Pep Guardiola's Man City are ready to announce a major transfer deal as early as 2026 - triggering Antoine Semenyo's £65m release clause from Bournemouth, according to the Times.

The 25-year-old striker, Bournemouth's ace, could be recruited by Man City in the winter transfer window (January 2026) for £60 million plus £5 million in additional fees.

Antoine Semenyo MC Fever.jpg
Man City are reportedly ready to activate Antoine Semenyo's contract release clause to sign the striker as early as 2026. Photo: X Man City Fever

This is certainly bad news for Liverpool, who have identified Antoine Semenyo as their main target, but have no plans to spend mid-season having already spent a lot of money (more than £400 million) in the summer of 2025. They plan to sign the England-born striker who plays for Ghana next summer.

Bournemouth are said to really want to keep their key star, but cannot stop Antoine Semenyo from joining Man City, because of his contract release clause.

As long as Man City reaches a personal agreement with Semenyo and passes medical examination procedures, the £65 million deal can be completed in the first days of the new year 2026.

Man City are currently ranked 2nd in the Premier League after 13 rounds, 5 points behind leading Arsenal. Before the FIFA Days in November, Pep confided that he felt his team was back with the form and desire to win like the seasons when they won the Premier League.

However, after the international break, they failed to maintain the necessary solidity, losing 2 consecutive matches, 1 in the Premier League (1-2 Newcastle) and 0-2 Leverkusen in the Champions League right at Etihad. It was not until last weekend that joy returned to Man City, with a dramatic 3-2 victory over Leeds United, thanks to a double from Phil Foden and the remaining goal from Gvardiol.

The Times added that Pep Guardiola felt it was urgent for Man City to add more attacking options to compete with Arsenal for the Premier League title. He understood that the team would not be stable if it relied too much on Haaland's form and goals. Moreover, signing a new striker would help Man City solve the problem of missing Omar Marmoush, who is expected to play with the Egyptian team in the AFCON Cup (December 21, 2025 - January 18, 2026), while Semenyo's Ghana failed to qualify.

In this year's tournament, Haaland accounted for more than 50% of Man City's goals after 13 rounds of the Premier League (14/27 goals). Except for the Norwegian striker's great performance, no one in the team scored more than 1 goal, until last weekend Phil Foden scored a double.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/man-city-chuan-bi-no-bom-tan-65-trieu-bang-ngay-dau-nam-2026-2467208.html