Manchester City could be subject to a transfer enquiry from Inter of Serie A, should one of the Milan giant's current midfielders leave the club in the coming weeks.
That potential interest concerns Mateo Kovacic, who only joined Pep Guardiola's squad in a big-money move from Premier League rivals Chelsea last summer, offering strong performances for the most part of his debut campaign in Sky Blue.
Following the exit of Ilkay Gundogan to FC Barcelona on a free transfer last summer, Kovacic was relied upon in a variety of playing styles and against different oppositions, registering 46 appearances across competitions, scoring three goals and offering one assist.
Despite the relative success achieved in his debut season for Manchester City, including the claiming of his first Premier League title and the club's fourth in a row, new reports from Italy are linking him with transfer interest this summer.
According to information included in the print edition of Milan-based newspaper Il Giorno, as translated and relayed by SempreInter, Manchester City's Mateo Kovacic is one player that would be a 'dream target' for Inter should Hakan Calhanoglu leave this summer.
While many will recall Kovacic's time with Real Madrid and Chelsea prior to his move to the Etihad Stadium, the Croatian also starred for Inter between 2013 and 2015. However, the Italian club reportedly knows that any attempt at a reunion would be 'no small matter'.
As such, the report makes clear that Inter also have their eyes on two other targets given the difficulty surrounding a Kovacic agreement, with PSV's Jerdy Schouten, and Atalanta's Mario Pasalic also on their radar.
Manchester City themselves are in the market for new midfield recruits, but the understanding is that stance is not due to the possibility of Mateo Kovacic leaving the club. Etihad officials are more concerned about the likes of Bernardo Silva or Kevin De Bruyne entertaining an exit.
The latter is being viewed as a priority transfer target by ambitious officials working on the growth of the Saudi Arabian Pro League, despite the expectation being that it would take a transfer fee north of PS100 million to tempt Manchester City into a sale.
As for Bernardo Silva, the Portuguese midfielder has long had his eyes on a move away from the Etihad Stadium, but is now understood to be coming to terms with the fact that little to no clubs are able to sanction a fee at the valuation of his PS50 million release clause.