Manuel Akanji has made a big impact at Manchester City despite only joining last summer, but a report from Javier Parra Peña of Fichajes suggests Pep Guardiola is already wanting to move him on at the end of the season.
The 27-year-old has shown great versatility to impress at right-back and centre-back for City while being enough of a Pep Guardiola favourite to feature in every Premier League game since September’s 1-1 draw with Aston Villa, so why would he be moved on?
Peña claims Akanji is a player Pep ‘does not quite trust’ because he is ‘not performing at the level expected’, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. The Swiss international is joint-third in the squad for tackles (1.4) per game, third among centre-backs for interceptions (0.6) per game and only John Stones (94.3%) has a better pass completion (94.1%).
Akanji hasn’t missed a league game since his debut, so Guardiola is clearly happy with him. City wouldn’t sell an existing player so soon after signing them either, so the Swiss defender will be at the Etihad Stadium in 2023/24. He’s made a total of 21 appearances in all competitions this season and has four-and-a-half years remaining on his deal.
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