Teen winger Eduardo Conceicao stays put as European suitors wait
Manchester City's pursuit of Eduardo Conceicao has hit a wall, with Palmeiras deciding to keep hold of the 16-year-old winger and push him into their senior setup.
The Brazilian club have effectively parked the interest of City and Manchester United, who had been circling the teenager alongside Barcelona, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain.
Palmeiras have now resolved to retain Conceicao and promote him into the senior squad.
It is a notable shift in stance. United, for their part, had gone furthest in formal discussions, with reports suggesting they were ready to table an offer. But Palmeiras have cooled on selling, with the timing of any move complicated by the simple fact that Conceicao cannot officially sign for a European club until he turns 18.
Even if a deal were struck this summer, he would not physically arrive until January 2028 at the earliest. That wait appears to have changed the calculus in São Paulo.
Should Palmeiras relent in future windows, they are holding out for around £42 million. His release clause, meanwhile, is understood to be set at roughly £85 million.
For City, this is one of several youth-level threads in a summer that has already delivered the club-record £116 million arrival of Elliot Anderson. The academy has also been busy, with Jeremy Monga arriving from Leicester and Mishel Nduka poached from Arsenal's Hale End.
On the senior side, Geronimo Rulli is close to joining from Marseille as backup goalkeeper, while the pursuit of Lille's Ayyoub Bouaddi remains the most significant piece of ongoing business, with a verbal agreement on personal terms already in place.
The Conceicao update does not close the door entirely. A player of his profile is expected to stay on the radar of director of football Hugo Viana, even if Palmeiras have, for now, decided the teenager is worth more to them on the pitch than in the transfer market.