Guardiola ‘corners’ Man City star and ‘offers’ him to Barcelona for £34m as Citizens ‘regret’ deal
Man City ‘regret’ the signing of Abdukodir Kushanov in the January transfer window and are already looking to offload the player, according to reports.
The Citizens are having a poor season by their standards in the Premier League with Pep Guardiola’s side currently fifth in the table and in real danger of missing out on Champions League qualification.
Man City were also knocked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid earlier this year and their only chance of silverware is in the FA Cup, where they face Nottingham Forest in the semi-finals.
The Man City board splashed out in the January transfer window to attempt to rectify some of their issues with Omar Marmoush, Nico Gonzalez, Khusanov, Vitor Reis and Juma Bah all joining Guardiola’s squad.
Khusanov has made nine appearances in all competitions for Man City since joining from Lens in January but the Uzbekistan international has not been seen in a Citizens shirt since the end of March.
Guardiola was praising the defender at the end of March, he said: “He [Khusanov] was not expected to play this many games but the situation in the back four all season means he plays a lot of games. He has a special quality. Really special. He’s so fast and he brings his passion.
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“His face doesn’t always show but he shows it in many actions. We are delighted in the short time with training, with many things.
“Vitor [Reis] is the same. The games we played in the FA Cup in previous rounds were so good.
“In the middle of the season it is not easy to settle in a new country and new league. They are so good and so positive in their mindset and body shape.”
There have been rumours on social media of a bust-up between Khusanov and Guardiola, which have not been substantiated.
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But reports in Spain now claim that Guardiola now ‘corners him’ at Man City with the 21-year-old ‘offered’ to Barcelona for €40m (£34m) ahead of the summer.
After ‘disappearing completely’ in April, Man City are ‘already starting to regret signing him, which is why they’re willing to sell him again if it means they can recoup the money they paid at the time.’
The report adds:
‘The young player, for his part, is also unhappy with his situation and isn’t happy at City.
‘So he’s also asked his agent to start looking for a way out for him, and to contact some teams that might be interested in signing him.
‘And one of the clubs that has received a call from Kushanov’s representative and has the opportunity to secure his services is Barça , who has not ruled out the arrival of a new star for the axis of the rearguard, although the favorite remains Jonathan Tah, who would arrive at zero cost, and who has already publicly announced that he will not continue at Bayer Leverkusen.
‘But Joan Laporta and Deco could also consider signing the City player.’
