Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola's private chat with one player has fuelled rumours of a move to the Premier League.
Manchester City recently lost four consecutive games for the first time in Guardiola's career, with defeats against Tottenham, Bournemouth, Sporting and Brighton all prompting questions over whether the 53-year-old has the focus to help City ensure success this season.
It is defensively where questions are being asked, especially with so many injuries halting the Sky Blues' hopes. Kyle Walker - ranked at No.5 in FourFourTwo's list of the best Premier League defenders of all time - has looked like a shadow of himself and reports suggest a replacement may be on his way to the Etihad Stadium.
Manchester City: Maximiliano Araujo shares private chat with Pep Guardiola prompting questions over a proposed move
Guardiola could be seen chatting to several members of Sporting's team after his side lost 4-1 in the Champions League earlier this month and it has emerged one of those was defender Maximiliano Araujo.
The 24-year-old has become a key part of Sporting's impressive system and Ruben Amorim will be sad to have learned Guardiola has already tapped the Urugyuan up over a proposed move to England.
I hope so, I hope so... I asked him for a photo, we talked for a few minutes and he congratulated me," said Araujo when asked about a proposed move to Manchester City in the future, via O Jogo. "I'm very happy about that. We talked about the game, nothing more."
Those conversations may upset former boss Amorim, who may also have wished to bring Araujo to Manchester, given he has just joined City's crosstown rivals Manchester United.
Amorim will have to quickly get to work at Old Trafford, with the Red Devils currently 13th in the Premier League table and some way off looking their best, with the likes of Marcus Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund struggling for form.
"I feel ready for the new challenge," Amorim recently told the media. "I'm not naive, I know it's going to be very different, very difficult. I'm at peace now. I can focus on my new job and I'm looking forward to starting tomorrow. I know it will be difficult to reproduce what I have here anywhere else but there are other places with different exposure and pressure."
In FourFourTwo's opinion, Araujo is another star who could soon make the move from Sporting to England, given team-mate Victor Gyokeres look set to do so in some capacity in 2025.
Manchester City are back in Premier League action next weekend, as they take on Tottenham Hotspur in a must-win clash at the Etihad Stadium.
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