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Manchester City want to sign Athletic Bilbaos Aymeric Laporte this summer, according to Sky sources. The French defender looks a good fit for Pep Guardiolas Etihad Stadium revolution, writes Nick Wright. Pep Guardiola counts Argentine manager Marcelo Bielsa as one of his biggest influences so perhaps it is not surprising that he shares his idols admiration for Aymeric Laporte. The French centre-back was schooled by Bielsa as a teenager at Athletic Bilbao, and Guardiola is eager to continue his education at Manchester City next season.Sundays 2-2 draw with Arsenal showed why the incoming manager has identified central defence as Citys most pressing area in need of attention. This season they have conceded more Premier League goals (40) than in any of the previous five, with Nicolas Otamendi and Eliaquim Mangala struggling to meet expectations and Vincent Kompany repeatedly falling victim to injuries. Major changes are required, and while Evertons John Stones is among the names to have been talked up, Laporte appears to be the priority for Guardiola. Citys sporting director Txiki Bergiristain has already flown to Bilbao to discuss the deal with Athletic, and reports in Spain suggest City are ready and willing to pay his £39m buy-out clause. Laporte on City rumours Aymeric Laporte denies he has agreed to join City but Sky sources confirm he is a target. It is a huge sum for a 21-year-old still recovering from a broken leg suffered playing for Frances U21s in March, but he is due to return in August and the feeling in Spain is that he is worth the investment. Laporte has developed a burgeoning reputation over the course of four seasons in Athletics first team and has already amassed over 100 La Liga appearances despite his tender age.Basque journalist Endika Río has followed his progress from the start. He is a central defender with the profile that Pep Guardiola likes, he tells Sky Sports. Hes strong, tall and powerful but what characterises him most is playing out from the back. He makes the central midfielders jobs easier. He has good distribution and he has quality with the ball at his feet. Watch some of Aymeric Laportes best moments for Athletic Bilbao That technical ability is invaluable to Guardiola, whose attacking philosophy requires modern, ball-playing centre-backs who can build quickly and fluently from the back. The role was fulfilled by Gerard Pique at Barcelona and David Alaba at Bayern Munich, and Laporte, it seems, will be the man for the job at Manchester City.A money-spinning transfer to the Etihad would cap a rapid rise for Laporte, who was only 18 when Bielsa promoted him to Athletic Bilbaos first team in November 2012. It was quite a difficult year for Athletic, recalls Río. Javi Martinez had left and they were having trouble renewing Fernando Amorebietas contract, so Bielsa promoted Laporte even though he had hardly played for the reserves. A City ready for Pep The appetite for Pep Guardiola in Manchester will be greater than it ever was in Munich. Laporte was thrust into the heart of a struggling side, but the 6ft 2ins teenager swiftly established himself as a regular starter in central defence. Bielsa saw characteristics in him that fit with his style of football, says Río. He soon filled the gap left by Amorebieta. He was a boom.Bielsa loved Laporte - I dont remember a single fault I could tell you about, he said in 2015 - and he made 17 appearances before the 60-year-old was replaced by Ernesto Valverde in the summer of 2013. Bielsas gruelling training methods had taken a heavy toll as Athletic finished 12th in 2012/13 but the squad were reinvigorated by Valverde. Laporte, in particular, went from strength to strength. Laporte battles for the ball with Barcelonas Luis Suarez and Marc Bartra Laportes second year in the first team was Valverdes first in charge, says Río. The team finished fourth in La Liga and qualified for the Champions League. Laporte was part of the spine of the team and became the líder of the defence. He was still 19 but no one disputed it despite his age. Bit by bit, he has improved a lot in very little time.Laporte has come out on top in duels with the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo since breaking into the Athletic team. He helped them reach the final of last years Copa del Rey and played every minute of their historic 5-1 aggregate win over Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup in August. Laporte is a great player with every quality. I don’t remember a single fault that I could tell you about. He’s fast, he has character, he is competitive, he has very good technique and he is very intelligent. Marcelo Bielsa on Aymeric Laporte in 2015 Laporte is an accomplished one-on-one defender who doesnt shy away from physical challenges, but he prefers to rely on his fine reading of the game and intelligent positioning rather than gung-ho tackling. He has an excellent range of passing and averages more per game than any other Athletic player with the exception of central midfielder Beñat, while he is also a goal threat, having scored five times this season alone before he was injured in March.As for weaknesses, there is little to cause alarm. In some games you can still see his youth and inexperience, says Río. There have been some errors and