Manchester City will walk away from a deal for Marc Cucurella if Brighton do not lower their demands for the defender, according to a new report.
The Premier League champions have made the Spanish full-back a priority target for the summer and are expected to conduct formal talks with the Seagulls over a potential move for Cucurella to the Etihad Stadium.
Since joining Brighton from Getafe last summer, Cucurella has risen as one of the brightest young full-backs in the division and has attracted interest from Manchester City and Chelsea ahead of the new campaign.
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It is believed Manchester City will have to present a sizeable offer for the Barcelona academy graduate, with four years remaining on Cucurella's contract at the Amex Stadium.
After completing deals for Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez, the Blues are keen on adding Cucurella to their ranks to kick on from another Premier League winning season under Pep Guardiola and compete on all fronts again next term.
A member of Cucurella's camp is understood to have held talks with the English champions over a deal with Brighton last week, when Manchester City director of football Txiki Begiristain returned to work following a brief holiday in Catalonia.
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According to a new report by Pol Ballus of The Athletic, Brighton will demand a fee in the region of £50 million as they did when Arsenal were interested in England international Ben White last summer.
However, Manchester City are prepared to walk away from a deal if the south-coast club do not reduce their demands for Cucurella, though there is confidence among sources involved in the deal that an agreement can be reached.
It has been further highlighted by Andy Naylor of The Athletic that Brighton will not lower their asking price, as it remains to be seen how talks between City and the Seagulls play out in the coming days and weeks.
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Manchester City have made a breathtaking start to the transfer window by announcing the arrival of Erling Haaland, with Julian Alvarez expected to head to the Etihad Stadium soon before flying off to the United States for pre-season with his new club.
The Blues are also interested in Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips, with the information amongst reliable quarters suggesting there is confidence on both sides a deal is likely to go through.
Addressing his side's ongoing issues at left-back is a priority for Pep Guardiola, who has stuck each of Oleksandr Zinchenko, Joao Cancelo, Aymeric Laporte and Nathan Ake down City's left flank at some stage in recent years.
Topics: Manchester City Transfer News & Rumours, Manchester City, Premier League, Brighton And Hove Albion, Marc Cucurella, Pep Guardiola, Chelsea
Vayam Lahoti