Manchester City summer striker target from Celtic ruled out for January swoop | OneFootball

Premier League champions Manchester City will not be returning for one of their attacking targets from last summer, it has been reliably informed.

Etihad Stadium officials considered the possibility of bringing in further attacking reinforcements during the closing stages of the last summer window having sanctioned the big-money exit of Julian Alvarez.

The Argentina international completed a €95 million package agreement to swap Manchester City for Atletico Madrid, bringing an end to an illustrious two-year stay under Pep Guardiola winning almost everything available on a collective silverware front.

Ultimately, the Manchester City manager opted to remain set with the options available to him, despite Erling Haaland being the only natural striker option in the senior first-team squad at the Etihad Stadium.

But prior to that decision, a number of options were considered by Manchester City for late swoops, including the ever-impressive and hugely popular Scottish Premier League champion forward, Kyogo Furuhashi.

And with the January transfer window approaching, according to the information of The Athletic’s Sam Lee, Celtic and Japan international forward, Furuhashi does not appear to be a transfer target for City, despite the interest from last summer.

2025 is expected to be a major year for the reigning Premier League champions on a recruitment front, with striker expected to be a position that the club will consider for investment.

Among the names already to have been linked with some element of admiration from within the Etihad Stadium are Eintracht Frankfurt’s Omar Marmoush -rated at £40 million – as well as Ipswich striker, Liam Delap.

Manchester City sanctioned a big-money exit for the latter to Portman Road just last summer, but remained interested in the player’s future with a buy-back clause inserted into his first full-time Premier League contract.