The move for Julian Alvarez from Manchester City to Atletico Madrid could be worth up to €95m (£81.5m), which would be a record sale for Manchester City.
Personal terms still to be agreed but the deal would be €75m (£64m) and €20m (£17m) in add-ons.
Atletico Madrid have offered Manchester City their 24-year-old forward Joao Felix on loan, as part of a deal for 24-year-old Argentina striker Julian Alvarez. (Mail), external
Image source, Getty ImagesAtletico Madrid are closing in on a deal to sign Argentina forward Julian Alvarez from Premier League champions Manchester City, although no fee has been agreed yet.
Positive talks have been held between the clubs, with reports suggesting City are wanting a deal worth £70m for the Argentina international.
Alvarez joined Pep Guardiola's side in January 2022 from River Plate for £14m and went on to score 20 goals in 63 Premier League appearances for the club.
Alvarez, whose City contract runs until 2028, has been playing for Argentina at the Paris Olympics and said before they were knocked out by France that he would make a decision on his future after the Games.
City have just concluded their pre-season tour of the US, with Guardiola recently describing Alvarez as "absolutely our player" as he deflected questions about his future.
Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter
Image source, Getty ImagesManuel Pelligrini spoke to BBC Sport about his career while on Real Betis' pre-season tour to San Diego and how he knew Manchester City had a different idea for who they wanted as manager.
"I knew before I signed they wanted Pep Guardiola. [Sporting director] Txiki [Begiristain] and [chief executive] Ferran Soriano had worked with him at Barcelona," said Pellegrini.
"They talked with me three or four months before and said they were going for Pep, but if Pep wasn’t going to be their coach, I was.
"Pep then went to Bayern Munich. I worked there for three years and changed the style of [Roberto] Mancini, which is what they wanted, and they were successful.
"It is not the same Manchester City as it is today. In the first year we bought players, but in the second we couldn’t improve the team because we had a Uefa punishment. The third year we improved with Raheem Sterling and Kevin de Bruyne.
"After that, Manchester City continued investing a lot of money in good players to get a better team. Maybe today, with Real Madrid, they are one of the two best teams in the world.
"I didn't have a problem to leave. I knew they would continue growing because they are very ambitious and know how to develop football.
"When you work with Txiki and Ferran, you know they will not fire you because of a couple of results. I knew I would finish my contract. They give you a lot of security.
"The club continued to grow and is still growing. After I had important offers - especially in Italy - but for different reasons I couldn't do it. Three years in Manchester was enough."
We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's friendly game between Chelsea and Manchester City.
Here are some of your comments:
Chelsea fans
Smee: Dreadful defending and poor passing out from the back against a team that was determined to press. Verdict: Not good enough at this stage and does not bode well for the start of the season.
Jeff: Maresca insists it is a learning process, but if we keep giving away soft goals all the time then our learning will continue in the Championship. We have the best left-back in the country but he plays Gusto there out of position?
Steve: We are so poor at the back that James never crossed the halfway line. Passing out from the back is going to destroy us as the players are not good enough to do that. We still need a striker and have done for the last several years.
George: I am sick and tired of this playing out from the back approach. It is always risky as it allows to teams to press you. It makes you predictable, so why not mix it up and use the long ball out of defence occasionally. Switch the attacking options to help retain possession. Sell Fernandez and keep Gallagher.
Man City fans
Steve: Oscar Bobb has had a brilliant pre-season, as well as quite a few young players. Haaland has done what he does best and scored goals This squad has only had just a few first team players available so they have played well. The support in USA shows how far City have come.
Chris: A great result for the final game and considering the players that are missing this is awesome! Overall some excellent performances on tour from the academy youngsters. The future’s looking bright.
Paul: A good pre-season for all the players trying to break through, including Grealish who needs to be consistent and aggressive. I hope McAtee stays and I think Phillips will show his versatility with another loan. Bobb has grown into a starter giving us flexibility and strength on the wing. I am excited for the start of the season.
Big Lee: Jack Grealish will prove why he cost £100m this season thanks to Gareth Southgate!
Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter
Image source, Getty ImagesManchester City are yet to receive a formal offer from Atletico Madrid for striker Julian Alvarez.
Sources say discussions are taking place between the two clubs but as of yet there has been no bid.
Asked about the Argentina forward following Saturday’s victory over Chelsea, City boss Pep Guardiola said he "counts" on Alvarez and "absolutely he is our player".
However, City tend not to keep players who express a desire to leave, which leaves Alvarez’s future open to question.
The 24-year-old is due a break after representing Argentina at both Copa America and the Olympics this summer but had said he would think about his future after his international commitments were over.
