Manchester City are one of six clubs keeping close tabs on River Plate attacking midfielder Franco Mastantuono, according to Bolavip.

Reports in Spain have suggested that Real Madrid were closing in on a move for the 16-year-old but it is believed that there are plenty of other teams involved in the race for his signature.

In addition to City and Real, the likes of Chelsea, Benfica, an unnamed Italian club and Barcelona are also interested in snapping up Mastantuono.

Bolavip even suggest that Barca have “already made concrete arrangements” with the player, having contacted his representatives, but a move to the Camp Nou seems unlikely due to the cost of the transfer.

Mastantuono has a very high release fee

Despite having played just 10 senior games, the playmaker has a €45m (£39m) buyout clause in his contract, which was inserted when he signed his first professional contract last month.

From the looks of things, though, that hasn’t deterred the likes of City, who seem keen to recruit yet another young player from River Plate.

City have already signed Echeverri and Alvarez

The Premier League champions and River Plate have an excellent relationship following deals for Claudio Echeverri and Julian Alvarez. Both players were signed from the Argentinian club before being loaned back.

Alvarez went on to make his City debut at the beginning of the 2022/23 season, while Echeverri is set to arrive at the Etihad next January.

Due to the close connections between the two teams, there is a good chance that a similar arrangement could be made for Mastantuono. It should also be pointed out that City wouldn’t have to wait until he is 18 to sign the player. He already has a European passport which means a deal could be put in place now. Brexit rules have also been loosened allowing work permits for players younger than 18 so there should be no issues on that front either if a transfer were to go ahead.