Manchester City are plotting showdown contractual talks with versatile defender Josko Gvardiol, following a stellar start to life with the club, according to reports.

The Croatia international arrived at the Etihad Stadium with a significant reputation built up during his rapid development within the game both in the Bundesliga with RB Leipzig and in Croatian football with Dinamo Zagreb.

With City officials seeing the valuable future potential of the player, a decision was taken to invest a significant transfer fee in the player, finalising an agreement with Leipzig over a deal worth around PS78 million.

That fee has proven to be well worth the player's talents, with Gvardiol establishing himself in the eyes of many as being the best left-back within the game at present, showcasing defensive intelligence and an eye for an assist and goal when venturing forward.

And Manchester City themselves have seemingly been left impressed by the 22-year-old's transition into Pep Guardiola's system, having not required any time to embed himself into a notoriously demanding operation under the Catalan coach.

According to the information of the Daily Star's Harry Pratt, City's hierarchy are preparing to increase Josko Gvardiol's weekly salary at the Etihad Stadium to PS150,000, whilst simultaneously extending his stay by two years to keep him at the club until summer 2030.

Gvardiol is currently contracted to the Etihad Stadium until the summer of 2028, having put pen to paper on a five-year agreement upon making the switch to Manchester City in the summer of 2023.

Upon joining the club, Josko Gvardiol has often found himself in a direct battle with Nathan Ake for the left-back position in Pep Guardiola's line-up, with both men keeping Sergio Gomez out of the picture for most games.

So far this season, Gvardiol has already had opportunity to further highlight his exceptional abilities in the final third, recording two goals in Premier League action away to Newcastle United and Wolves.