AFTER MARMOUSH: MAN CITY PREPARING BID FOR £55M STAR WHO'D REVIVE GREALISH

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola hopes a few January signings will revitalise his squad ahead of the next few months.

A deal to sign Eintracht Frankfurt striker Omar Marmoush looks set to be completed sooner rather than later, bolstering City’s stagnating frontline in the process.

The 25-year-old has scored 20 goals in just 26 games for the German side, and his presence could give the Etihad side an edge in the final third.

Guardiola doesn’t appear to be stopping there, however, as a move to sign a player from Serie A is close to being agreed…

Man City transfer latest

According to Sky Sports Italy, City are close to lodging a bid for Juventus defender Andrea Cambiaso, with a fee in the region of €65m (£55m) having been mentioned.

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Juventus are holding out for a slightly higher figure, but the report adds that there is a good chance the club will accept the proposal submitted by City, who are willing to offer Cambiaso a five-year contract.

Aged just 24, the defender has plenty of experience in Serie A and with the Italian national side, indicating that he could be a wise signing by the Spaniard.

Perhaps he could even rejuvenate Jack Grealish too, who has struggled of late.

Why Andrea Cambiaso could revive Jack Grealish

Grealish was a key member of the squad during the treble-winning 2022/23 campaign, registering 16 goal contributions in all competitions for City as they swept the board.

Since then, however, things have been much more difficult. Indeed, since the start of the 2023/24 season, the Englishman has scored only four goals in 56 appearances.

Jack Grealish's stats in the PL since August 2022

Metric

2022/23

2023/24

2024/25

Goals

5

3

0

Assists

7

1

1

Key passes per game

1.8

1.4

1.6

Big chances created

12

3

2

Successful dribbles per game

1.6

0.9

0.9

Via Sofascore

Furthermore, he ranks in the bottom 1% for non-penalty goals and in the bottom 72% for assists per 90 when compared to peers in the Premier League.

By signing Cambiaso, Guardiola might be able to get the former Aston Villa starlet back to his best, especially considering how good the Italian is going forward.

Amid links with City, one analyst stated that the defender could “become one of the best FBs in the world” upon moving to Manchester, while data analyst Ben Mattinson has also lauded just how "dangerous" he is down the flanks.

The 24-year-old has created three big chances in Serie A this season, along with succeeding with 63% of his dribble attempts, proving that he loves bursting forward from his own half to create opportunities deep in the final third.

Additionally, compared to his positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues, Cambiaso ranks in the top 8% for progressive carries (3.38), the top 7% for shot-creating actions (3.29), and the top 13% for key passes (1.54) per 90 over the previous 365 days.

These statistics are evidence of his forward-thinking abilities, which could see Grealish return to the player he was a couple of seasons ago, knowing that there is someone ready to link up with him down the left flank.

Having Grealish back firing might just be the catalyst for City to go on a solid run of form over the next few months.

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2025-01-18T06:18:35Z