City Bid for Barcelona's Cubarsi as Haaland Eyes Catalan Exit

Manchester City are preparing a summer raid on Barcelona, offering a pair of players in a bid to secure young defender Pau Cubarsi, though the Catalans are holding firm on a staggering £1billion release clause.

The move comes as Erling Haaland has allegedly asked City to open negotiations with interested parties, with Barcelona firmly in the conversation about the Norwegian marksman's future. Should the prolific striker depart, it could trigger a wholesale restructuring at the Etihad.

Omar Marmoush and academy prospect Rico Lewis are the two names City are prepared to offer Barcelona in exchange for Cubarsi. However, the Spanish outfit remain adamant that any deal hinges entirely on someone stumping up the full release clause.

City's Champions League exit at the hands of Real Madrid midweek leaves them trophy-less for a second consecutive season. They still harbour hopes of silverware in Sunday's League Cup final against Arsenal, though many observers fancy the Gunners to prevail. In the Premier League title race, City trail Arsenal by nine points.

Speculation continues to swirl around Pep Guardiola's future, though the manager recently suggested he intends to see out his contract, which runs until 2028. When quizzed about his plans, Guardiola quipped: "Oh, everybody wants to fire me, right. Oh my god, guys. One day I will come here and say, 'bye bye, guys'. I'm here, one more year of contract."

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has indicated that City are preparing contingency plans, with Enzo Maresca identified as a potential successor should Guardiola decide to step down. Romano stated: "Manchester City as a club are waiting for Pep Guardiola to decide. At the moment, according to my information, the situation is still open. Pep has one more year of his contract, so if he says nothing he will be Man City manager next season."

Romano added that Maresca, the former Chelsea manager, remains aware of City's interest but has not engaged in direct talks with Tottenham or Manchester United. "Manchester City are just preparing for when it's time to say goodbye to Pep Guardiola and it's for Pep to decide and he has not made any decision yet," Romano concluded.