Despite rumors of a potential exit, Joao Cancelo has previously stated that he sees himself staying at Manchester City for the long term.
After leaving Juventus in 2019, the full-back has established himself as a shining star at the Etihad. The Portuguese star helped City win back-to-back league crowns and won individual honors along the way.
Since returning from the World Cup, Joao Cancelo hasn’t been a starter, which raises concerns about his future. Cancelo’s game time has decreased lately because players like Rico Lewis and Nathan Ake have been placed on the flanks.
As a result, clubs in France, Spain, Italy, and Germany are becoming increasingly interested in monitoring the situation, according to the Telegraph. Joao Cancelo did recently sign a new contract, keeping him at Manchester until 2027 and giving him the No. 7 jersey.
For the victory over Chelsea last week at Stamford Bridge, he was reinstated to the starting lineup. The full-back was reinstated to the lineup for a shocking loss to Southampton, despite Pep Guardiola’s decision to remove him at halftime in favor of Lewis, whose performance has drawn criticism.
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Joao Cancelo’s Uncertain Future
Guardiola may alter his starting lineup for the crucial Manchester derby at Old Trafford on Saturday. That will only fuel rumors about Joao Cancelo future. But the former Juventus player recently said that he believes Manchester is the greatest location for him to be.
“Manchester City was the most important step I took in my career. Of course, I’ve been in big clubs such as Benfica, Valencia, Inter, Juventus. But I think that, right now, Manchester City is in another level,”
he told the club magazine.
“I decided to come here, but of course, the first six months weren’t very good. I needed a period to adapt. But now I’m much more integrated here and I hope to stay many more years, because here is where I feel good.”
Cancelo had previously received a tonne of praise, but Guardiola is known to occasionally remove players from the starting lineup. Prior to raising his game, John Stone’s future appeared gloomy. Aymeric Laporte sat out a lot of games, while Riyad Mahrez’s future was also in doubt as his playing time decreased.
Joao Cancelo cut a visibly frustrated figure when he was taken off at Chelsea. And Guardiola has underlined that the demeanor of his players is a key factor in making selection calls.
He recently said:
“I look at the body language in the training sessions and everything. You cannot play good when the body language is not correct. Sometimes I pick them for the body language, for how happy they look and how they are there. This is one of my main decisions when I choose the lineup.”
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