Bayern Munich: Joao Cancelo explains reason behind leaving Manchester City
Bayern Munich pulled off one of the most astonishing deals in the winter transfer window. The Bavarian club completed a loan deal until the end of the season for Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo. Bayern has been long-term admirers of Cancelo, but no one expected his arrival in Bavaria during the winter transfer window.
Cancelo arrived in Munich on the penultimate day of the transfer window. The record Bundesliga champions have the option to sign him permanently at the end of the season for €70 million. However, Die Roten will look to renegotiate the fee for Cancelo if the loan spell goes well for all parties.
The former Juventus full-back made his debut for Bayern against Mainz in DFB Pokal. In five appearances for Die Roten, Cancelo has two assists to his name. He provides more attacking thrust in the wing-back role on the right side of the defense.
Cancelo leaving Manchester City was a pipe dream for Die Roten a few months ago. However, the sudden turn of events after the World Cup forced Joao Cancelo to look for a new club. While talking to O Jogo this week (via Goal), Cancelo revealed reasons why he decided to part ways with the Premier League club.
"“As I already said, he found a way to play, after the World Cup, in which he started playing with a full-back more inside, where I also played, and he liked what he saw with Rico and Ake. But I think a player is always a bit selfish. A competitive player, like me, who aspires to win titles, just wants to play. It’s not a question of devaluing my teammates. But I thought I deserved to play and he (Guardiola) didn’t.”"
The Portuguese full-back also squashed the rumours of a bust-up with Pep Guardiola. Cancelo insisted that everything was handled professionally once he approached Manchester City to look for a solution in the market. Die Roten moved quickly once they were made aware of Cancelo’s availability.
The signing of Cancelo was a win-win situation for Rekordmeister. Instead of paying a hefty loan fee, they agreed to cover his wages. The option to buy is expensive, but Die Roten is confident about finding the right solution with Manchester City if the loan spell for Cancelo is successful.
Die Roten will face competition from several clubs in the summer for Cancelo. However, the Portuguese full-back has insisted that he feels settled in Bavaria. He may end up favouring a move to Bavaria if the next couple of months goes well for him.
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Nagelsmann will have more options in the right-back position for the rest of the season as Noussair Mazraoui resumed first-team training on Thursday. The Moroccan defender has been on the sidelines due to illness since the end of the World Cup in December. He may not feature against Union Berlin on Sunday, but the game against VfB Stuttgart on March 4 will be ideal for him to make a comeback.