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Man City had identified Bayern Munich’s Aleksandar Pavlovic as their “number one option” to strengthen their midfield, according to Bild reporter Christian Falk.
However, despite City being willing to pay up to nine figures for the German international, Falk said the player rejected the move:
“Manchester City had Aleksandar Pavlovic as their number one option for the position. First talks were already in March, and they said they could pay €100m [£85.8m]. This was just the starting idea; it could have been more. Pavlovic took time to decide – he’s very young at 22 – and told City he needed to think about it.”
“In the end, he decided to stay at Bayern Munich. So, there was no concrete offer at Bayern Munich, but the club was more than aware of the interest.”
Pavlovic has been linked with several Premier League clubs
Reports about City’s interest in the 22-year-old first surfaced at the end of last year, but other English teams, including rivals Manchester United and Chelsea, have also been mentioned as potential suitors..
Pavlovic came through the ranks at Bayern, having joined them at the age of 7, so it is not a complete surprise that he decided to stay at the Allianz Arena.
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Man City found another replacement for Rodri
There have been comparisons made between Pavlovic and the Ballon d’Or, so the club’s decision to pursue the Bayern star was logical, even if the player did reject the offer.
Rodri subsequently joined Barcelona, and after protracted negotiations, Ayyoub Bouaddi was brought in from Lille – another young player who ended up costing around €100m.
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