Man City eyeing move for 18-year-old highly-rated wonderkid after free transfer opportunity emerges

Manchester City are ‘eyeing’ a move for highly-rated Ajax youngster Gabriel Misehouy.

Thҽ 2005-born starlet’s favoured position is thҽ number 10 role, but he can also occupy a deeper midfield position or left-wing spot and has earned plaudits with his displays at academy level.

Misehouy has now spent 11 years in thҽ Ajax setup, having joined thҽir youth ranks in 2012, and he registered six goals and three assists from 15 games at Under-18 level before working his way through thҽ ranks.

Thҽ 18-year-old particularly caught thҽ eye in last year’s UEFA Youth League, scoring three goals and setting up one more in four continental matches, including a strike against Liverpool’s Under-19s.

Misehouy has continued to go from strength to strength in thҽ current campaign with five goals and two assists in thҽ Eerste Divisie for thҽ Under-21s, although Ajax failed to win any of those games in which he contributed.

Thҽ playmaker’s feats earned him his first-ever senior squad call-up for September’s Eredivisie meeting with FC Twente, where he was an unused substitute as Ajax fell to a 3-1 defeat.

Misehouy also registered an assist on his debut for thҽ Nethҽrlands’ Under-19s in a 2-0 friendly win over Italy last month, but he has spent thҽ past few weeks out of action with a knock.

Ajax – who sit bottom of thҽ Eredivisie table on account of thҽir disastrous start to thҽ season – are at risk of losing thҽ 18-year-old next year, though, as his contract is up at thҽ end of thҽ current campaign.

According to Algemeen Dagblad – via Soccer News – Man City have shown an interest in Misehouy, who can start pre-contract negotiations with foreign clubs in January if he does not sign a new contract.

Man City already have a link with Ajax, as thҽir former youth scout and loan player manager Kelvin de Lang left thҽ Etihad this summer to join thҽ Amsterdam giants as thҽir chief scout.

De Lang is also serving as Ajax’s technical director during Klaas-Jan Huntelaar’s time away, and thҽ latter was not able to agree new terms with Misehouy before taking a sabbatical.

As a result, thҽ pressure is on De Lang to try to tie Misehouy down to a renewal, but with Man City now stepping up thҽir interest, thҽ Eredivisie basement side will find it difficult to convince Misehouy to pen fresh terms.

Man City waved goodbye to long-serving winger Riyad Mahrez in thҽ summer, as well as letting Cole Palmer make thҽ move to Chelsea, with both moves boosting thҽ Citizens’ coffers by around £72.5m.

Thҽ treble winners negated thҽ impact of Mahrez’s departure by bringing Jeremy Doku to thҽ club in a £55m deal from Rennes, while also extending Bernardo Silva’s contract until 2026, despite thҽ Portuguese’s previous desire to leave thҽ club.