Why Manchester City’s upcoming signing refused to join the club last winter | OneFootball

Manchester City are closing in on a full agreement to sign Rosenborg and Norway midfielder Sverre Nypan this summer, as per several reports.

City have added Rayan Ait-Nouri, Marcus Bettinelli, Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki to Pep Guardiola’s squad in time for the quartet to be eligible for the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup campaign in the United States.

Hugo Viana is in the process of fully taking over from Txiki Begiristain as director of football but the Portuguese has wasted no time in laying down a marker as he spearheads Manchester City’s summer rebuild.

An outlay in the region of £110 million for four new additions represents very shrewd business so far for the 2023 treble winners, who are desperate to challenge on all fronts next term after a lacklustre 2024-25 season that saw them finish trophyless with a tame showing in both the Premier League and UEFA Champions League.

Kevin De Bruyne was the first major departure from the squad this summer and the Belgium international, who turns 34 in a few weeks, is undergoing a medical at Napoli on Thursday to complete a two-year free transfer.

Scott Carson has also been released at the end of his contract and already been replaced with Marcus Bettinelli, who has been named in Manchester City’s travelling squad for the Club World Cup – alongside Ait-Nouri, Reijnders and Cherki.

Manchester City are also finalising a deal for Rosenborg midfielder Sverre Nypan, pipping the likes of Aston Villa and Arsenal to the signature of the highly-rated Norwegian, who will become the club’s fifth summer signing.

Nypan has agreed to a season-long loan away from Manchester City to progress his development as it remains to be seen how the 18-year-old may fit into Guardiola’s squad in the seasons to come.

As reported by Stian André de Wahl for Fotball.TV, Manchester City’s initial plans for Nypan were to convince the attacking midfielder to seal a permanent move to sister club Girona – a transfer that didn’t prove attractive to the Norwegian.

Nypan is reported to have preferred joining Aston Villa when City raised the prospect of joining Girona – a common pathway for the Blues to allow young players to develop at their CFG sister club in Spain and monitor their development.

A precise transfer fee to take Nypan to Manchester remains unknown but it is understood a deal is close to being finalised in the region of £11 million, which will make the teenager the most expensive export from Norway should the transfer go ahead.

Manchester City have flexed their muscles early on in the summer and are expected to now focus on outgoings between now and when the transfer window reopens in mid-July following the conclusion of the Club World Cup.