Fabrizio Romano reveals what sources in football are telling him about Manchester City’s Hugo Viana | OneFootball

Hugo Viana has already started initial work around Manchester City’s summer transfer business, it has been confirmed this week.

The Portuguese official has long been known as the incoming sporting director of the reigning Premier League champions, after it was confirmed last Autumn that the ongoing season would be the final campaign worked upon by Txiki Begiristain.

The Spaniard has been at the very forefront of Manchester City’s remarkable success over his 12 seasons at the club, and is known to have been pivotal in bringing Pep Guardiola to the Etihad Stadium in the summer of 2016.

There is also a widespread belief within football that Begiristain, along with the efforts of Khaldoon Al Mubarak in particular, has been a core reason as to why Guardiola has remained as Manchester City’s head coach for so long.

But with a new generation expected to be brought into the first-team squad at Manchester City, much of that vision will be welcomed in by Hugo Viana – who has formally left his position as Director of Football at Sporting CP.

Now, according to the information of transfer market insider Fabrizio Romano, Manchester City’s incoming sporting director will officially take care of the club’s negotiations over arrivals and departures from the first-team picture from June.

It is further revealed that ‘sources in the industry’ have guaranteed that the Portuguese football officials has already started to call agents and reach out to prepare for summer movements concerning Manchester City.

For now, Viana’s plans for Pep Guardiola’s squad remain largely unknown, but it is expected that a number of arrivals and departures will be finalised over the course of the summer months.

On the side of potential blockbuster signings, Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz is understood to be Manchester City’s priority when it comes to the attacking midfield positions, particularly with an awareness that Kevin De Bruyne’s best years are behind him.

The Belgian is one of a number of players that are likely to see their positions placed under review by Hugo Viana across the coming weeks and months, alongside the likes of Jack Grealish, John Stones, Ilkay Gundogan, and Bernardo Silva among others.