According to reports, Pep Guardiola has requested that former Liverpool player Sepp van den Berg and Bayer Leverkusen star Jeremie Frimpong join Manchester City.
Guardiola has ‘requested’ Manchester City to seal the signings of the two, in a ‘huge indicator’ that he will remain manager. Guardiola’s contract is set to expire at the conclusion of the season, but if this claim is to be believed, he is already organizing his squad for next season.
The strategist was first impressed with Van Den Berg during a pre-season friendly in 2021, when the centre-back, who was playing as a right-back at the time, was on loan from Liverpool to Preston North End.
Van Den Berg delivered an outstanding performance against City and has ‘been on Guardiola’s radar ever since’.
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City reportedly approached Liverpool to see if they could sign the Dutchman during the most recent summer transfer window. Guardiola thought a contract with Van Den Berg was unlikely while he was playing for a title competitor.
Instead, Van Den Berg joined Brentford for £25 million (€30 million or $31.9 million). Football Transfers reports that the 22-year-old will spend the full season at Brentford as Thomas Frank’s side will try to reject all January approaches for him.
However, the fact that Van Den Berg has left Liverpool may make it easier for Guardiola and City to sign him in the summer.
Guardiola is eyeing a double deal for Van Den Berg and his Dutch compatriot Frimpong.
The 53-year-old ‘has a strong relationship’ with Frimpong and hopes to utilize that to entice him back to City. Frimpong progressed through the ranks at City before joining Celtic in September 2019.
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