Manchester City keen on “undeniable star” who is also wanted by PSG

Manchester City are interested in signing Atletico Madrid midfielder Pablo Barrios. The 22-year-old climbed through the youth ranks at Atletico and has now established himself as one of the first names on Diego Simeone’s team sheet.

The Spain international is lauded for his intelligence and composure in midfield, and is considered by many to be developing into one of the world’s best midfielders. Spanish outlet Fichajes has reported that the now “undeniable star” Barrios has admirers from many parts of the globe, with City and PSG the two clubs leading the charge.

City are known to be in the market for more midfield reinforcements despite the summer additions of Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki. Long time anchor Bernardo Silva has announced he will depart the club when his contract expires at the end of the season, while the futures of Nico Gonzalez and Rodri continue to be in doubt.

Pep Guardiola’s men are believed to be in the market for a dynamic box-to-box midfielder who is capable of sustaining the high press. Barrios ticks those boxes and could be a target for the club.

Atletico are reportedly reluctant to lose the player, and have slapped a €100m figure as a starting point to any negotiations. Fichajes adds that City may have to eclipse the record €120m Atletico received for Antoine Griezmann from Barcelona in 2019.

City have already competed two significant signings this month, having signed Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi from Bournemouth and Crystal Palace respectively.

More investment hasn’t been ruled out, as City look to keep pace with league leaders Arsenal. Pep Guardiola’s side are winless in their last four Premier League matches and now sit seven points behind Arsenal in the table.

City also suffered a shock 3-1 defeat to Bodo/Glimt in their Champions League, League Phase match on Tuesday night.

Nadji is a football writer with over 10 years of experience covering the Premier League. His work has been featured on Football Fancast, Arsenal-Mania, and Arsenal.com, where he has built a reputation for delivering sharp analysis, engaging storytelling, and in-depth coverage of the game.