Rumours surrounding Raheem Sterling and a potential move to Premier League rivals Chelsea have been through the roof in recent days, with speculation suggesting the Manchester City star would be open to a return to London in search of more playing time.
Similarly, Gabriel Jesus has constantly been tipped for a switch to Arsenal, as the arrivals of Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez have meant the Brazilian eyes the opportunity of becoming the starting number nine elsewhere.
The prospect of two key forwards bidding farewell to the Etihad Stadium in the summer has put Riyad Mahrez’s future into perspective.
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Coming off the back of the most productive season of his career, the Algerian international icon is yet to be tied down to a brand-new deal at Manchester City as his current contract expires in 2023.
While transfer expert Fabrizio Romano recently revealed that the Manchester City ace is remaining ‘calm’ about his plans for the upcoming campaign, several fans still remain unsure about whether Riyad Mahrez will don sky blue next season.
The uncertainty stems from the fact that it is still unknown whether Manchester City plan to recuperate a set fee instead of letting the prolific winger potentially leave on a free transfer next summer, or convince him to extend his contract beyond 12 months.
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However, a new development has been discovered that hints that the former Leicester star is willing to continue his successful association with the Sky Blues.
It has been spotted that Mahrez recently liked a post regarding his future on Instagram that was captioned, “Riyad Mahrez is not expected to leave Man City this summer."
"The club wants to keep him and extend him because his contract ends in June 2023.”
Additionally, the player’s wife - Taylor Ward - responded to a question on her personal Instagram story about whether she plans to move out of Manchester one day, by implying that the couple are set to stay put for the time being.
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“I love Manchester. I’ve grown up here and it’s my home."
"However, can never say never. With Riyad’s job, things can always change and wherever he goes, we will go."
"I wouldn’t rule out potentially living abroad in the future also, but no time soon.”
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With there being a major possibility that Manchester City could lose two of their major attackers in Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus in the summer, it makes sense that the club plan to extend Riyad Mahrez’s contract.
The Algeria international captain remains one of the best wingers in the Premier League at 31 years of age, and could be the perfect role-model for Cole Palmer - who is expected to be given a bigger role in the first-team next season.
Palmer is one of a number of Manchester City academy graduates who will be itching to impress during the forthcoming season.
He, alongside the likes of James McAtee, will be hoping that the imminent departures of some of the first-team mainstay forwards will perhaps open a door in Pep Guardiola's first-team plans.
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However, interest unsurprisingly remains in the aforementioned youngsters, with the likes of Leeds United and Southampton most recently linked with an interest in McAtee in particular.
Topics: Riyad Mahrez, Manchester City, Manchester City Transfer News & Rumours, Football, Transfers, Premier League
Srinivas Sadhanand