The current campaign has witnessed Manchester City leaning quite a bit on Erling Haaland’s goal-scoring abilities. To possibly reduce the pressure on the Norwegian, they might explore signing another forward during the January transfer window.
Information suggests that Bournemouth’s Semenyo has a release clause of £65 million embedded in his current agreement with the Cherries. This clause is said to be valid for the initial two weeks of the approaching winter transfer period.
Manchester City could be contenders in January pursuit for Antoine Semenyo
Despite the understanding that Liverpool might be hesitant to allocate additional funds to transfers in January after significant spending during the summer, the Reds could still be considered a potential rival for Semenyo’s signature.
The current sporting director at Anfield, Richard Hughes, was responsible for bringing Semenyo to the Vitality Stadium from Bristol City back in 2023. He held a comparable position at the south-coast club at that time.
The addition of Semenyo could, in theory, be helpful for Manchester City in maintaining their position relative to league leaders Arsenal during the demanding holiday schedule.
The Manchester side is anticipated to be without Egypt’s forward, Omar Marmoush, for potentially up to five weeks due to the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). However, securing Semenyo’s signature would at least ensure that Guardiola maintains a suitable number of forwards within his squad.
According to reports from The Times, Manchester City is reportedly showing reluctance to allow Marmoush to link up with his national teammates on December 14, the date when Egypt is slated to play a friendly as part of their preparations.
This hesitation is attributed to Manchester City’s scheduled Premier League game against Crystal Palace on the same day. The club reportedly wishes to retain Marmoush’s availability for as long as possible before the tournament commences.
It’s not anticipated that the Gunners will lose any players to AFCON, whereas Manchester City is poised to be without both Marmoush (Egypt) and Rayan Ait-Nouri (Algeria).
Chelsea, another contender for the Premier League title, is also unaffected by this competition taking place mid-season.
Semenyo, who represents Ghana at international level, will not be participating in the tournament, as the Black Stars did not qualify; the first time they have missed out in 21 years.
