Manuel Akanji may have joined Manchester City late in the summer transfer window and somewhat out of the blue, but he wanted out of Borussia Dortmund long before a deal materialised, leading to the Bundesliga outfit bombing him out of the first-team this season.
Despite making 36 appearances across the board last season, featuring in 26 of 34 Bundesliga games, the 27-year-old failed to make an appearance this campaign before being sold to City. He believes requesting a transfer led to mistreatment by new head coach Edin Terzić.
Where will Manchester City finish in the Premier League this season?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th or lower
Akanji told Swiss outlet Blick: “It wasn’t an easy time for me. I was part of the team and had an ongoing contract, was focused and kept pushing in training. But the principle of performance no longer counted, I sat in the stands, no matter how well I trained.”
Akanji went from being a regular in the starting lineup to being surplus to requirements after Dortmund signed Nico Schlotterbeck and Niklas Süle. The Swiss international rejected a new deal last season so a departure looked on the cards, but Dortmund wouldn’t play him despite no move materialising until September.
Akanji missed five games in all competitions and didn’t even make the bench, so he must have been relieved to go when City came knocking. Had the Sky Blues not undergone an injury crisis in defence, the 27-year-old could have ended up staying at a club unwilling to play him.
In other news, Ederson earns only £10k-per-week more than Ortega despite 0 apps this season