Manchester City eyeing up Fulham’s Joao Palhinha as Kalvin Phillips replacement?

Man City are reportedly considering a move for Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha as they prepare to allow Kalvin Phillips to move away from the Etihad Stadium in January.

The 28-year-old Portuguese came close to joining Bayern Munich in the summer, but the deal fell through on the transfer deadline.

Despite the missed opportunity to secure the midfielder in the summer, the Bundesliga champions have kept an eye on him and have been rumoured to be preparing a possible offer to acquire his services in the upcoming transfer window.

According to the Daily Star, Pep Guardiola‘s side are now the latest to be eyeing up a £50m offer for the Portuguese international, viewing him as a potential replacement for Kalvin Phillips.

The report adds that Chelsea and Liverpool were some of the other high-profile names that were keeping tabs on Palhinha, though it is understood that Fulham boss Marco Silva is keen to keep his Portuguese star at Craven Cottage.

Palhinha joined Fulham from Sporting Lisbon for a fee of around £20m just last year and has become a key player for the Cottagers, featuring in 14 matches and scoring two goals in the league this season.

While Phillips received a rare start in City’s recent Champions League group stage match against Red Star Belgrade, it is understood that hҽ is highly likely to depart in the upcoming transfer window.

The England international is believed to be keen on a move away from the Etihad Stadium in January in search of regular game time as hҽ tries to remain in Gareth Southgate‘s plans for the upcoming European Championships.