Manchester City add Liverpool target to transfer shortlist as they aim to replace Riyad Mahrez – Reports

Manchester City have allegedly added Liverpool target Jeremy Doku to their list of potential long-term replacements for Riyad Mahrez.

The Cityzens sold Mahrez to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli for around £30 million last month, ending the Algerian's five-year stint at the Etihad Stadium. Following the move, the left-footed star signed a lucrative four-year contract, reportedly worth £750,000-per-week.

Now, according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, Manchester City have identified Doku as an ideal successor to Mahrez. They are expected to arrive at a concrete decision after considering other alternatives.

Doku, 21, could prove to be a brilliant signing for Pep Guardiola's team due to his pace and dribbling. He would provide competition for places on either flank to Phil Foden, Jack Grealish and Cole Palmer.

A right-footed wide operator, the Belgian has established himself as a vital squad member at Rennes since arriving from Anderlecht for £22 million in 2020. He has helped his team achieve fourth, fourth, and sixth-place finishes in the past three Ligue 1 campaigns.

So far, the Liverpool target has netted 11 goals and laid out 10 assists in 90 games across competitions for Bruno Genesio's outfit. He has started just 54 times in the last three seasons due to injury issues.

On the other hand, Manchester City are also monitoring Crystal Palace's Michael Olise with the intention of signing him. They are, however, set to face competition from Chelsea this summer, as per Romano.

Olise, 21, has impressed both the Premier League giants with his stellar outings in the past couple of seasons. Since arriving from Reading for £8 million in 2021, he has scored six goals and laid out 19 assists in 71 matches across all competitions for Crystal Palace.

Jeremy Doku opens up on Liverpool attention

Prior to joining Rennes, Jeremy Doku was heavily linked with a switch to Liverpool in 2018. However, he opted to sign a professional contract with Anderlecht, where he would go on to stay for two more seasons.

Earlier in 2021, the 14-cap Belgium international opened up on rejecting a move to Anfield during his teenage days. He told Ouest-France:

"I was going to be 16 and that was the age you can sign a pro contract. A lot of teams came to see me. Everyone talks about Liverpool because it was the most concrete interest but there was also Arsenal and Chelsea. I was able to discuss with Jurgen [Klopp], [Sadio] Mane, [Georginio] Wijnaldum... [Steven] Gerrard too."

Shedding light on a conversation with Sadio Mane, Doku continued:

"I talked a lot with Mane but we didn't really talk about football. We talked about everything. He told me that I was young, that I still had time... he wasn't trying to convince me or to say to me: 'Come here'. I preferred to be careful. I knew what my trajectory had to be."

Earlier in June this year, journalist Mohamed Toubache-Ter claimed that Liverpool have again expressed an interest in signing Doku ahead of the 2023-24 campaign. But, there have been no updates on it since then.