Manchester City retain interest in Mateo Kovacic despite their intentions to stay in the race for Borussia Dortmund and England star Jude Bellingham.

The contract situation with Kovacic is heading towards a key moment as Chelsea are keen to make a decision on his future before he gets into the last year of his reported £100,000-a-week contract, which expires in the summer of 2024.

Man City transfer latest - midfield search

It is a tricky moment to negotiate a new deal given no European football on the cards and no manager to give thoughts on his vision for the player. They have been keen to extend but that intent will be seriously tested if City decide to take their interest to the next level.

We have reported City’s Bellingham interest despite the huge price-tag which is expected to reach the £125million mark if he is to leave Borussia Dortmund this summer. Sources have indicated though that Bellingham is not a straight forward signing for City, given his style of play, and that other options are certainly being explored.

One of those has been Kovacic, who has 138 Premier League appearances to his name for Chelsea, and that goes hand-in-hand with the potential departure of Ilkay Gundogan this summer.

What's the latest on Gundogan's Man City future?

Gundogan is linked strongly with Barcelona and while there is no definite outcome on the cards in regards to that, City must consider how it impacts them - particularly as there is also uncertainty around Bernardo Silva and Kalvin Phillips.

Gundogan is fully focused on City’s treble push at the moment but if he does leave, Kovacic is viewed as a player who could come in and offer similar ball-playing traits, leadership and actions.

How likely is Kovacic to leave Chelsea?

Losing Kovacic would be a blow to Chelsea in the sense he is one of the few leaders in their set-up but the return of N’Golo Kante also has impact on the situation and Chelsea have midfield transfer plans of their own this summer.

Kovacic, 28, joined Chelsea in 2018 from Real Madrid in a £40m deal and could yet stay at Stamford Bridge if the club realise they have to show more caution in this summer transfer window as a new contract could make more financial sense to them. It is thought City will seek to find out that feeling in the coming weeks.