City could miss out on Spanish starlet

Manchester City are losing in the race to sign Real Mallorca starlet Marco Asensio, reports talkSPORT.

The Premier League giants have fallen behind Real Madrid in the battle for the 18-year-old’s signature. Madrid are hoping to persuade Asensio to move to the Bernabeu instead of swapping countries for City.

Barcelona and Firoentina are also rumoured to be interested in the youngster, who has burst on to the Segunda División stage, but has just a £3.3million release clause. However, teams will need to trigger that this summer, as in 12 months time the clause will increase to £7.4million.

The playmaker has only scored one goal for 10th placed Mallorca, but the playmaker has caught the eye of the European giants with his flair and technical ability. But with Real Madrid desperate to avoid a bidding war with any of their European rivals, they are eager to activate Asensio’s current release clause as soon as possible.

City haven’t just used Sheikh Mansour’s finances on the first team. The club have completely redeveloped their academy, in an attempt to produce some of the world’s best future stars. And City will want to add Asensio to their youth squad, as they look to build for the future. But they will have to act fast to beat Real Madrid this summer.