Man City to rival Real Madrid for £85m ‘next De Bruyne’ – Paper Round

Manchester City go toe-to-toe with Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in the Champions League on Wednesday, live on TNT Sports, and they are also set to rival one another in the pursuit of Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Florian Wirtz, The Sun and the Daily Mail report.

Wirtz is viewed as a successor to Kevin De Bruyne at Manchester City, but Pep Guardiola’s side may struggle to convince the German with Real also knocking on the door.

The Sun adds: “Bayer Leverkusen’s star man, 21, is believed to be keen on a switch to the Spanish giants when he does leave his homeland.

“He has 27 goals and assists so far this season for Xabi Alonso’s men – and Leverkusen would love to tie him down to a new contract.

“His decision could well be impacted by his current coach – with the former Liverpool midfielder in the frame to succeed Carlo Ancelotti at Madrid.”

Spurs eye £80m Gittens

Tottenham are weighing up a summer pursuit for Borussia Dortmund winger Jamie Gittens, The Sun reports. The 20-year-old has been a long-term target for Spurs, but it could take up to £80m to prise him away from the Bundesliga club.

Spurs are also not alone in wanting the Manchester City academy product, with Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United also said to be interested.

The Sun adds: “Gittens has scored 16 goals in 91 appearances for Dortmund, coming on as a late sub in last season’s Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid.

“This year he has developed into a first-team regular, netting 11 goals in 33 appearances.

“He has not scored in eight games though as Dortmund have slid down to 11th in the Bundesliga table, winning just one and losing five of their last seven league games.

“Dortmund are eight points off the top four but are still in the Champions League, holding a 3-0 lead going into their play-off second leg against Sporting Lisbon.”

Why Obi swapped Arsenal for Man Utd

Chido Obi’s Premier League debut for Manchester United on Sunday helps justify his move from Arsenal, the Telegraph reports. The 17-year-old only played three minutes in the defeat at Tottenham but took a huge stride towards “fulfilling his considerable potential”.

Obi left Arsenal last October at 16 and it has been reported there were concerns over how blocked the pathway was to the Gunners’ first team plans under Mikel Arteta.

The Telegraph adds: “Arsenal are believed to have presented a plan to Obi that had him transitioning from the under-18 team to the under-21s during this campaign, with opportunities to join first-team training. The player wanted to progress faster, having already demonstrated his ability at under-18 level. Last season, after all, he scored a remarkable 32 goals in just 18 under-18 games.

“Arsenal’s annoyance at his departure will not have been eased by his form since, as the powerful forward has continued to score goals at youth level. After signing for United in October, he struck a hat-trick within 15 minutes of his debut for their under-18s. He has also scored seven goals in three FA Youth Cup matches this season.

“To an extent, Obi’s first-team debut on Sunday means he has been proven right in picking the United pathway over the route offered by Arsenal. The counter-argument is that Arsenal’s current striker injury crisis would probably have opened the door for him had he stayed.”

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