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While the summer-long Harry Maguire transfer saga trundles on with both Manchester United and Manchester City desperate to secure the Leicester defender’s signature, it is inevitable that in its slipstream alternative names have cropped up via the media.

From a Manchester City perspective, one such name is Juventus’ Leonardo Bonucci.

At 32, the Italian legend doesn’t fit the club’s recent remit of signing players yet to reach their peak and with no sell-on value either, so it’s a transfer you suspect has been rehashed from previous windows.

Another shout, however, per L’Equipe, is that City have now turned their attention to Bournemouth centre-back Nathan Ake. This one has legs and indeed it could be argued that this potential transfer makes perfect sense.

Since he arrived on the south coast from Chelsea in 2016 – initially on loan before moving permanently the following year for a club record £20m – the 10-cap Dutch international has consistently been one of the most under-rated in the Premier League.

In his debut campaign the then 22-year-old clean-swept the end of year club awards and perhaps most revealingly of all – to fully illustrate his sustained importance to a side that defied expectations and finished mid-table -  Ake won seven of that season’s nine player of the month accolades.

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This term just gone he finished second to Ryan Fraser which is hardly a shortcoming given the Scot’s magnificent year, yet individually Ake has continued to excel and impress.

Having played in close to every minute of Bournemouth’s league commitments – just six minutes shy in fact – he led by example by picking up a meagre three yellow cards and all while being tasked on a weekly basis with shackling the most combative and elusive strikers around.

On the ball, his 86% pass success rate stands out, as too does the 2.3 aerial duels won per game.

As these figures prove, Ake is a player blessed with composure on the ball, a good temperament, and with leadership qualities to spare, the latter apparent from watching him successfully marshall his defence to ten clean sheets in 2018/19.

Most tellingly of all he reserved one of his best performances for his club’s hosting of Manchester City in March, earning praise from his boss Eddie Howe who marvelled at how he ‘led by example with his commitment and endeavour’.

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Comfortable on the ball, a proven Premier League performer, and a leader and organiser who thrives on one-to-one duels, these are all attributes that will greatly appeal to Pep Guardiola.

As too will his versatility that has seen Ake employed at left-back on numerous occasions in his career to this point. It’s a significant factor as well that he is reported to be available for half of Maguire’s valuation.

Doubts will persist however as to whether the Dutchman is of the elite standard demanded of a club with serious Champions League aspirations and the defence of their Premier League crown, but here we return to City’s transfer remit of recent times.

Contrary to popular opinion they don’t buy superstars. They make them.