COMMENT: Pep Guardiola has identified his first Manchester City signing – but Manchester United are keen, too.
The Bayern Munich boss has ordered City scouts to watch midfield prodigy Mahmoud Dahoud, joining their divisional rivals in keeping tabs on the Syrian-born star.
The 20-year-old was an understudy for the Borussia Monchengladbach side that stunned the Bundesliga last season, where they finished a remarkable third and qualified for the Champions League – where Dahoud played for the first time in September, his debut actually coming against City.
Back in pre-season, Dahoud was considered as one of the leading prospects in Germany, and many were tipping him for big things.
Indeed, he has made this his breakthrough season, with rumours building that a move to Borussia Dortmund – whose eye for youth is well known – was in the offing.
However, the Under-19 international's exploits have clearly been noticed by a wider audience.
This weekend, he scored the winner as Gladbach beat Cologne, latching onto Raffael's pass to secure a crucial three points for his side, after a recent wobble.
Moving to City or United would be a huge step up for a player who has made barely twenty league appearances at Gladbach, but Dahoud is a player with real class.
Famously, his former manager Lucien Favre once described Dahoud's talents with “Oh la la…", but it is successor, Andre Schubert, who has has made the youngster a regular.
Alongside captain Granit Xhaka, himself a target for various English clubs, Dahoud dictates play from deep, offering a more attacking option than his counterpart.
Like most players developed in Germany, Dahoud is technically brilliant, has an electric burst of pace, and can offer a goal-threat, too.
Whether he could cope with being an expensive signing for United or City would be a real test, but he has shown little hesitation in embracing the opportunity offered in Gladbach.
Sensibility suggests that he'd spend another year in Gladbach, but the Premier League's recruitment policy has rarely been dominated by sensibility...
Source: tribalfootball.com