte’s place in danger. And had the Spanish international stayed, he would have played even fewer games than last season. Hence, the move to Al-Nassr suits all parties, as Manchester City must have received a sizeable fee for the 29-year-old Spanish international.
