Of all Manchester City’s transfer targets, Aymeric Laporte was perhaps the most exciting.
Sadly for Pep Guardiola, though, The Guardian report that Laporte has decided to stay with Athletic Bilbao, signing a new four-year deal with the La Liga club.
The Frenchman’s u-turn has to raise questions about whether City’s summer is going to be a success after all.
They may have signed Ilkay Gundogan from Borussia Dortmund, but he is a serious injury worry and won’t be fit until the end of August at the earliest.
And while speculation continues to link them with another Dortmund player, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, it is not in attack that they need to strengthen, as they already have Sergio Aguero and Kelechi Iheanacho.
City’s defence, frequently missing injured captain Vincent Kompany, was what let them down last season, as an early title bid collapsed into a battle to finish fourth.
They going into 2016/2017 as favourites, but that might change now that they’ve missed out on Laporte, unless they find another top quality defender instead.
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