City Play Second Fiddle in Guehi Sweepstakes as Liverpool and Arsenal Lead Chase

Manchester City find themselves in third place in the battle to land Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi, with two fellow top-flight heavyweights firmly ahead in the queue.

Palace manager Oliver Glasner has made clear that Guehi's time at Selhurst Park will end when the season concludes, though City have shown concrete interest in accelerating a deal this month. A bid in the £40million ballpark would prove difficult for the Eagles to resist given Guehi can walk away as a free agent come summer—yet all signs point to the transfer happening in the off-season instead.

The real drama lies in where Guehi's preferences actually lie. According to reports, the 24-year-old has made his feelings known, and they don't necessarily favour Guardiola's project. Liverpool and Arsenal have emerged as his preferred destinations, with the Merseysiders and Gunners leapfrogging City in the pecking order.

Arsenal's involvement came as something of a curveball, though Mikel Arteta's side boast sufficient defensive talent that another centre-back hardly seems a burning necessity. Yet Guehi apparently fancies his chances at the Emirates over Manchester's blue half.

The Athletic's Sam Lee outlined the landscape on the Let Me Talk podcast, explaining that sources close to both City and Palace indicated Guehi wants to remain with the Eagles until summer and would prefer Liverpool—or potentially Arsenal—to City's offer.

Liverpool came agonisingly close to getting this deal over the line last August. The medical was done, the media work completed, and only a signature separated the clubs. Palace bottled it at the eleventh hour after failing to line up a replacement. That near-miss sets up a far smoother path should both parties reunite this summer.

The Reds do offer Guehi something rather appealing: genuine clarity about his role. Should Ibrahima Konate depart when his contract runs down, Guehi would slot straight into Arne Slot's back line alongside Virgil van Dijk as the first-choice pairing. Neither William Saliba nor Gabriel Magalhaes at Arsenal would budge for anyone, while Konate—despite recent improvement—hasn't convinced consistently enough this term to guarantee Guehi regular minutes at the Emirates.

City's pursuit intensified only after Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol picked up injuries, making the interest somewhat reactive rather than long-term strategic planning. The competition is fierce across all three clubs, but Liverpool arguably offers the clearest runway to regular football, which may just prove decisive in Guehi's thinking come summer.