Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted Joao Cancelo was unhappy with his role at the Etihad, prompting his surprise switch to Bayern Munich.
Cancelo was part of the PFA’s Team of the Year for the last two seasons after establishing himself as one of the best full-backs in the world, but he struggled for minutes this season and has joined Bayern on an initial loan with a view to a €70m permanent deal.
Asked about the build-up to Cancelo’s exit, Guardiola insisted he had nothing but positive words for the full-back but admitted disappointment over his minutes led to an exit.
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“First, I wish him the very best in his four months,” Guardiola said.
After the World Cup, we had a pre-season and decided to play a little different.
He trains the best but the situation, he doesn’t play much.
In the last year, [he was] one of the players with more minutes.
“If Bayern Munich want Joao, it’s because he’s an exceptional player.
Guardiola admitted that brief talks had been held over finding a replacement left-back but, with Nathan Ake and Sergio Gomez on the books, the decision was made to stick with the current squad until the summer at least.
