Manchester City are preparing to take on newly-promoted Ipswich Town in the Premier League at The Etihad this afternoon in their second game of the season.
The Cityzens beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last weekend in a relatively comfortable 2-0 victory for Pep Guardiola's side, thanks to goals from Erling Haaland and Mateo Kovacic.
Savinho, who started on the flank, was the only player to make his debut for the Premier League champions, as the Brazil international has been the only senior addition to the squad so far.
The summer transfer window officially slams shut on Friday of next week and this means that there are still a few days left for the club to make further moves.
Ilkay Gundogan has re-joined City from LaLiga giants Barcelona on a free transfer until the summer of 2025, after just one year away from Manchester.
The German maestro may not be the final signing of the window for Guardiola, however, as a striker is also on the agenda for the Cityzens after Julian Alvarez completed a permanent transfer to Atletico Madrid earlier this summer.
Man City's interest in Celtic star
According to journalist Sacha Tavolieri, the City boss is a "huge" fan of Celtic centre-forward Kyogo Furuhashi and would like to bring him to England this month.
The reporter claims that Guardiola was impressed by the 29-year-old marksman's performance against the Premier League giants in pre-season, having scored in a 4-3 win for the Bhoys during the tour of the USA.
This comes after the Daily Mail had reported that the manager is keen to add another striker to his ranks, as Haaland is the only natural number nine in the squad as it stands.
The outlet claimed that Kyogo is high up on the club's shortlist of potential options to come in and compete with the Norway international, following Alvarez's exit from The Etihad.
It was also revealed that the Scottish Premiership champions are set to demand a fee of around £20m for the Japan international, and would not stand in his way if an offer came in for that figure.
However, it currently remains to be seen whether or not City are prepared to splash £20m on the striker or if they will pursue alternative, and potentially cheaper, alternatives between now and the end of the summer transfer window next week.
The Cityzens should look to close a deal for Kyogo in the coming days, though, as the Premiership star could come in as a dream signing for Haaland.
Erling Haaland's Manchester City record
It reportedly cost £85.5m in transfer and agent fees to land the Norway international from Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2022 and that deal could already be viewed as a bargain.
The 24-year-old sensation has racked up a staggering 91 goals and 14 assists in 100 appearances for Manchester City in all competitions over the last two-and-a-bit seasons.
He has plundered 64 goals and 12 assists in 67 matches in the Premier League, which is more than one goal contribution every game on average in the top-flight.
Haaland did, though, miss 14 games through injury in the 2023/24 campaign in all competitions and City would be leaving themselves light if they go into the rest of this season without any back-up to him.
Alvarez, who also featured in midfield, was able to step in and start as the main centre-forward when needed but Guardiola does not currently have that option within the squad.
Appearances
31
Goals
27
Conversion rate
22%
Assists
5
Touches per game
22.5
Passes completed per game
9.5
As you can see in the table above, Haaland is not a striker who is heavily involved in build-up play, with 22.5 touches and fewer than ten completed passes per game on average in the Premier League.
This suggests that any signing coming in as an alternative to the Norwegian star would need to be a similar profile of forward, in the sense that they are a sharpshooter who does not drop deep to get involved in games.
With this in mind, Kyogo could be a dream addition for Haaland if City can secure a £20m deal for the Hoops ace before the end of the month.
Why Kyogo would be a dream for Haaland
Firstly, the arrival of another striker who can play a similar role to the Cityzens number nine would allow Guardiola to rest his star forward in more matches.
Having an adequate back-up could mean that the Spanish tactician is able to withdraw Haaland earlier on in matches, if the game is already all-but-won, and leave the Norway international out of the starting XI in cup matches or midweek Premier League games to ease his workload.
That could then help the former Dortmund ace to avoid any further injury issues, rather than being forced to play too many minutes and suffering from fitness problems as a result.
Kyogo's form for Celtic over the last two seasons in the Premiership suggests that he has the potential to provide quality as well as being a stylistic fit to fill in for Haaland when needed.
Appearances
36
38
Goals
27
14
Conversion rate
31%
14%
Assists
2
5
Touches per game
13.3
16.9
Passes completed per game
4.1
5.6
As you can see in the table above, the 29-year-old star has fired in 41 goals in the last two league campaigns combined for the Scottish giants.
He has managed that feat, alongside seven assists, despite averaging fewer than 17 touches and six completed passes per game on average across both years.
This shows that Kyogo can provide consistent quality at the top end of the pitch without being deeply involved in build-up or having many touches of the ball.
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Therefore, the Japanese sensation could be the dream target to come in to provide back-up, or potentially play alongside when required, to Haaland this season, as he has the ability to perform in front of goal without getting much of the ball.