Manchester City could be set to pull of a surprise move for one of their former players in the final stages of the summer transfer window, it has emerged, with Pep Guardiola now having weighed in on the situation.
Man City's quiet transfer window so far
Despite speculation surrounding seemingly half of the Manchester City squad this summer, they headed into their Premier League opener with just one new face in the form of Brazilian winger Savinho, who arrived from Troyes in a £30m deal.
Ederson had been the most likely to leave the club over the summer amid interest from Saudi Arabia, while Kevin de Bruyne also left the door open to a move to the middle east before slamming it shut in the final weeks of the window.
Meanwhile, Bernardo Silva's yearly Barcelona interest did not materialise, with Hansi Flick's side instead moving to sign Dani Olmo from RB Leipzig.
Elsewhere, Kalvin Phillips left the club as expected, moving to Ipswich Town on loan, and impressive defender Yan Couto joined Borussia Dortmund after an excellent campaign with Girona.
The biggest sale was Julian Alvarez, who departed for Atletico Madrid after suggesting that he was not happy with his gametime at the Etihad despite starting 31 of his side's 38 Premier League games last season.
Loanee duo Tommy Doyle and Taylor Harwood-Bellis also completed permanent moves to Wolves and Southampton respectively, while Sergio Gomez headed to Real Sociedad.
Guardiola suggested that no new signings would be incoming in the final weeks, but ahead of his side's win over Chelsea he opened the door once more.
“We’ll see. I’m really pleased with the squad I have, I know the vibe is: ‘We have to sign, we have to sign’. We’ll see. I cannot answer you right now,” the City boss explained.
Now, it appears he is ready to welcome back an old face.
Guardiola approves Gundogan return to Man City
That comes amid reports that Manchester City are open to bringing German midfielder Ilkay Gundogan back to the Etihad, 12 months after he left on a free transfer.
The 33-year-old was Guardiola's first signing at Manchester City, and racked up over 300 appearances for the Cityzens, winning five Premier League titles and a Champions League in the process.
Ilkay Gundogan's Manchester City career
Appearances
304
Goals
60
Assists
38
Major trophies won
12
But he opted to head to Barcelona last summer, signing a two-year deal worth a mammoth £309,000-a-week at the Camp Nou. Just a year on, though, reports suggest that the two are ready to part ways and a return to Manchester City has emerged as a possibility.
As per Fabrizio Romano, Guardiola wants a deal to happen and has "already approved" his return to the Etihad, with talks taking place over a potential return. However, he also has offers from the Middle East should he wish for another new challenge, with it added that the decision is now "up to Gundogan".
Meanwhile, sources in Spain suggest that a return is "imminent" for the 33-year-old, though there is no mention of whether the Cityzens will be required to pay a transfer fee.
Could he enjoy a fairytale return and help City lift yet another Premier League title?