Manchester City have identified Germany international Florian Wirtz as a target before another round of squad rebuilding.
The attacking midfielder, who has 27 goals and assists for Bayer Leverkusen so far this season and is wanted by Bayern Munich, has long been on City’s radar.
But interest is set to increase as the Premier League champions continue to drive down the average age of Pep Guardiola’s squad.
Wirtz is valued at north of £85million and Leverkusen want to tie the 21-year-old down to a new contract, with two years left to run on his current deal.