Rumour: Manchester City enters race to sign £32.5 million rated William Carvalho

Manchester City have joined fierce rivals Manchester United in the race to sign highly rated Sporting Lisbon starlet William Carvalho, report Goal.

The Citizens have reportedly scouted the defensive midfielder throughout the season but are acutely aware that David Moyes has shown strong interest in the 21-year-old, who is available for a fee of £32.5 million.

Carvalho has attracted interest from some of Europe’s biggest clubs and is believed to have no preference over his next club, but the lure of Champions League football is likely to prove pivotal.

Manuel Pellegrini’s men are all but assured of a place at Europe’s top table next season and the Chilean is keen on the youngster, who made his senior international debut for Portugal against Sweden in a World Cup play-off last year.

However, Carvalho recently revealed that he has been flattered by United’s interest after Sporting’s 2-1 victory over Braga.

“It’s nice being praised and to know there are some big clubs interested in me. [My future could be with] Manchester United or Real Madrid.

“It’s just nice to have a great European club after me, but at the moment I’m just totally focused on Sporting and doing my best until the end of the season. At the end of the campaign, we will see what happens,” he declared.

City boast a huge amount of midfielders but have now moved into a better position to secure a deal ahead of their rivals despite United reportedly set to hand Moyes a huge summer transfer budget.

William Carvalho has scored three goals in 22 appearances for Sporting Lisbon this season.