Manchester City‘s Yaya Toure looks bound for the exit door at the Etihad Stadium this summer following a poor season in the Premier League.

The Sky Blues failed miserably in their title defence in 2014-15, with Chelsea confirming their league win on Sunday.

Talismanic midfielder Toure has been far from his best this term, a shadow of the player he was when City won the league in 2013-14, which led to the Ivorian being named as the club’s Player of the Season, per Stuart Brennan in the Manchester Evening News.

As a result, Toure looks set to depart City in the summer, with his agent, Dimitri Seluk, confirming as much to Amy Lewis of Sky Sports News:

Serie A looks the most likely destination for the 31-year-old. Nima Tavallaey Roodsari reports on GianlucaDiMarzio.com that Juventus are unwilling to do a deal that would see them receive Toure plus cash in exchange for Paul Pogba.

However, Inter Milan are “very interested,” per Roodsari, with the Serie A giants reportedly confident of tempting Toure away on the cheap, aware of City’s desire to free up funds ahead of a summer of change at the Etihad, per the Manchester Evening News‘ Anthony Jepson.

A clear out at City looks likely in the summer, per Bleacher Report’s Rob Pollard, but as Toure still has two years left on his current contract, the Sky Blues would surely look to make some money off him if they are to sell:

Toure is still a top-class player, his physicality makes him a dangerous presence in attack and defence, but he has failed to hit the heights of previous seasons this term, per Sky Sports News HQ:

It seems that he will head for pastures new in the summer—Roodsari also reports interest from Real Madrid—meaning City will find themselves short of a world-class presence in central midfield.

 

Pogba Targeted, De Bruyne Open to Move 

Juve’s Pogba is, unsurprisingly, City’s No. 1 target to fill Toure’s shoes, per John Cross and David McDonnell in the Mirror. 

The report suggests City are prepared to spend over £50 million to sign the Frenchman. Toure, Samir Nasri, Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic are reportedly all set to be offloaded to fund such a move.

The likes of Manchester United, Chelsea, Real, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain have all been linked with Pogba, meaning the Sky Blues will have to utilise their significant financial muscle if they are to get their man.

The 22-year-old Pogba would be a perfect replacement for Toure and an ideal man around whom to build a new title-winning squad.

Kevin De Bruyne could also be another summer signing for City, with the Belgian recently admitting that he could depart Wolfsburg in the summer if an attractive enough offer came in, per Kicker (h/t Stephen Uersfeld on ESPN FC):

You never know what will happen in football. A club might step in and make an offer that pleases Wolfsburg and also makes me happy. Right now, I say that I will stay in Wolfsburg. I don’t like it when players say they’ll stay no matter what and are gone after the first offer.

The former Chelsea man has had a stunning season in the Bundesliga, scoring 10 goals and providing 19 assists, per WhoScored.com.

Along with David Silva and Sergio Aguero, De Bruyne could form one third of a devastating attacking trio at City. With Pogba potentially sitting behind them, City would be title challengers again for sure.

City have the financial muscle to get themselves back to the top of English football, but it will require a lot of movement in the coming summer transfer window.

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