Brighton manager Graham Potter said Marc Cucurella is 'happy' at the club, as Manchester City's pursuit of the player drags on.
City have enjoyed a fruitful summer in the transfer market, with more comings and goings at the Etihad Stadium than any summer since 2017.
Pep Guardiola has shaken up and re-energised his attacking options through the acquisitions of Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez, while depth has been added to the goalkeeping and midfield departments through the signings of Stefan Ortega and Kalvin Phillips.
The Blues have done well on the sales front too, managing to bring in a combined £122.5m for Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko while also selling youngsters Gavin Bazunu and Romeo Lavia for over £20m combined.
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However, some of the shine might be taken off City's work if they fail to secure the signing of left-back Cucurella from Brighton.
Following the sale of Zinchenko City are desperately light in the full-back department, and Cucurella is top of Guardiola's wishlist. The 23-year-old Spaniard is a product of Barcelona's La Masia youth system, so is well versed in Guardiola's style of football.
However, City's opening bid of £30m was rejected by the Seagulls last week, with the two clubs reportedly far away from agreeing a fee. Brighton are holding out for a fee in the region of £50m, but City are understood to be willing to walk away if Brighton do not lower their demands.
In the meantime Cucurella has been taking part in pre-season training with his teammates, and manager Potter says that contrary to some reports his player is happy where he is.
"Yeah, he is happy. It is not easy because there's speculation, he's a human being and that is the challenge with footballers when the window is open, you get linked with this and that," Potter said. "It is what it is. We have a lot of respect for Marc [Cucurella], we like him a lot and we are just helping him enjoy his football."
City are confident that Cucurella wants to join them, and so are expected to return with an improved offer. But should negotiations prove fruitless, Guardiola sees no reason to panic.
"If it doesn't happen, we have alternatives… Joao Cancelo, Josh Wilson-Esbrand is a young talent and Nathan Ake can play there," Pep said.
City are reportedly eyeing up RB Leipzig's 24-year-old left-back Borna Sosa as a potential alternative.
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