Manchester City defender Ko Itakura wants to stay at Schalke after the expiry of his current loan in the summer.
Itakura, 25, has spent six months in Germany after a two-year loan spell at FC Groningen in the Netherlands. The Japan international was wanted by Celtic in the summer, but instead headed to Schalke for the season.
Schalke have a £5million option to make the move permanent, which could help boost City's summer transfer budget if the clause is triggered. If that happened, City would also have a 15 per cent sell-on clause on any future transfer.
Itakura has been an ever-present for Schalke in the second tier in Germany, featuring 21 times and scoring twice. Now, in an interview with Bild, the centre-back says he is happy at the club and keen to stay at the Veltins Arena past this summer.
"I live in Dusseldorf, where there is a large Japanese community. I've made some friends there," he said. "Overall, it rains too much for me here, but I still feel at home (grins).
When I moved to the Netherlands in 2019, I hardly spoke a word of English. Now I can have a good chat with my teammates. Sometimes I just can't find the words, so I still take classes. Of course I would also like to learn German. I'll tackle that soon.
"I feel good here and want to play for Schalke in the long term. Hopefully we can do an interview in German at some point - maybe in ten years."
However, Itakura indicated that his future may not be up to him, as he suggested there are other parties involved in the decision in the summer.
"Not yet. It's not my sole decision either," he said when asked whether any talks had taken place, adding that promotion with Schalke would play a key role in where he plays next season.
"Not moving up is not an option for me. That's not in my head. Every footballer wants to play in the top league. And for me it's very clear that that will be the case with Schalke."
And Itakura admitted he has never spoken to City boss Pep Guardiola, as he reiterated a desire to remain at Schalke.
He said: "To be honest I've never spoken to him. But at the moment all I have in mind is to leave my mark on Schalke."
