Man City snubbed by three targets in summer rebuild plans | OneFootball

Manchester City have seen three players of reported interest to the club all take huge steps towards staying with their existing teams, which comes as a blow to the ongoing rebuild.

City have seen their stranglehold on English football come to a spectacular end this season. From winning a historic fourth successive Premier League title last May, they have been out of the 2024/25 race since since failing to fully recover from an uncharacteristic losing streak in November.

The tide is changing, with many of the players that have underpinned success in recent years now the other side of their 30th birthdays. Kevin De Bruyne's summer departure is already confirmed after the club opted against offering the veteran midfielder a new contract.

The rebuild started in earnest in January when City spent north of £170m on four new players. But that has only scratched the surface and there are plenty of positions that need filling.

A particularly key one is right-back, left understrength since Kyle Walker's January exit, with the City stalwart having already seen his form fall off a cliff in the preceding months.

Daniel Munoz has impressed at Crystal Palace / Sebastian Frej/MB Media/GettyImages

Links with Crystal Palace defender Daniel Munoz had emerged due to the Colombia international, signed for just €8m from Genk in January 2024, having a stellar season. But The Athletic has reported that Munoz has penned a new and improved Palace contract beyond 2027.

City have similarly been keen on Juventus full-back Andrea Cambiaso, who is capable of playing on either the right or the left. But where reluctantly selling the 27-year-old was previously viewed as important for financial reasons, Gazzetta dello Sport writes that timely investment from Juve's owner has "almost radically changed" how the club is looking at the summer market.

Alongside Kenan Yildiz, Cambiaso has "returned to the centre of the sporting project". Sales aren't completely ruled out if big offers come in, but Juve are in a more powerful position than before and will have the financial health to rejects bids that might previously have been good enough.

Meanwhile, avenues leading back to Real Betis midfielder Sergi Antimira appear closed. Fabrizio Romano has it that Altimira was on City's January shortlist, with midfield still an area that requires strengthening now that De Bruyne is going and Ilkay Gundogan is getting on. But an agreement with Betis over a new contract for the 23-year-old is described as "sealed". It raises the price of his release clause to €60m (£52m), which would make Altimira a much steeper investment.