Joao Cancelo joining Bayern Munich on loan for the rest of the season was a shock to many. The 28-year-old was out of favour at Manchester City, having been dropped by Pep Guardiola for poor form, but few expected him to be axed before the winter transfer window shut.
If reports are to be believed, Guardiola had his reasons for letting Cancelo go, but Danny Murphy admits it’s a “surprising” decision given how few left-backs Pep had at his disposal. The Portuguese international was coming off the back of a fantastic season that saw him contribute 13 goals from defence.
Murphy said on talkSPORT: “It seems a bit surprising because of their lack of cover at left-back. (Cancelo) was absolutely outstanding for the last two seasons. Superb player, very creative (and a) brilliant footballer.” Cancelo made 27 appearances in all competitions this season but started only two of City’s last six Premier League games.
The 28-year-old amassed only 121 minutes of football from a possible 450 in the domestic cups and was an unused substitute in City’s FA Cup fourth-round win over Arsenal, so it was clear that Guardiola had a problem with Cancelo. He was even public about his frustrations with a lack of work ethic in training too.
Cancelo has likely played his last game for the Sky Blues and Nathan Ake may be forced to spend the rest of the season in the makeshift role until a replacement is brought in over the summer, so it’s not an ideal situation even if Pep had to end the disharmony in the camp.
In other news, Sergio Gomez looks a major mistake, Pep Guardiola made rare misstep
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