Although Alvarez has made 103 appearances in two seasons for City since signing from Argentine side River Plate for £14.1m in 2022, over 40 of them have come from the substitutes bench. He was an unused substitute for both the Champions League and FA Cup finals in 2023 and came off the bench for the 2024 FA Cup final, which the Blues lost to Manchester United.
Image source, Getty ImagesA hat-trick from Erling Haaland helped Manchester City to a 4-2 pre-season win over Chelsea in Columbus.
What did you learn from this game, Chelsea and City fans?
Blues fans, let us know your thoughts, external
What did you make of the performance, City supporters?, external
Image source, Getty ImagesThere is another chance to hear the BBC documentary "Sporting Giants - Pep Guardiola", which was first released in January.
The second episode of the four-part series is out now via the Football Daily feed on BBC Sounds, with the remaining episodes being made available in the next few days.
Manchester City's English midfielder Jacob Wright, 18, has agreed a loan move to Peterborough United. (Football Insider), external
Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column
Image source, Getty ImagesThere is another chance to hear the BBC documentary "Sporting Giants - Pep Guardiola", which was first released in January.
The first episode of the four-part series is now via the Football Daily feed on BBC Sounds, with the remaining episodes being made available in the next few days.
Mike Minay
BBC Radio Manchester reporter
Image source, Getty ImagesManchester City have been fined just over £2m for late kick-offs across the past two seasons.
The club entered into a sanction agreement with the Premier League which found the Blues to have delayed kick-offs on 22 occasions without good reason.
The fines range from a basic warning – for the first offence – to £200,000 for delaying kick-off by two minutes and 46 seconds in their final game of the 2023-24 season at home to West Ham in which they won a fourth consecutive title.
In total, there were eight occasions in the 2022-23 season where Manchester City delayed kick-off and re-starts, resulting in fines of £390,000.
During the 2023-24 season there were 14 offences totalling £1.7m.
City have declined to comment.
Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter
Image source, Getty ImagesManchester City have agreed a deal to sell Brazilian right-back Yan Couto to Borussia Dortmund.
City have agreed an initial loan with the Champions League finalists that also contains an obligation to buy for 30m euros (£25.2m).
City signed Couto, now aged 22, as a 17-year-old in 2020 but he has never played a first-team game for the club.
He was initially loaned to fellow City Football Group outfit Girona, then spent a year with Portuguese side Braga, before spending two further seasons with Girona.
He helped the Spanish side qualify for this season's Champions League.
Image source, EPAWe asked for your thoughts after Manchester City lost on penalties to Barcelona in a pre-season friendly.
Here are some of your submissions:
Rhianon: Again not happy with the result. When it comes to facing giants like Barca, we need to put out our strongest squad but overall, I am happy with how the youngsters have performed in pre season.
Tim: Yet another defeat. Three in a row now. That's not good enough. Awful preparation for the new season.
Andy: No problem with the results, bearing in mind the depth of squad we had to choose from and we had plenty of chances to score. Good to see the younger squad members get a chance, and a chance for the senior guys to run the rust off.
David: I haven't seen the matches, but the results themselves honestly don't concern me. These are friendlies and I don't think there's ever been a correlation between decent results pre-season and success during it. As long as the players are getting back into their groove after a (short) rest, then that's fine.
Wilko: What’s all the fuss about? Basically, the City youth team have gone close three times against ‘big’ clubs. Means absolutely nothing for the new season.
Mike: Pre season tournaments when star players are yet to return are a good opportunity for the youngsters. We were easily on top in all three. So the signs for three or four years from now are good. The Milan game was probably the closest. They have some good kids too but they had a stronger tournament.
Image source, Getty ImagesPep Guardiola says he's "very, very pleased" with Kalvin Phillips.
The 28-year-old has struggled for consistent playing time at Manchester City and only started three times in the Premier League for West Ham during his loan spell, after joining in January.
Speaking after Manchester City's pre-season friendly match with Barcelona Guardiola said: "Kalvin was really good.
"When he can get the ball and see all of the pitch in front of him he is a really good player.
"When I have him in smaller spaces we have more problems.
"With the ball he was really good and helped us a lot. I am very, very pleased with his performance."
Phillips, who is usually deployed in midfield, played at centre-back during the game and impressed in an unfamiliar role.
"When we have all our central defenders we have a lot of them, that is why it is not his position but we will see," added Guardiola.
"He is helping us and this is good for us."
Pep Guardiola explained that Erling Haaland went off with "some niggles" during their pre-season friendly against Barcelona, but confirmed it is nothing serious for the striker.
In his post-match news conference, the Manchester City boss said: "He had some niggles - so he didn't feel good and that is why he didn't play in the second-half.
"He was disturbing something. He didn't feel comfortable and we didn't want to take the risk.
"But sooner or later, he will have to take the step to training and playing minutes. The season is there, around the corner."
