Manchester City midfielder, James McAtee is on the verge of leaving the Cityzens on a permanent deal this summer.
Softfootball understands that Pep Guardiola’s side have received an offer from Premier League rivals, Nottingham Forest and are open to the England U-21 star leaving the Etihad in this transfer window.
Fabrizio Romano via his official X handle informs that negotiations are going smoothly and an official announcement from both clubs could happen very soon.
He revealed:
“EXCLUSIVE: Nottingham Forest are closing in on James McAtee deal with Manchester City!
“Agreement at the final stages for fee in excess of £20m, #NFFC confident to get it done… here we go, expected soon.”
Interestingly, earlier in the window James McAtee flew to Germany for transfer talks with Bundesliga outfit Eintracht Frankfurt but nothing came out of that trip.
The talented 22-year-old has seen less playing time in the star-studded Manchester City team and seek a move to fix that as he eyes a place in Thomas Tuchel ‘s England squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, same as Jack Grealish who is on his way to Everton on a season long loan.
McAtee who enjoyed a successful loan spell at Sheffield United before returning to Manchester City last season is not short of suitors but it’s like Nottingham Forest has beaten competition from Frankfurt, Everton and Borussia Dortmund for his services.
Some fun facts about McAtee. He is from a very sports oriented family and he is the younger brother of Bolton Wanderers striker John McAtee. They are from Walkden. Their father, paternal grandfather and great-uncles played rugby league professionally and the football players and managers Alan Ball Sr. and Alan Ball Jr. are their maternal great-grandfather and great-uncle respectively.
It looks like James McAtee will surely leave Manchester City before the transfer window deadline on September 1. He might even sign untime before Nottingham Forest’s first premier league match of the season against Brentford on Sunday.
