Ross Barkley is a target for Manchester City next summer with the champions valuing the midfielder at around £30m and viewing him as among a select few English homegrown players who could slot instantly into their team. City also hope Joe Hart and James Milner will sign the new deals they have been offered.
City were interested in buying Barkley in the close season but would not countenance paying Everton’s asking price of £50m. There is a recognition many of Manuel Pellegrini’s squad are at their peak so the need to start building for the future is pressing.
To do so, City require players who are either already established players of the quality of Yaya Touré, David Silva, Sergio Agüero, Vincent Kompany, Hart, Samir Nasri and Edin Dzeko, or have the potential to be so, as with Eliaquim Mangala, who is 23 and cost £32m during the summer.
With the Premier League and Uefa demanding clubs should have eight homegrown footballers in their squads for their respective competitions, City have found it a challenge to find English players of the requisite quality. In recent seasons Adam Johnson, Jack Rodwell and Scott Sinclair were all bought to fill the berths, while Micah Richards was at the club from a young age. All have left City apart from Sinclair who remains on the fringes of the first team.
Although the signings of Johnson, Rodwell and Sinclair are viewed as errors of judgment – Richards has also disappointed and is on loan at Fiorentina – there is a belief that Barkley is a far better player who can one day replace the 31-year-old Touré, 11 years Barkley’s senior.
Before firming up their interest in Barkley during the summer, City did detailed background checks on the England international and were encouraged by the results. The club’s information showed Barkley is intent on a successful career and has a winning mentality.
When Pellegrini informed the City hierarchy Barkley was good enough to help the club to win more Premier League titles and to claim a first European Cup, inquiries were made at Everton. Though City valued Barkley at £20m, they were prepared to pay a premium of over £30m to secure his signing but Bill Kenwright, the Everton chairman, quoted a price of £50m for the midfielder, and City decided to put their interest on hold.
However, despite Everton’s valuation it is believed they will sell next summer with the price thought to be negotiable. Barkley, who is sidelined because of a knee injury, signed a four-year contract worth around £60,000 a-week in July, a deal he was offered by the club as they sought to strengthen their bargaining position.
While City believe that there is a paucity of English talent, they believe within three years – and possibly even two – their academy will yield such players. There is even confidence at the club they have an 11-year-old on the books who can be better than Lionel Messi.
The development of their own players is viewed as a long-term plan that should offer a continual supply to the first team. The club’s Etihad Campus training complex, which is situated across the road from the stadium, is due to be opened next month.
After a number of Pellegrini’s players signed fresh deals, the club have started discussions with Hart and Milner over contracts. Hart, 27, is in the final two years of his deal. Milner, who was among City’s standout performers in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea at the Etihad Stadium, has less than 12 months remaining
