A battle is brewing for Manchester City to win to sign a Brazilian midfielder. | OneFootball

Earlier this week a report from Rudy Galetti for TeamTalk indicated that Manchester City have identified Atalanta midfielder Ederson as their top transfer target for the January transfer window. The Brazilian midfielder would immensely improve City’s midfield if they did sign him next month. Now a new report suggests that a transfer battle may be on the horizon for Manchester City to win to sign Ederson. But if he is the man Manchester City want to sign in January it’s a battle they must win next month.

Romulo Giacomin has reported via X that Real Madrid have now entered the race to sign Ederson. Furthermore, Giacomin reports that Manchester City, Atletico Madrid, Manchester United and Liverpool are all interested in signing the Atalanta midfielder. Lastly, Giacomin reports that any deal to sign Ederson next month will be a difficult deal to complete based on Ederson’s importance to Atalanta.

It is clear to see why Ederson is highly sought after. The Brazilian workhorse has been a key player in Atalanta’s rise to the top of the Serie A table. With his technical ability and workrate he has fast become one of the better midfielders in Europe. It seems to be a matter of time before he moves to a bigger club. If Manchester City want to land Ederson they must move quickly and decisively if they are to sign the Brazilian.

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Manchester City’s midfield lacks energy and pace. Those are key attributes of Ederson’s game. He would immediately improve City’s midfield if they could sign him next month. It is no surprise to see a host of other suitors emerge for Ederson. But it is included in Rudy Galetti’s report that Ederson is flattered by City’s reported interest in signing him. Perhaps that could be Pep Guardiola’s side’s trump card in the race to land the Brazilian. He’d also immediately have a key role to play at Manchester City if they did sign him. Perhaps even more so than any of the other clubs interested in signing him. Maybe that could be the decisive factor in any transfer battle to sign Ederson.

The January transfer window was always going to be a tough one for Manchester City. Teams typically don’t want to sell their best players. But City may have to force teams hand next month and spend big to land their top targets. Ederson may be one of those situations. City’s financial strength may also aid them in any potential battle to secure Ederson. So there are a host of factors at play in City’s reported interest in the Brazilian. It remains to be seen if Atalanta will sell Ederson and if they are willing to if City could win any race for the Brazilian midfielder.