he has been sent off for inexperienced fouls, but with time he has got better. You can see that he learns very fast for a player so young, and its not surprising that some of the biggest clubs in Europe want him. Laporte in action for Athletic Bilbao against Espanyol Like Bielsa before him, Valverde is a huge admirer. Hes young and he has to improve some things but hes already the real deal, he said in October. He is a player who is mature, despite his youth. On the pitch you see that because he takes responsibility for his position. Experience is always important, but if you already have that experience when you are 22, then imagine…Laportes rare combination of technical ability, physical prowess and youthful experience has thrust him to the forefront of Manchester Citys plans. Their defensive problems have been costly this season, but as they prepare to usher in a new era at the Etihad Stadium, Bielsas pupil looks ready to make his next step up with Guardiola. Also See: Sagna: Failure would be our fault Who gets into Europe? Has Pellegrni improved City? Kompany facing long spell out Jackie Robinson Jersey .Y. -- The Buffalo Bills will head into the regular season short on experience at quarterback after trimming the roster on Friday. Clayton Kershaw Jersey . Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. Duck Calling With several marquee centres available via trade and expected to be available via free agency, the Anaheim Ducks could be primed to be big players in the coming days. http://www.dodgerssale.com/dodgers-mike-piazza-jersey/ . Serves hit by her surgically repaired shoulder often missed the mark, resulting in 12 double-faults. Custom Los Angeles Dodgers Jerseys . Thats 14 consecutive losses to the two-time defending champs, and most of them were over before they even began. Result notwithstanding, Sundays game had a very different feel to it. Cody Bellinger Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable.DAYTON, Ohio -- So much for first-time jitters. Chris Eversley scored 19 points to help Cal Poly avoid its 20th loss of the season and win its first NCAA tournament game, 81-69 victory over Texas Southern on Wednesday night in the First Four. The Mustangs (14-19) were 0-3 and 4-9 early before losing nine of 11 heading into the Big West Conference tournament -- which they won to earn the programs first NCAA bid. The team with the worst record in the tournament now moves on to face the one with the best -- top-seeded Wichita State (34-0) -- in the second round in St. Louis on Friday. There have been 23 teams with losing records in the NCAA tournament since 1955. Only three teams had won in the first/opening round. Aaric Murray closed out his career with 38 points for Texas Southern (19-15), champs of the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament. David Nwaba added 17 points and Brian Bennett -- who was a perfect 5 for 5 from the field -- had 10 for the Mustangs. Cal Poly had participated in seven Division II tournaments, finishing third in 1981. The 81 points were the Mustangs second-highest total all season. They shot 57 per cent from the field (29 of 51). Coach Mike Davis, in his second year with Texas Southern after earlier leading Indiana and UAB to the big tournament, was clearly not happy during two timeouts to try to get his team to play better on defence. Murray was the top player on the court, but that wasnt enough for the Tigers. Originally a blue-chip recruit for La Salle, he left there for West Virginia where he was dismissed from the team. In his final year of eligibility for Texas Southern, he had 28 points against Stanford, 30 against Tulsa and 48 against Teemple in his return home to Philadelphia.dddddddddddd Cal Poly dominated most of the first half to build a 12-point lead at the break and never let it go. Down by as many as 16 points early in the second half, the Tigers fought back with a 9-4 run to get the lead down to single figures. It stayed there until the Mustangs awakened. Murray had a jam and two foul shots to narrow it to 70-62 with 4:42 left before the teams traded points. Cal Poly took time off the clock until Kyle Odister missed a long 3, but Nwaba was fouled on the rebound and hit the second shot with 1:42 remaining. Texas Southern then turned it over when Rodriguez bowled over Jamal Johnson on a drive. Eversley was quickly fouled and swished both and the lead was back to 76-66 with just over a minute left as the small contingent of Mustangs fans cheered across from their teams bench. The Mustangs salted the game away at the line in the final 60 seconds. Ganging up on the Tigers Murray at every opportunity, the Mustangs pulled away midway through the opening half. Trailing 17-16 after a Murray 3 which gave him 11 points, Cal Poly took the lead for good on Bennetts slashing move to the hoop. After a Texas Southern miss, Bennett scored again on a 14-foot jumper. Those two baskets keyed a 16-7 burst for a 32-24 lead. Murray ended up 14 of 23 from the field, 3 of 5 behind the arc and a perfect 7 for 7 at the line. The Mustangs led the Big West in scoring defence, allowing 63.4 points a game while finishing last in scoring (63.2). Conversely, the Tigers led the SWAC in scoring (76.2 points) but was near the bottom in defence (73.7). Texas Southern was making its fifth NCAA trip, and fell to 0-5. ' ' '