Manchester City to land Gabriel Jesus ahead of Real Madrid - report

According to Marca, a phone conversation between Guardiola and the player will result in the Palmeiras attacker joining City next January for €32m.

The newspaper adds the former Barcelona Coach also tried to lobby Martin Odegaard last year by promising him first-team opportunities at Bayern Munich and Leroy Sane, who will head to the Etihad Stadium once a fee with Schalke has been agreed.

Moreover, Guardiola's "method" of calling players under contract has begun to "disturb" Europe's elite clubs, with the Premier League's lucrative television-rights deal also a contributing factor.

Marca claims Guardiola has even caused a ripple among those already at Madrid as he "sought" Dani Carvajal when the right-back was behind Danilo in the pecking order last season.

Furthermore, Toni Kroos was reportedly the subject of a mammoth bid from City last month and remains a long-term doubt at the Santiago Bernabeu as Zinedine Zidane's continues his courtship of Paul Pogba and insists on Casemiro's inclusion in midfield.

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