TalkSPORT pundit Danny Murphy has raised doubts about Manchester City’s interest in Brighton left-back Marc Cucurella.

The Premier League champions (along with Chelsea and Tottenham) have been linked with a move for the Spanish international but Murphy doesn’t believe the defender would be an improvement on the club’s current options:

“Why would they [want Cucurella]? I am not saying it is nonsense but you have got [Joao] Cancelo playing at left-back, I know [Kyle] Walker is a bit older and he [Cancelo] will move to right-back at some point. But you have also got [Oleksandr] Zinchenko, who came into the side and he is a terrific player as well. I am not sure [Marc] Cucurella is better than Zinchenko. It just seems a strange one. It doesn’t seem like they have the need for a left-back at the moment.”

It should be noted that Oleksandr Zinchenko has been tipped for a transfer away from the Etihad this summer, with the likes of West Ham and Arsenal said to be interested in the Ukrainian. If he were to leave then a bid for Cucurella does make a lot of sense.

The Spaniard’s price tag is pretty steep, though, with reports suggesting that Brighton may demand as much as £50m for the 23-year-old. Director of football Txiki Begiristain will be hoping that they can agree a deal for well below that figure but we shall see what happens if formal negotiations do begin between the two clubs.