Manchester City launch offer for January Rodri backup: report

The champions have faced a winless streak in their last seven games. This is an unprecedented situation for Pep Guardiola, who is ranked at no.5 in FourFourTwo's list of the greatest managers ever and has never gone this long without a win in his career.

And Sunday's defeat to Liverpool has highlighted how important a new holding midfielder is, in the absence of Rodri, with the Sky Blues set to enter the market this winter.

Manchester City looking to bring in €35m star to fix midfield woes

2024 Ballon d'Or winner Rodri, ranked as the best player on Earth right now by FourFourTwo, has been a huge miss for Manchester City.

Pep Guardiola has been unable to replace his talisman at No.6, since Rodri suffered an ACL injury in September, using Mateo Kovacic most often in the role. But with the Croatian now injured, too, and Ilkay Gundogan looking a shadow of his former self, the need for a new midfielder has perhaps never been greater.

In Italy, MilanLive.it have reported on Manchester City pursuing Italian midfielder Samuele Ricci, just days after Calciomercato wrote about the interest from the Premier League champions.

Guardiola's side are said to be preparing a ”maxi offer” for the 23-year-old with Milan sniffing, too, with Torino struggling to keep the star from the clutches of bigger clubs.

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A €35 million offer should be enough to do business and blow Milan out of the race, reportedly – with Ricci having just 18 months left on his contract with Il Toro.

FourFourTwo understands that City could look to tie up another midfielder next month, as they're in the market to sign a player who can play with Rodri, too, as they eye a return for the Euro 2024 winner.

A superb tempo-controller and secure option in possession, Ricci is comparable to Jorginho – and FourFourTwo believes that this is a deal that shouldn't be too difficult to complete, with City breaking their record for transfer income earlier this season and having the financial muscle to make this deal, and potentially another next month.

Ricci is worth €28m, according to Transfermarkt. City take on Nottingham Forest this week when Premier League action returns.