Southampton join race for Manchester City star Kelechi Iheanacho with Pep Guardiola interested in swap deal for Ryan Bertrand
The 20-year-old - who is rated at around £25m - is already a target of West Ham, Everton and Leicester
SOUTHAMPTON have joined the race for sought-after Manchester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho.
The 20-year-old – who is rated at around £25m – is already a target of West Ham, Everton and Leicester.
Saints have now joined the pack looking to snap the youngster up, with new boss Mauricio Pellegrino wanting a star forward for next season.
And City could be interested in selling the Nigerian ace to the South Coast side if full-back Ryan Bertrand was part of the deal.
Pep Guardiola is a huge fan of the 27-year-old England defender, and sees him as an option should other targets not be signed.
The ex-Barcelona boss is hoping to land Dani Alves, Benjamin Mendy and Kyle Walker all within the next three weeks.
An Etihad source said: “Southampton are now part of a long list of clubs that want Kelechi this summer.
“If the right offer comes in, he will go, and Ryan Bertrand is an option that has been talked about in the past.
“We know Saints are fans of Nacho after his performances against them in the past, he has an amazing record.”
Iheanacho first caught the one of Saints after scoring twice against them at St Mary’s two seasons ago.
Any deal taking him to there would have a buy-back option inserted with City keen not to lose out if he continues his rapid development.
Meanwhile, Mendy is expected to complete his move to City when he returns from his summer holiday in Dubai.
Iheanacho, who broke into the City first team in 2015, has scored 12 goals in 46 Premier League matches.
