Manchester City have now made contact over a deal for a 58-cap international, who is able to play in a number of positions.
Man City looking to increase squad depth after Bayer Leverkusen defeat
Pep Guardiola clearly had a lot of faith in some of his back-up options heading into the Champions League tie against Bayer Leverkusen, having made ten changes to his starting XI, but his side came up short in a 2-0 defeat.
The Spaniard has since admitted he probably made too many alterations, saying: “I always had the belief of the long season and everyone had to be involved but maybe it was too much. They played not to make mistakes instead of doing what we had to do.
“It was not the performance that we thought. I take full responsibility. We missed something. We missed an incredible opportunity and now we need to fight in the next games.”
Despite limiting the German side to an xG of just 0.51, the Blues conceded two goals for the second game on the spin, and having kept one clean sheet in their last seven games, they have now joined the race for a new defender.
That is according to a report from TEAMtalk, which states Man City have now made contact over a deal for versatile AS Roma defender Zeki Celik, who is able to play as a wing-back, full-back and at centre-back.
Celik could be available for a bargain fee in the January transfer window, given that his contract is set to expire at the end of the season, but if the Italian club are unwilling to sanction a departure, City could wait to snap him up on a free next summer.
Worse than Savinho: Man City star is in danger of becoming another Grealish
This Manchester City star is in danger of becoming the next Jack Grealish after another off-performance versus Bayer Leverkusen.
2 ByKelan Sarson
There may be competition for the defender’s signature from a plethora of rival Premier League clubs, however, with Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea also making enquiries of their own.
"Perfect player" Celik impressing for club and country
The 58-cap Turkey international was recently lauded by national team manager Vincenzo Montella, who said: “He’s the perfect player for any coach,”
“Celik is professional, reliable, does his job wherever you play him. In a locker room it is always needed to have guys like him.”
The 28-year-old has also put in some impressive performances for AS Roma as of late, recently scoring and recording a 95% pass-completion rate in his side’s 2-0 victory over Udinese, with the latter statistic indicating he could be ideal in a Pep system.
As such, Celik could be a solid addition to the Man City squad, particularly on a free transfer, with Guardiola clearly keen on bolstering his options at full-back, given that a Bundesliga star has also been identified as a potential target…