According to a report from The Sun, Jack Grealish could join Kevin De Bruyne at Napoli this summer, with the Belgian international keen on reuniting with his Manchester City teammate. De Bruyne has urged Antonio Conte to pursue the former Aston Villa star and bring him to Serie A.
Former City skipper De Bruyne will officially be a Napoli player starting next month. Pep Guardiola’s team were not willing to offer him a new deal, but the Belgian attacking midfielder was convinced that he still had a lot of football left in him.
Despite lucrative deals from across the globe, the 33-year-old decided to join Napoli. He is now keen on having another City player at the Naples-based club. De Bruyne wants to once again play alongside the versatile playmaker Grealish and has asked Conte to make it happen.
The Italian manager is believed to be an admirer of the English winger, and he has been quizzing the Belgian international about his former teammate. His glowing reference could force City to try and sign the 29-year-old, who is no longer a part of Pep Guardiola’s plans.
City forked out £100 million to sign Grealish back in 2021. While he was an important part of their plans in the initial years, he is surplus to requirements at this stage. After he was left out of Guardiola’s squad for the Club World Cup, his future was already decided.
The Manchester-based giants are ready to incur a loss, but they are pushing hard to get Grealish off their books. While Napoli are keen on his signature, they can’t really match his massive £300,000-a-week salary. The 29-year-old will have to take a massive pay cut as the Italian giants can only pay just over half of his current wage.
Meanwhile, the Naples-based club have around £45 million to spend on a new winger. Grealish and Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho are the two options on their radar. If they do go ahead and reunite De Bruyne with his former teammate, they won’t be able to push for the Argentine winger’s signature.
While Garnacho has been on their radar for some time, De Bruyne can certainly help tilt the decision in favour of signing Grealish. City prefer an out-and-out sale, but they would also be open to a loan switch if there is a commitment to buy.
