Manchester City players have made personal appeals to Nico Gonzalez in an attempt to keep the Spanish midfielder at the Etihad Stadium, amid growing interest from Newcastle United as the transfer window enters its final days.
According to Mail Sport’s Craig Hope, City have told the 24-year-old he is free to leave this summer as talks with Newcastle continue, but some of his current team-mates have tried to “talk him into staying” — even as the club’s hierarchy appears ready to let him go.
Gonzalez, who arrived from FC Porto in the January 2025 window, impressed sporadically during his 18 months at the club but has never nailed down a regular starting berth under either Pep Guardiola or his successor, Enzo Maresca.
That inconsistent game time appears to have opened the door to a fresh challenge in the North East, with Newcastle among several Premier League clubs monitoring central midfield options before deadline day.
Newcastle weighing up midfield options
Eddie Howe’s side are understood to be assessing three potential midfield targets, though Gonzalez is currently regarded as the leading candidate at St James’ Park.
Newcastle have been active in midfield recruitment throughout the window, having previously held discussions over City players during their pursuit of other targets, and are keen to strengthen that area of the squad before the market closes.
For Gonzalez, a switch to Tyneside would offer the regular football that has proven elusive at City, where competition for places in midfield remains intense despite a summer of major departures.
Bernardo Silva, Rodri and Tijjani Reijnders have all left the Etihad Stadium this summer, for Real Madrid, Barcelona and Al Qadsiah respectively, while a host of other first-teamers have also moved on.
Even so, City’s recruitment team, led by Hugo Viana, appears to have made peace with losing Gonzalez as attention turns to incoming targets.
Maresca faces fresh midfield puzzle
Whatever happens with Gonzalez, Maresca has a more pressing concern: rebuilding a midfield stripped of much of its experience heading into his first full season in charge.
Elliot Anderson, signed from Nottingham Forest, is so far the club’s only recognised addition in the middle of the park. The Italian head coach is expected to turn to the £116m signing alongside Mateo Kovacic in deeper positions for Sunday’s Premier League opener against Bournemouth, with Phil Foden or Rayan Cherki operating further forward.
City’s principal target for the remainder of the window remains Lille’s teenage prospect Ayyoub Bouaddi, though negotiations for the 18-year-old have proven difficult, with the French club holding out for a fee in the region of £86m.
Any departure for Gonzalez is understood to be viewed separately from that pursuit rather than as a means of directly funding it, with City continuing to work on other midfield options in parallel.
Maresca has previously insisted his club have “total clarity” over the business still required before the window shuts, though he has yet to comment publicly on Gonzalez’s situation.
Sunday’s meeting with Bournemouth marks the true start of the post-Guardiola era at the Etihad, with Maresca already overseeing a significant summer overhaul that stretches well beyond midfield.
Whether Gonzalez is part of his plans beyond deadline day now appears to rest largely on the player himself — and on whether the persuasion of his dressing-room colleagues can outweigh the promise of regular first-team football on Tyneside.
