Manchester City have reportedly agreed personal terms with Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic and are growing confident of signing the Croatian this summer.
Kovacic's future has been the subject of increasing speculation over the past few weeks, as his contract with the Blues only has a little over 12 months left to run.
Chelsea are not believed to be prioritising an extension for the 29-year-old, and the Blues are instead preparing to axe several players in a desperate need to raise funds.
Kovacic could therefore be one of a plethora of unwanted names to leave the club this summer, and Chelsea will supposedly try to recoup a fee in the coming weeks rather than let him run down his deal.
The former Real Madrid man was briefly tipped to reunite with ex-Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel at Bayern Munich, but the German champions have now turned their attention to West Ham United's Declan Rice.
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As a result, Man City have jumped to the head of the queue, and according to talkSPORT, Kovacic has now given the green light to the Premier League champions' contract offer.
The report states that neither Chelsea nor Kovacic's agents have shown an interest in extending his stay in West London, and City are now increasingly optimistic of getting a deal done.
Despite his contract situation, Chelsea are still said to be holding out for a fee of £35m to let Kovacic leave, and while such a price would not faze Man City, they may try to negotiate a cheaper deal.
Kovacic enjoyed a successful three-year stint at Real Madrid before signing for Chelsea on an initial loan in 2018, and the Blues made his stay permanent for £32.8m one year later.
The Croatia international has been a key cog in the Chelsea midfield over the past few years, scoring six goals and setting up 15 more in 221 matches across all tournaments.
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Kovacic's statistics include two goals and two assists from 37 matches in the 2022-23 season, although he only started 17 Premier League games due to injuries and increased competition for places.
The former Dinamo Zagreb starlet could arrive at the Etihad Stadium as a like-for-like replacement for Ilkay Gundogan, who is now in the final month of his contract with Pep Guardiola's side.
The 32-year-old - who captains the Citizens - is believed to be wanted by both Arsenal and Barcelona, but no decision on his future has been made yet, and Guardiola is pushing to tie Gundogan down to a new contract amid an impressive streak of end-of-season form.
Gundogan scored both goals for Man City in their 2-1 FA Cup final win over Manchester United on Saturday, including the opener in a record-breaking 12 seconds, and he will lead the team out for this weekend's Champions League final against Inter Milan in Istanbul.
Bernardo Silva and Kalvin Phillips's futures have also been called into question, with the former on the radar of Paris Saint-Germain, but the latter apparently wants to stay and make a name for himself at the Etihad after an underwhelming first season since leaving Leeds United.
