Manchester City mean business at this summer's Club World Cup.

On Wednesday, the Citizens announced their squad for this summer's tournament in the United States and it is certainly star-studded, featuring new recruits Rayan Cherki, Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Aït-Nouri.

The Sky Blues commence their campaign against Wydad Casablanca on Wednesday, before also taking on Al Ain and then Juventus in the group phase, with many backing Pep Guardiola's team to go all the way.

Meantime, back home, as they turn their attention to the future, are Man City about to secure the services of the "exceptional" next Phil Foden?

Manchester City's spending spree continues

Man City can no longer register any new players for the group stages of the Club World Cup, but that doesn't mean transfer activity doesn't continue behind the scenes.

The Citizens have already splashed out around £30m on Cherki, while spending bigger fees of £46.5m on Reijnders and £31m on Ait-Nouri. Their next move could be a great deal cheaper.

Indeed, according to a report by David Ornstein and Jordan Campbell of the Athletic, Manchester City are 'close to reaching an agreement' as they seek to sign Sverre Nypan from Rosenborg.

Subject to personal terms being complete, it will be a record fee for a player from the Norwegian top-flight, said to be around £17m according to previous reports.

The plan is for Nypan to spend next season on loan at La Liga side Girona, also part of the City Football Group network of course, so it'll be a little while before we see him donning a sky blue shirt, but Man City supporters should still be excited.

How Sverre Nypan compares to Man City's current midfield star

Despite being just 18 years old, having made only 70 appearances for Eliteserien side Rosenborg, scoring 14 goals, Nypan is one of the most highly sought-after young players in the world.

Seb Stafford-Bloor of the Athletic documents his 'remarkable' rise, labelling him a 'mighty prospect', outlining that he is predominantly a number eight, but can also be deployed as a number ten.

Nypan is Rosenborg's youngest-ever player, debuting at the age of just 15 years and 322 days back in November 2022, before also becoming the Troillongan's youngest-ever goalscorer, netting against champions Bodø/Glimt in the Arctic Circle the following May.

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As part of the Guardian's Next Generation of 2023 series, Michael Yokhin praised Nypan's "superb ability to read the game and vision", analyst Ben Mattinson believes he is an "exceptional talent", while Jacek Kulig from Football Talent Scout asserts that he has a "huge future ahead".

So, let's assess his statistics.

As the table outlines, Nypan is the creative hub of Rosenborg's team, ranking very highly for all metrics included, which is very impressive for an 18-year-old, especially when considering that, according to Global Football Rankings, the Eliteserien is the 26th strongest league in the world.

Right now, Man City's creator in chief, following the departure of Kevin De Bruyne, is likely to be Phil Foden.

The England international was sensational in 2023/24, picking up every individual accolade going, as the numbers below highlight.

At his best, Foden is the heartbeat of this Man City side, ranking incredibly highly for every attacking metric, something Nypan is replicating, albeit of course at a lower level for now.

Stefan Bienkowski of Transfermarkt praises Nypan's 'exceptionally high football IQ', adding that he handles the ball very well, much like Foden.

Thus, it is clear that the teenager is a high-potential player, surely making him a Man City star of the not-too-distant future.