City frontrunners to sign Gibbs-White as another star is their 'dream' recruit

Manchester City are considered frontrunners in the pursuit of England international Morgan Gibbs-White this summer.

The Nottingham Forest midfielder has earned major plaudits this season as Nuno Espirito Santo’s side bid to secure an unlikely qualification to the Champions League.

New director of football Hugo Viana is set to reshape City’s squad over the coming months, with central midfield a key area to strengthen after the club opted against offering Kevin De Bruyne a new contract.

Liverpool and Manchester United have been credited with interest in Gibbs-White but Mail Sport understands City will lead the race once the campaign is over.

Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz is City’s dream acquisition in the final third but the German – yet to decide on his future - is also wanted by Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.

Regardless, Wirtz offers a different skillset to Gibbs-White and City recognise the need for more energy in midfield if they are to compete for next year’s title.

Gibbs-White is close friends with Phil Foden, who named his former England Under-17 World Cup winning teammate godfather to his first child, Ronnie.

The former Wolves academy joined Forest in an initial £25million move three years ago and has a contract at the City Ground until the end of the 2026-27 season.

Gibbs-White's performances under Espirito Santo earned him an England debut, handed down by interim boss Lee Carsley last September.

His performances for the Under 21s for Carsley - one of England's brightest sparks as they lifted the European Championship in 2023 - caught the attention of FA bosses.

But new head coach Thomas Tuchel didn't initially select the 25-year-old for last month's World Cup qualifiers, with the pair holding a frank discussion about that decision.

Tuchel did ultimately call him up and is keeping a close eye on developments ahead of a qualifier and friendly scheduled for early June before City head for the Club World Cup.