Josh Wilson-Esbrand was left out of the matchday squad for Manchester City’s EFL Cup clash with Chelsea on Wednesday and may be uncertain over his role in the first-team after being left out by Pep Guardiola for the third time in the last two-and-a-half weeks.
The 19-year-old has been in the senior squad all season without amassing much playing time on the pitch as he’s behind Joao Cancelo and Sergio Gomez in the left-back pecking order. Wilson-Esbrand has also seen a fullback two years his junior (Rico Lewis) impress on his full debut, so he must be disappointed – Pep rang the changes and included out-of-favour players, but Wilson-Esbrand still didn’t make the cut.
Joining from West Ham United in 2019, the England U20 international has gone on to make 16 appearances for City’s U18s, four appearances for the U19s, 27 appearances for the U21s and three appearances for the first-team. Wilson-Esbrand has played twice at senior level this season, but he’s spent more time as an unused substitute and hasn’t featured in the Premier League.
The 19-year-old has made the squad in 8/13 league games but hasn’t come off the bench yet. He was given two cameo appearances in the Champions League, though one was in a 5-0 win over Borussia Dortmund and the other was a dead rubber game against Sevilla.
Wilson-Esbrand, who is rated highly by Guardiola, played for the U21s on Tuesday, so he wasn’t going to face Chelsea a day later. And the fact he’s been left out of the matchday squad in three of City’s last five games means he isn’t quite at the level to warrant more playing time in the first-team.
In other news, have Man City been in contact with representatives over signing Milan Skriniar?
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