Man City beat Barcelona to €12m signing of Brazil youth international

Manchester City have confirmed that they have beaten Barcelona to the signing of Brazil youth international Yan Couto from Coritiba.

Diario Sport claims that the defender will sign a five-year deal this summer, with €6million being paid up-front and a further €6m in instalments.

In January, Globoesporte and Yahoo Sports had reported that City had doubled an offer from the Blaugrana for the defender, with the Catalan giants ready to pay €5m for Couto.

The teenager starred for Brazil in the recent Under-17 World Cup, helping his nation win the tournament despite picking up a straight red card in his first match.

Arsenal and Bayer Leverkusen were also said to be keen on the diminutive but pacy 17-year-old full-back, but City appear to have won the race for his signature.

Couto has yet to make his debut for the Coritiba first-team but is widely regarded as one of the brightest prospects coming out of Brazilian football, and the deal for Coritiba represents a club-record transfer.

Meanwhile, Paul Merson has completely dismissed any notion that Manchester City can still have a better season than Liverpool if they win every trophy on offer but finish second in the Premier League.

Speaking on The Debate, Merson feels winning the Premier League over a 38-game season is a bigger achievement than winning the Champions League, and feels the domestic cup competitions come down to fortune and squad size. Read more…