Manchester City are lining up a £60m bid to sign Athletic Bilbao defender Aymeric Laporte, according to the Sun.
The tabloid reports that a such a bid would meet the French U21 international’s release clause, although £57m would be the more accurate figure.
Laporte, who is also being pursued by Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona, has a buyout fee of €65m (£57m) which rises to €70m (£61.4m) next year.
The Blues are likely to be still looking for another centre back after Antonio Conte confirmed a couple of weeks ago that the London club missed out on Virgil van Dijk.
Alternative centre backs like Laporte are no doubt being looked at. Chelsea apparently made an attempt to sign the defender in the summer. Back in October, the Frenchman refused to deny that Chelsea had been in contact when interviewed by L’Equipe (via Sport Witness).
Despite the interest, it seems that City are very much in the driving seat for the 23 year old’s signature at the moment.
