Manchester City agree £12.5m deal for Leicester teenager Jeremy Monga
Manchester City have agreed a £12.5m deal to sign 17-year-old winger Jeremy Monga from Leicester City, beating Premier League rivals Arsenal to his signature.
The Premier League champions gazumped the Gunners at the final hurdle after Mikel Arteta’s side had initially led the race for the highly-rated youngster.
Brentford were also monitoring the situation, but the lure of reuniting with former Foxes manager Enzo Maresca proved decisive.
Maresca worked closely with the teenager during his tenure at King Power Stadium before making the switch to Manchester.
A rapid rise to top-flight football
The versatile attacker had agreed a one-year scholarship contract in the East Midlands, which triggers into a professional deal on his 17th birthday this Friday.
This contractual stipulation ensures the recently relegated League One club will receive a substantial transfer fee for their academy graduate.
The England youth international became Leicester’s youngest-ever starter last August, featuring in a Carabao Cup tie against Huddersfield Town aged just 16 years and 34 days.
He went on to make 37 appearances across all competitions for his boyhood club last term.
Record-breaking Premier League debut
Former manager Ruud van Nistelrooy handed the lightning-fast forward his Premier League debut against Newcastle United in April 2025.
That late cameo at St James’ Park cemented his status as the third-youngest player in the competition’s history, sitting only behind Arsenal duo Max Dowman and Ethan Nwaneri.
Equally adept with both feet, the dynamic forward predominantly operates from the left flank but offers tactical flexibility across the frontline.
“It was a crazy experience. At first I was obviously nervous but when I got onto the pitch all the nerves went away as I had to switch on.”
“I feel like I did all right, I could have done better. There is always room for improvement.”
Significant investment in youth
While £12.5m represents a major outlay for an unproven prospect, top-flight clubs are increasingly willing to pay premium prices for elite domestic talent.
Tottenham Hotspur recently invested £30m to secure 18-year-old Archie Gray from Leeds United, highlighting the inflating market for English starlets.
Arsenal themselves set a historical precedent back in 2006 by spending a similar eight-figure sum on a 16-year-old Theo Walcott.
The Etihad club will now hope their latest acquisition can seamlessly transition into their world-class youth setup and eventually challenge for first-team minutes.