Man City enter race for €40m Liverpool target Gabri Veiga after pulling out of Declan Rice transfer battle

Manchester City have entered the race for Liverpool target Gabri Veiga having pulled out of a deal for Declan Rice.

On Wednesday it emerged that Arsenal had agreed a fee worth £105million to sign West Ham midfielder Declan Rice. Talks are reportedly ongoing between the clubs over how the deal will be structured for the England international.

Arsenal's bid is comprised of an initial £100million plus £5million in add-ons. The initial fee equals the British record City paid Aston Villa to sign midfielder Jack Grealish back in 2021.

Indeed, just hours before Arsenal reached an agreement with West Ham for Rice, City, who had a £90million offer for Rice rejected on Tuesday, withdrew from the running.

Unwilling to match Arsenal’s bid, Pep Guardiola’s side have now turned their attention to Celta Vigo’s Veiga.

Veiga linked to Liverpool and Man City

According to the Guardian, City are interested in Viega, who has also attracted interest from Liverpool and Chelsea.

The 21-year-old, who reportedly has a €40million (£34.6million) release clause and plays predominantly as No.6 or No.8, is allegedly on City's shortlist of Ilkay Gündogan replacements.

Viega scored 11 goals and provided four assists in 36 La Liga games last term, netting twice in a home win against Barcelona on the final day which guaranteed Celta their La Liga status.

Liverpool, who are hoping to rejuvenate their midfield this term, have also been linked with the Spaniard over the past month.

Despite much speculation, however, Veiga has remained tight-lipped on his future.

When asked about his next club in a press conference at the under-21 Euros Veiga said: “It’s been a bit of a mess. I left my [agent] and then I took some time off. I went with the one that I think is the best and I think I’ve matured a lot.

“I don’t think about my future, I want to live in the present and the National Team. What I want for my future is to be in the European Championship, because there is still the final list, and then to win it. I am here in the national team, in a very nice challenge.”

Topics: Football, Manchester City, Celta Vigo, Arsenal, Declan Rice, Chelsea, Liverpool

Chris Byfield

Sport journalist with experience writing on football, rugby, boxing and the Olympics. I'm also a Crystal Palace fan. Please don't hold this against me.