Angelino (Getty Images)
As per Manchester Evening News, Manchester City’s Champions League ban could see left-back Angelino, who currently plies his trade with RB Leipzig on loan, leave the club permanently.
Angelino, 23, joined City’s U18 side in the summer of 2018 from Deportivo de La Coruna’s youth system. He was then sent on several loan spells to get regular game time after failing to break into the club’s senior team.
He played for NAC Breda in the 2017/18 season, scoring 3 goals and providing 6 assists in 34 Eredivisie games. He then moved to PSV Eindhoven, where he played in 40 games for the Dutch side and, in the process, racked up 1 goal and 10 assists.
But on his return to the Etihad this season, he struggled to play regularly and made just 6 league appearances. He has moved again on loan to Bundesliga side RB Leipzig in January.
Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola’s side have managed to make up for their inconsistent performances in the league by lifting the EFL trophy last weekend. Though they have not defended their league title, losing in the race to Liverpool, they have been in good form in the other competitions.
They are one step away from progressing to the next round in the Champions League and have also gone further in the FA Cup competition after a narrow win against Sheffield Wednesday in midweek. However, they need to make adjustments to the squad for the next season and should offload some surplus players.
In that case, they should sell Angelino on a permanent basis as they already have a huge squad with two left-backs in their ranks.
Benjamin Mendy and Oleksandr Zinchenko have established themselves under Guardiola, despite the former being out of action due to a surgery to his knee. The duo has shared the games between themselves for the majority of the season, leaving the Spaniard on the bench.
Angelino has also not been up to the mark whenever he got his chances. He was poor against Manchester United earlier in the campaign and that game highlighted the need for him to develop further. He looked to be out of form in the game against Liverpool too and therefore, City should not hold on to him when they already have two good left-backs.
The Spaniard is young and at the moment, he needs enough game time which is not possible at Manchester City. And there is no need for the club to continue wasting resources to retain him.
Therefore, City must consider selling the 23-year-old in the summer and strengthen other key positions.
