FEATURED: Who is rumoured Manchester City target Laia Aleixandri? | OneFootball

The transfer rumour mill has been in full swing this week with reports in Spain having suggested that Atlético Madrid defender Laia Aleixandri could join Manchester City this summer.

The 21-year-old is thought to be out of contract at the Centro Deportivo Wanda Alcalá de Henares at the end of the season and she will therefore officially become a free agent on 1 July unless she opts to extend her deal with Atlético Madrid.

Reports from various media outlets in Spain, including Fut Fem have suggested that Aleixandri could join Manchester City, although it doesn’t seem to be a done deal at this stage with the player having also been linked with other major European clubs.

Who is Aleixandri? Here are three facts that you may not know about the Atlético Madrid defender.

Aleixandri spent her early years with Barcelona

Aleixandri spent five of her teenage years with Barcelona. The player joined the Catalan club in 2012 and spent three years within their academy system. The defender later went on to graduate into Barcelona’s B Team squad, although she never made the step up to the first team. Aleixandri swapped Barcelona for Atlético Madrid in 2017 as a 17-year-old.

The defender is starting to put her mark on the Spain team

Aleixandri made her senior debut for Spain in an international friendly against Cameroon in May 2019. The player was not a member of Spain’s FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019 squad but she has been gradually eased into action in UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 and FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 qualifying. Aleixandri made one substitute appearance for Spain in last month’s Arnold Clark Cup.

Aleixandri is no stranger to Manchester City

The young defender has already faced Manchester City on five occasions in her career to date. Aleixandri played in both legs of Atlético Madrid’s UEFA Women’s Champions League round of 32 tie against Manchester City in 2018/2019 before repeating the feat the following season. The Spaniards advanced from both of those ties. Aleixandri also featured in a 3-2 defeat to Manchester City in the 2019 Women’s International Champions Cup.

Manchester City fans will be excited by this week’s rumour coming out of Spain and Aleixandri would certainly be an exciting prospect for the future if she does indeed move to The Academy Stadium in the summer.