According to SportBild, Manchester City have joined Liverpool in the race to sign Thiago Alcantara from Bayern Munich.

The Spain international has turned down the option of signing a fresh contract with Bayern beyond June 2021 and he is set to be sold by the club this summer.

Jurgen Klopp’s side have been mentioned as the favourites to sign him over the past few weeks, but the Reds have yet to finalise a suitable agreement with the German champions.

The Merseyside giants are willing to pay as much as £27m (€30m) for the former Barcelona man, but it is reported that the Cityzens could look to beat them to the player’s services.

Guardiola was responsible to recruiting Thiago at Bayern in the summer of 2013 and it is suggested that a reunion could be on the cards with the expected departure of David Silva.

It is added that the Cityzens are prepared to make a better transfer offer for the midfielder and that will concern the Reds, who are working on a tight budget for the summer.

Silva is set to part ways with the Cityzens after a decade of service this month and Guardiola may look to bring in an experienced midfielder as a replacement.

Thiago is a central midfielder by trade when compared to Silva, who plays in more advanced positions, but his strong passing abilities make him the perfect foil for the side.

Elsewhere, he is good defensively with an average of two tackles and two interceptions this season. It will be interesting to see where his future lies next term.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com and Whoscored.com