Fabrizio Romano confirms new contract for Manchester City defender | OneFootball

Manchester City have now finalised an agreement with one of their most exciting youth talents amid a pursuit of deals with first-team stars.

The Premier League giants are continuing in their preparations for the next generation of Pep Guardiola’s squad, following on from a wide range of investments made across the last January transfer window and the ongoing summer market.

The arrivals of Abdukodir Khusanov, Vitor Reis, Nico Gonzalez, and Omar Marmoush sparked an urgent overhaul of the Manchester City squad at the midway stage of last season, largely brought about by faltering performances across competitions.

Hugo Viana’s work then continued with urgency in the immediate weeks at the very start of the ongoing summer market, with Marcus Bettinelli, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Tijjani Reijnders, and Rayan Cherki bolstering the side in time for the FIFA Club World Cup.

But with City having now crashed out of the competition, attentions are turning towards the contractual renewals of players, and while first-team stars will no doubt be at the forefront of the club’s thinking, developments have first centred around one rising name.

That is according to the information of Fabrizio Romano, who reveals that Manchester City have now agreed a new long-term contract with highly-rated Academy talent, Dante Headley.

It is detailed that the club’s Under-18 right-back has now agreed to all conditions of the proposal put to him and his representatives, with Manchester City viewing the player as an elite talent for the future.

The 2008-born rising star is local to the Greater Manchester region and has been with City’s Academy system since his junior academy days, appearing with the club at every youth age group thus far in his developing career.

Described by Manchester City as having been ‘an impactful player’ and ‘a super competitive defender’, Headley has ability to operate in a variety of positions across the defensive line and into midfield – a clear attraction for the club’s coaches.

During the most-recent 2024/25 season, Headley progressed into Manchester City’s Under-18s squad and will no doubt be eyeing further progression into their Elite Development Squad for the forthcoming season and potentially training with the first-team.