Man City to lure Lacazette by selling Jovetic to Juve?

Manchester City, 14/1 with Coral to win the Champions League, may already have a £28m deal in place for Wilfried Bony but, according to tabloids, their January splurge is not finished yet, as the Sky Blues prepare to swoop for France attacker Alexandre Lacazette.

Leading Lyon and Ligue 1 scorer Lacazette has racked up 20 goals and seven assists across all competitions so far this campaign, and is fast becoming one of Europe’s most sought-after stars.

The versatile 23-year-old, who can be deployed as a centre forward or on either wing, is also said to be on Liverpool’s list of potential new recruits.

City surely have the advantage over their northwest rivals in the hunt for Lacazette’s services though, as they continue their attempts to freshen up their frontline.

Although Manuel Pellegrini was presumably planning to restructure his attack in summer, injuries to Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko appear to have sped the process up.

With Bony set to become the latest new Citizen, and rumours mounting that the Sky Blues are also trying to snatch Les Blues star Lacazette, speculation has also increased as to who will make way for the prospective additions.

It appears former Fiorentina forward Stevan Jovetic will be first to exit the Etihad, with City apparently ready to offload the injury-prone attacker to Serie A giants Juventus.

Montenegro international Jovetic, 25, is undoubtedly talented but has made only 24 Premier League appearances since he joined the Sky Blues in 2013, netting just eight times.

Juve are believed to be willing to take Jovetic on loan for the rest of the season, with a £20m deal potentially in the works this summer.

This would certainly suit the Citizens, who are well aware they could be hampered by FIFA Financial Fair Play rules if they do not balance the books.

With prolific poacher Dzeko also expected to depart the blue half of Manchester sooner rather than later, the path for Lacazette to link up with compatriots Gael Clichy, Samir Nasri and Bacary Sagna could be clear.

For his part, one-cap France starlet Lacazette recently stated: “Between England and Spain, I don’t have a preference. I will not be leaving for the sake of it, I have medium and long term aims, after that we will see what is best for me.”

There is little doubt that City’s title challenge could be greatly boosted by a changing of the guard, but Pellegrini must also be careful not to upset the apple cart with too much disruption to a Sky Blues side that are hot on the heels of league leaders Chelsea.