FC Groningen and Manchester City are approaching an agreement on Ko Itakura. If the last folds are ironed out, the central defender will also play for the Pride of the North next season, which the Japanese will then rent for the third consecutive season.
“We are close to an agreement with Manchester City,” said technical director Mark-Jan Fledderus. “I expect we’ll get clear in the coming weeks, but it looks good.”
The Japanese defender played 22 games for FC Groningen last season and made a good impression. “It’s not finished yet,” says Fledderus. “But I feel good about it. Now it is mainly about whether Ko wants to play for another year at FC Groningen. But “, says Fledderus,” if that were not the case, we would not have started the conversations, of course. Another club may just inquire. “
Final takeover too expensive
FC Groningen tried to take over the defender from Manchester City, but that proved financially not feasible for the Pride of the North. That is why he is rented again for a year. “If City sells him afterwards, we can get a reward if he performs well with us,” Fledderus concludes.
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