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Manchester City have accepted an offer of around €25 million (£21.2 million) for a top-tier player that Pep Guardiola no longer sees as part of his plans, with the deal now pending the agreement of personal terms.
City are known for letting go of high-profile players who have contributed to their Premier League success in recent years, with Aymeric Laporte, Ilkay Gundogan, Riyad Mahrez, and Julian Alvarez among those who have departed in the last two summers. Guardiola was particularly pleased with Gundogan’s recent return.
However, one player who appears to have no future at the Etihad is Joao Cancelo.
At 30, the Portuguese defender is still considered a world-class talent and was included in the PFA Team of the Season for both the 2020/21 and 2021/22 campaigns. However, when Guardiola shifted his tactics to favor center-backs in full-back positions, Cancelo found himself sidelined.
Guardiola now often deploys central defenders like Manuel Akanji, Nathan Ake, and Josko Gvardiol as full-backs, while Rico Lewis has started the season at right-back, often drifting into central midfield.
Cancelo has spent the last 18 months on loan at Bayern Munich and Barcelona, with the latter interested in re-signing him. However, Barcelona’s financial difficulties have made another move unlikely.
Cancelo rejoined Man City’s first-team training this summer, and Guardiola has hinted that the versatile full-back could feature in his matchday squads this season. “He’s training with us,” Guardiola said before the season opener. “We will see, maybe stay, maybe go on loan. I don’t know yet. He’s training well and loves to play football.”
Despite this, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has reported that Cancelo’s future could lie in Saudi Arabia.
Al-Hilal, the Saudi Arabian club that won the league and cup double last season, have verbally agreed on a deal with Manchester City. They have made a €25 million (£21.2 million) bid, and the next step depends on whether Cancelo accepts their lucrative offer.
Romano noted on X: “Al-Hilal have reached a verbal agreement with Manchester City for Joao Cancelo. Fee around €25m package, club-to-club deal verbally done. It now depends on Joao Cancelo and his decision; Al-Hilal offered him a deal worth €15m net salary per season. Cancelo will decide soon.”
Initially hesitant to move to Saudi Arabia, Cancelo has reportedly become more open to the idea and may now accept the offer.
Should Cancelo leave, Manchester City are not expected to seek a replacement. However, they are actively pursuing a replacement for Julian Alvarez after his record £81 million sale to Atletico Madrid, especially following the injury to Oscar Bobb. Celtic’s Kyogo Furuhashi has emerged as a potential target, with personal terms unlikely to be an issue.
