Man City agrees Doku deal, while Guardiola set to miss matches

Manchester City has reached an agreement with Stade Rennes to sign Belgian forward Jeremy Doku for around £55.4m.

The 21-year-old has played 92 times for the club scoring 12 goals in the Ligue 1 and could be City’s third signing this summer after bringing in Mateo Kovacic from fellow Premier League club Chelsea in a deal worth £25M and Josko Gvardiol from Bundesliga club RB Leipzig for around £77m.

Doku was linked to London clubs Chelsea, Tottenham, and West Ham United, but a medical was scheduled for yesterday (Tuesday) before the €65M deal is completed.

He is coming into the Manchester City wing, where Pep Guardiola has lost personnel, especially after Riyadh Mahrez left for Saudi Arabia. City also saw Ilkay Gundogan join Barcelona while more players are expected to leave, with Joao Cancelo and Aymeric Laporte close to exits.

Manchester City has started their Premier League campaign with two wins from two after beating Burnley 3-1 on matchday one and Newcastle United 1-0 on matchday 2.

However, they have lost Kevin De Bruyne to an ACL injury which will rule him out for months, but manager Pep Guardiola is also expected to be out of the dugout for the next two matchdays in the Premier League after undergoing back surgery.

Manchester City revealed this in a statement on the club’s social media page while wishing him a speedy recovery as assistant manager Juanma Lillo will take charge in the Spaniard’s absence.

“Pep Guardiola has today undergone a routine operation on a back problem. The Manchester City boss has been suffering with severe back pain for some time lately and flew out to Barcelona for emergency surgery performed by Dr Mireia Illueca. The surgery was a success, and Pep will now recover and rehabilitate in Barcelona. In his absence, assistant manager Juanma Lillo will oversee the coaching of the first team on the training field and will assume duties on the touchline until Pep’s return. He is expected to return after the forthcoming international break.” The statement read.

Daniel Ademiju Idowu