Man City and West Ham monitoring Nantes left-back Quentin Merlin

Manchester City and West Ham United are among several teams who are tracking the progress of Nantes left-back Quentin Merlin, sources have confirmed to 90min.

Posted Saturday, November 04, 2023 by 90min.com

The 21-year-old has quickly established himself as a key starter for the Ligue 1 side since being promoted from the youth ranks, notably helping them to Coupe de France glory in 2022.

Merlin, who is capped by France at youth level and has been tipped to break into the senior side, has plenty of admirers from across Europe and his development has not gone unnoticed.

90min understands that Man City and West Ham are looking to add depth at left-back, with both sending representatives to France to watch over Merlin at least once already this season.

Man City and West Ham monitoring Nantes left-back Quentin Merlin
Merlin is a France youth international

However, interest is quickly building in Merlin, with Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig, Napoli and Celtic all keeping an eye on him in recent months as well.

Merlin could also be offered the chance to stay in his home country to continue his rapid rise, with Paris Saint-Germain and Lyon fans of his.

Nantes have Merlin tied down until 2026 and so are not at immediate risk of him walking away on a cut-price deal in the near future.

Though predominantly a left-back, Merlin is capable of playing at wing-back and as an orthodox winger.

After a shaky start to the season, Nantes have now won four of their last six Ligue 1 games to climb to seventh in the table, and they are now only a point off a European place.