Back in August, the agent of this title-winning centre-forward suggested that a bidding war involving some of Europe’s biggest clubs was something of an inevitability.
There wasn’t just interest from Tottenham Hotspur in a man who scored 23 goals in all competitions across 2023/24, but also from teams in Italy and Spain.
“Santi is one of the top ten (most coveted) players in Europe,”the representative told Media Tempo back in August of one Santiago Gimenez, the Feyenoord firebrand.
“So even Tottenham Hotspur (are interested). Many clubs (want him). Milan, Inter, Napoli and Lazio. Atletico Madrid were very interested.”
But what about Manchester City? Pep Guardiola’s Premier League champions have also been mentioned in some quarters in conjunction with the Mexico international who has already overtaken his tally from the whole of 2022/23, netting 24 times in his second season for the reigning Eredivisie holders.
Manchester City linked with Tottenham Hotspur target
Aad de Mos, the former Ajax coach-turned-pundit, has frequently held discussions over potential signings with Txiki Begiristain, Man City’s technical director picking his brains in an attempt to get an inside track into potential transfer targets.
But has Begiristain mentioned Gimenez, even in passing? Well, no.
“Begiristain sometimes calls me,” De Mos tells ESPN. “He does not come up with this (Gimenez’s) name.”
De Mos feels that Gimenez despite his impressive numbers falls someway short of becoming a player capable of making his mark at the very highest level anyway. Going through something of a crisis of confidence, the former Club America man has only scored three goals in his last 15 games now, and looked a rather tortured soul as he wasted chance after chance even in Feyenoord’s 6-0 hammering of Der Klasiker rivals Ajax on Sunday.
“He is not worth 50 million euros,” De Telegraaf reporter Valentijn Driessen argues of a man who, according to reports, is valued at around £40 million by Feyenoord.
“(50 million euros) is the value they think they will sell him for. If you watch him now, I would not pay five million euros for him.”
24 goals this season but only three in 15
Man City, of course, already have Erling Haaland leading the line with Julian Alvarez a talented if inconsistent back-up. Claudio Echeverri has already been snapped up for around £12 million, but the Argentina wonderkid will stay at River Plate until 2025.
HITC understands that City are looking at a number of Bundesliga stars in pursuit of new signings. Bayern Munich contract rebel Joshua Kimmich could reunite with Guardiola at the Etihad, though it is expected that Florian Wirtz will follow Xabi Alonso in committing his future to champions-elect Bayer Leverkusen.
City face Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final at the Santiago Bernabeu tonight.
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