Manchester City beat Arsenal to signing of 17-year-old Jeremy Monga from Leicester

Manchester City have signed the Leicester winger Jeremy Monga, who holds the record as the Championship’s youngest scorer, after he turned 17 on Friday

Manchester City have beaten Arsenal to the £12.5m signing of the 17-year-old winger Jeremy Monga from Leicester City.

Monga was coveted by Arsenal but City pushed hard to sign the teenager, who head coach Enzo Maresca knows from his promotion-winning season in charge at Leicester in 2023-24.

Monga, who joined Leicester aged eight, turned 17 on Friday and can play on both flanks. Born in Coventry, he has represented England at various age groups up to the under-19s.

“When I became aware that Manchester City were interested, I knew instantly this was the right choice for me,” Monga told his new club’s website. “For any young footballer, to become part of this amazing club is a dream come true.

“This has been the best club in England over the past 10 years. And it has also handed opportunities to players from the academy like Phil Foden and Nico O’Reilly which shows that the pathway is there. It is a privilege to be here and I’m delighted to have joined.”

Monga, who in April 2025 aged 15 and 271 days became the second-youngest player to make his Premier League debut, is widely regarded one of the most prodigious talents in the country. Last August, aged 16 and 34 days, he became the youngest player to start a game for Leicester and three days later, by scoring at Preston, he became the Championship’s youngest goalscorer, breaking a record that had been set by Jude Bellingham.

Leicester were relegated from the Championship to League One at the end of last season.