Manchester City Transfer News: Latest Nicolas Otamendi, Kevin De Bruyne Rumours

Manchester City are close to landing Valencia star Nicolas Otamendi, and according to the latest reports, a €40 million deal that would see Eliaquim Mangala move the other way on loan could be announced as early as Tuesday.

That's according to Sky Sports' Guillem Balague, who adds Real Madrid would have targeted the player if Sergio Ramos left the club:

Super Deporte is reporting the same news, with City apparently also sending Rony Lopes on loan and chipping in for Mangala's wages. Sport Witness gave their take on the reported deal:

Otamendi has quickly established himself as one of the top defenders in football since moving to La Liga from Porto in 2014. Valencia will be making a hefty profit on their initial investment of just €12 million, per Graham Hunter, but at the time, that deal was considered to be a huge steal.

The 27-year-old Argentina international isn't particularly tall at 6', but he combines brute strength with excellent vision and solid technique on the ball. He's also a huge threat on set pieces, despite his relative lack of size, scoring six goals in La Liga last season, via WhoScored.

The Citizens' top defensive acquisition of last season, Mangala, will be joining Valencia on loan for the 2015-16 campaign, giving the Frenchman the opportunity to play consistent minutes and continue his development. Mangala failed to impress last season, although he has started the 2015-16 campaign in fine form, per the Telegraph's Jason Burt:

Otamendi's arrival serves a double purpose for City. Not only are the Premier League hopefuls adding a talented player who should move into the starting XI immediately, but they're also stealing a reported target of Manchester United from underneath their rivals' nose.

According to Marca (h/t Metro's Louis Sealey), the Argentinian appeared to be on the verge of moving to Old Trafford just days ago, and it now seems the Red Devils will have to look elsewhere for defensive reinforcements.

City have started the 2015-16 campaign in impressive form, highlighted by their emphatic 3-0 win over Premier League champions Chelsea, and the addition of Otamendi will only aid their bid to win this year's title. Paired with captain Vincent Kompany, the powerful defender should lift the Citizens' defence to new heights in a hurry.

Wolfsburg Prepare for New Kevin De Bruyne Bid

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City may not be done adding new names to the squad, with Sky Sports reporting Wolfsburg are bracing themselves for a new bid for star playmaker Kevin De Bruyne.

The Germans have previously denied a reported £47 million offer was made, per Sky Sports, but sporting director Klaus Allofs knows a bid could be imminent:

"

We do not want to sell him, but it is possible that there will be an offer in the next days.

But all the same, we want to keep him in our squad. We want to build a strong team and Kevin is supposed to be a big part of it. 

Anything can happen in football. We are a club which has multiple preconditions in line to convince him to stay.

"

According to Bild (h/t Het Laatste Nieuws' Kristof Terreur), Die Wolfe are ready to offer the Belgium international a new deal in a desperate attempt to keep hold of his services:

The 24-year-old former Chelsea man was the breakout performer of the 2014-15 Bundesliga season, handing out an incredible 20 assists and adding 10 goals, according to WhoScored.

De Bruyne is reportedly happy in Germany and won't be handing in a transfer request, via football writer Pete O'Rourke, an understandable development considering he spent most of his time with the Blues rotting on the bench. With Wolfsburg, he's a key starter and star player, and there are few reasons to walk away from such a situation.

But given his recent form and development, there's every reason to believe he would be an immediate starter at the Etihad Stadium as well, even if he might be pushed into a wide role, where he has had some struggles in the past. David Amoyal, a translator for Gianluca Di Marzio, thinks his addition to City's attack would be frightening:

While Wolfsburg can offer De Bruyne stability and the chance to improve on the 2014-15 campaign, the Germans can't compete with City when it comes to cold, hard cash.

The opportunity to shine in the Premier League is also hard to pass up, and one has to assume De Bruyne would love nothing more than to stick it to Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho after his failed stint at Stamford Bridge.

As things stand, De Bruyne still looks likely to spend one more season with Die Wolfe before moving to a new club after Euro 2016, but the right offer could certainly change the minds of the player and his current employer.

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