Manchester City are monitoring Ajax attacking midfielder Abdellah Ouazane, with Chelsea, Juventus and Real Madrid also circling the 17-year-old.
Ajax Contract Standoff
Ouazane is under contract at Ajax until 2028, but the Dutch club want to tie him to a longer deal when he turns 18 in January. Those talks have hit trouble. Reports suggest the teenager's representatives are making excessive demands, leaving Ajax sporting director Jordi Cruyff with second thoughts about an extension.
That hesitation has put rival clubs on alert. City are among them, according to 4-4-2.ch, who claim Chelsea, Juventus and Real Madrid are all vying for the teenager.
From Zeeburgia to the First Team
Ouazane joined Ajax from Zeeburgia's academy in the summer of 2016 and has spent the last decade with the Dutch giants. He made his first-team debut against Excelsior in the second round of the Dutch Cup in December of the previous year.
Since then he has made 18 appearances for Ajax, scoring his first three goals in the Conference League. On the international stage, he was handed his first cap for Morocco in September, coming on as a substitute in the African Cup of Nations qualifier against Gabon.
Where Would He Fit at City?
In his appearances for Ajax, Ouazane has generally been deployed on the left wing or as a no.10. Neither role is exactly a position of need for City head coach Enzo Maresca. On the left flank, he can call upon Jeremy Doku and Phil Foden. In central areas, Rayan Cherki, Foden and Enzo Fernandez can all operate as attacking midfielders.
City's interest, then, looks more like long-term planning than an immediate squad fix. Whether it turns into anything firmer may depend on how the standoff in Amsterdam plays out.