Manchester City and Tottenham are negotiating the sale of Kyle Walker

All of us who write and most of us who read Cartilage Free Captain are transfer rumor veterans. We understand that when it comes to the buying and selling of players during the summer window there are rumors, and then there are RUMORS. Kyle Walker has been the subject intense speculation since before the season ended about a potential bid from Manchester City, but up until now it’s been mostly Manchester City are expected to bid or There remains intense interest from Pep Guardiola in Kyle Walker. That kind of thing.

But when the BBC writes up something, you can pretty much take it to the bank, and that’s what the Beeb has done today, writing that Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur are now in negotiations over Kyle Walker.

So let’s not get ahead of ourselves. This isn’t confirmation that Walker is sold. The Beeb says that it’s early days in the negotiations, and that the two clubs haven’t agreed on a fee. A lot can happen between now and the transfer window closing.

This, however, combined with the Times’ report of Kieran Trippier signing a new contract extension, suggests that the two clubs are serious about at least talking over selling Walker, and I suspect that an agreement to sell Walker might come sooner rather than later. If Spurs are planning to use the sale of Walker to finance future transfer window purchases, then there’s a motivation to get that squared away as soon as possible so the club can move on to their primary transfer targets.

I have no idea how this is going to go down, but I have a feeling things just got real. Buckle up.