Man City have stepped up their pursuit of Marseille goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli, according to reports in France.

Foot Mercato claim that the Ligue One side have “received an offer” from Enzo Maresca’s side for the 34-year-old.

An agreement between the two clubs for Rulli is not expected to be difficult, with the 8-cap Argentinian international having less than a year left on his contract.

Marseille are already lining up his replacement, with Toulouse’s Guillaume Restes said to be their top target.

Why do Man City want the keeper?

The Cityzens have agreed to sell their current no.2 James Trafford to Leeds United in a deal worth more than £40m.

Gianluigi Donnarumma is set to be the undisputed no.1 this season, so Director of Football Hugo Viana has been scouring the market for someone who would be happy to play second fiddle to the Italian.

Rulli is reportedly content to come in as Donnarumma’s backup despite starting most of Marseille’s matches last campaign.

Viana is busy negotiating multiple deals

As well as holding talks with Marseille for Rulli, it is believed that the Manchester club’s transfer chief has been working hard on reaching an agreement for Lille’s Ayyoub Bouaddi.

At the time of writing, Viana hasn’t managed to agree a fee for the Moroccan international quite yet, but the two sides are thought to be close to a breakthrough.

Bouaddi is valued at €100m (£86m) by Lille, although that figure could come down if City agree to loan him back to the Ligue One side for another season.

As things stand, the preference is to bring in the teenager straight away, which is more than likely due to doubts about Rodri‘s future. Real Madrid have now made a formal approach to buy the Spanish international.

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