Leeds United are interested in signing Manchester City midfielder James McAtee, according to the Athletic. The Whites are intent on bolstering their options in the centre of the park and McAtee has emerged as another potential target as speculation surrounding Kalvin Phillips going the other way continues to mount.
Phillips has been earmarked as Pep Guardiola’s number one target to replace Fernandinho this summer and Leeds could use City’s interest as a way to bargain for McAtee. The 19-year-old is not the first City youngster to have been linked with Leeds in recent days, with Romeo Lavia also a player Victor Orta is said to be keen on.
Leeds and Southampton are both keen on the 18-year-old and according to some reports, he could decide his future in the coming days. But Leeds’ interest in McAtee is an interesting one, as he is regarded as one of City’s top talents, and Guardiola would be understandably reluctant to lose him.
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What has he done so far?
At the age of just 19, McAtee has already been handed six appearances in City’s first team, all of which came last season. He came off the bench for brief cameos in their wins over Everton and Norwich City, while also playing 45 minutes of their second leg Champions League tie against Sporting Lisbon.
But is at U23s level where McAtee has really impressed. Despite playing in midfield, McAtee was the Premier League Two’s top scorer last season with 18 goals as he helped City to the title. He also chipped in with seven assists.
McAtee is currently an England U20 international and scored in their 3-1 win over Germany in March, a game in which Leeds’ Sam Greenwood also found the net.
Why would Leeds want him?
It is no secret that Leeds are keen on strengthening in midfield this summer, even after the arrival of Marc Roca from Bayern Munich. The Athletic claim that if Phillips was to leave for City, Leeds would target multiple players in order to replace him.
McAtee is similar to Matuesz Klich in a sense that he can play both as a number eight and number 10. The Poland international was in and out under Jesse Marsch last season and given he is now 32, Leeds could, perhaps, seek some fresh legs in that area.
Leeds will also be keen on ensuring they are able to find more goals from midfield next season and given his record in PL2, McAtee certainly fits that bill.
What has been said about him?
Despite being on the pitch for just three minutes, Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville was left astonished by the quality of McAtee in his brief cameo against Everton.
He said: "It’s not an academy, it’s a cloning system. They’re [McAtee and Cole Palmer] like clones, they’re all the same. It’s almost like David Silva’s left them all behind!”
Discussing McAtee in January, City boss Guardiola described McAtee as a ‘special player’. He said: "Me personally, Txiki the club didn't tell me he had an offer for a loan, maybe it happened because he's a special player.
“These players when we don't have incredible depth, we cannot forget he's just 19, training every day is so important for him. These six months he'll stay here, train, maybe we'll need him.
“In the future, we'll see. Important is he's fully committed to the club, he's a City supporter, loves to be here. We're confident in him extending the contract."
