Manchester City and Wolves expect to complete Rayan Ait-Nouri transfer agreement | OneFootball

Rayan Ait-Nouri is now being pursued over a summer transfer by Manchester City, and all parties involved in talks expect a deal to happen, according to new reports.

Officials at the Etihad Stadium are currently working on a number of deals to both strengthen and refresh Pep Guardiola’s playing squad during the ongoing summer transfer window, with up to four new arrivals anticipated before departues.

Much of the talk during the summer so far has centred around reinforcements in the central midfield roles, namely in the No.8 position and the area of the pitch that has seen Kevin De Bruyne depart upon the expiry of his contract.

AC Milan’s Tijjani Reijnders has been viewed as the priority for the deeper of the two roles, with his versatility throughout the middle of the pitch seen as a huge attraction, while Lyon’s Rayan Cherki is a key target in attacking midfield.

However, there has also been a long-standing view that Manchester City could look to reinforce their full-back roles, having endured a string of alterations at left-back through players being used out of their natural position and Kyle Walker leaving his berth on the right.

Now, according to the information of The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Manchester City are pursuing a deal to sign Wolverhampton Wanderers and Algeria international left-back, Rayan Ait Nouri this summer.

It is explained that while agreements still need to be reached between both of the clubs involved in a prospective deal and with the 23-year-old himself, all parties now expect a move to the Etihad Stadium to happen.

Ait Nouri is said to have emerged as Manchester City’s top target to strengthen at left-back this summer, with Etihad officials looking to add a natural option in the position having worked with Josko Gvardiol and Nico O’Reilly during the 2024/25 campaign.

A successful move for Rayan Ait-Nouri would likely enable both Gvardiol and O’Reilly to take up new roles elsewhere in Pep Guardiola’s squad, with the former seen as a strong central defensive solution alongside Ruben Dias and the latter naturally being a central midfielder.

Speaking in early May on Josko Gvardiol’s positional versatility, manager Pep Guardiola said, “He can play both [centre-back and left-back] perfectly, but in centre-back he’s doing less mistakes than before, much, much more solid and stable. Of course we can play there, definitely, keep proving him and doing that.”

In fact, speaking in mid-April, Pep Guardiola appeared to confirm Manchester City’s intentions to recruit in the left-back role during the summer transfer window, pointing out the lack of a natural solution in the role for a number of seasons.

“Obviously,” was Guardiola’s response when asked whether the position would be one of the club’s priorities for the now-ongoing market. “Nico (O’Reilly) is helping, but he’s not a left-back. That’s true.”

“I played with Alex Zinchenko, Fabian Delph at left-back. We found solutions many, many years, with other qualities they help. Alex and Fabian for example, or sometimes Rico [Lewis], they help us massively.”