MANCHESTER CITY midfielder Fernandinho could be set to leave the club at the end of the season – according to Riyad Mahrez.
The Algerian winger was taking part in a quickfire round of questions with team-mate Benjamin Mendy for Sky Sports.
He was asked: “Which two players announced they were leaving the club at the end of the season?”
Mahrez responded: “David [Silva] and Fernandinho.”
It was common knowledge Silva would call time on his 10-year spell at the Etihad, the midfielder recently linked with David Beckham’s Inter Miami franchise.
But despite his contract expiring at the end of the season, there hasn’t been any indication that the 34-year-old Brazilian would move on.
Until now.
Here, SunSport checks out five clubs who could really do with a Fernandinho in their midfield.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer knows he has a big rebuilding job on his hands, and the central midfield looks particularly weak.
Fred continues to struggle while Scott McTominay has been tasked with a a lot of responsibility for his young shoulders.
Gone are the days of having Paul Scholes, Roy Keane, Nicky Butt and latterly Ryan Giggs in there.
Fernandinho would be a safe pair of hands in there, and could also fill in at the back should Lindelof or Maguire get injured/suspended.
Like Solskjaer, new boss Mikel Arteta will surely look to add some really quality into his squad.
And central midfield has been one of the most-talked about problem areas.
From Granit Xhaka’s X-rated spat with fans and then being stripped of the captaincy to continued doubts over Lucas Torreira the Gunners need a real leader in there.
Throwing in the captaincy could also be an option for Arteta – current incumbent Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is rumoured to be wanting to leave.
The old master Carlo Ancelotti was the surprise replacement for Marco Silva.
He will be looking for Everton to get back to basics after a miserable slump that sees them looking at a relegation scrap.
Pairing Fernandinho in there with Fabian Delph could provide the steel to drag them out of danger. The likes of Tom Davies and Beni Baningime will benefit from the experience too.
Spurs fans weren’t right happy with the midfield output of Eric Dier and Moussa Sissoko in their miserable 2-0 defeat to Chelsea last time out.
Dier in particular has been somewhat of the fall guy this season. He was even subbed off after just 29 minutes in the Champions League clash against Olympiakos.
Fernandinho would represent the steely nature of the Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho.
Could Fernandinho follow in the same footsteps as Argentinian veteran Pablo Zabaleta?
He, like the Brazilian, was a huge crowd favourite at the Etihad, and will also go down as one of the club’s greatest ever.
Zabaleta joined West Ham in the summer of 2017, and although now a squad player, he has become a trusted member of the backline.
Mark Noble and Declan Rice are the only real regulars in the engine room. Jack Wilshere is still to fully recover from his terrible injuries.
