Malo Gusto reportedly agrees to join Manchester City in sought reunion with Enzo Maresca

The summer transfer window has a way of generating heat before any fire actually starts. The latest: Malo Gusto, Chelsea’s French right-back, is being linked with a move to Manchester City, reportedly driven by his desire to reunite with former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca.

Gusto played under Maresca at Chelsea during the 2025/26 season, and the relationship between a player and his former coach is often the invisible thread that pulls transfers into motion.

What we actually know

As of late June 2026, no formal bids have been submitted and no negotiations between Manchester City and Chelsea have taken place.

Chelsea has placed a £75 million valuation on Gusto. Transfermarkt, the widely referenced player valuation platform, puts his market value closer to €35 million. That is a significant gap, roughly double, and gaps like that tend to stall conversations before they begin.

Chelsea is not actively shopping Gusto. The club reportedly played a prominent role in the 2025/26 season, and clubs rarely move their first-team contributors without either a compelling fee or a player pushing for an exit.

There is also a timing wrinkle. Chelsea is reportedly close to signing Italian right-back Marco Palestra. If that deal closes, it changes the calculus on Gusto’s importance to the squad, potentially opening a door that is currently shut.

Gusto’s versatility is worth noting. He can operate at right-back, left-back, or as a wing-back, which makes him the kind of profile that appeals to tactically flexible managers.

The Maresca connection

Enzo Maresca is now at Manchester City, and managers who arrive at new clubs often spend their first full offseason trying to import players who already understand their system. Gusto already has that knowledge baked in. A season under Maresca at Chelsea means he understands the spacing, the pressing triggers, the positional requirements at a granular level.

Chelsea’s £75 million asking price reflects both Gusto’s age profile and his contractual situation. Manchester City have the resources to pay that kind of fee if they decide the player is a genuine priority. The Transfermarkt figure of €35 million tells a different story about where the broader market sits on Gusto’s value, and that divergence is where negotiations either find a middle ground or collapse entirely.

What this means for the summer window

Until Manchester City submits a formal bid, Chelsea has no obligation to engage, and every incentive to hold firm on their valuation, particularly if the Palestra signing does not materialize as expected.

If Chelsea lands a direct positional replacement in Palestra, Gusto’s status shifts from core asset to potentially available asset. That sequence, replacement signed first, sale negotiated second, is a common transfer window pattern for clubs managing both squad depth and financial fair play constraints.

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