Nottingham Forest want to complete a double swoop of Manchester City academy talents by landing Rico Lewis alongside James McAtee.
A switch for McAtee has been agreed, with the overall package worth £30million, and Daily Mail Sport understands that Forest had hoped to seal both players in a single deal with City.
But the potential signing of Lewis would now appear likely to be a separate transfer. The versatile England international is thought to be valued at more than £30m.
Lewis made 44 appearances in all competitions under Pep Guardiola last term – and is six shy of a century of games for the club – but has fallen behind Matheus Nunes in the pecking order at right back.
City had been looking to tie the youngster down to a new deal, and marked those negotiations as a priority going into the summer, but have not managed to finalise terms.
They are thought to be open to allowing Lewis to leave if the right offer came in – a position that they have also taken on Spurs target Savinho and Ederson amid interest in the goalkeeper from Galatasaray.
City inserted a sell-on and buyback clause in Forest’s deal for McAtee, who made just three Premier League starts last term before captaining England’s Under 21s to European Championship glory.
Lewis would also command similar clauses, with City using those more frequently now after the success of Cole Palmer at Chelsea.
Were Lewis to depart, Guardiola would be left with just five homegrown players. That teenager Sverre Nypan is heading on loan to Middlesbrough instead of abroad suggests City are looking at the midfielder completing three years in England before his 21st birthday to then register him as homegrown.