CITY SPECIAL Yaya’s Blues Academy reaping rewards of great term future is still up in the air
JOEL Latibeaudiere this week became the fourth City academy player to pick up an end-ofseason award.
City’s Under-18 captain was recognised by the Premier League as the club’s scholar of the year, picking up his prize at an awards evening on Tuesday.
And three of his team-mates enjoyed success at City’s own season round-up, where head of academy Mark Allen gave a speech to players.
Phil Foden scooped the double for the Under-18s, winning both Player of the Year and Players’ Player of the Year.
The playmaker, who turns 17 this week, was influential in City’s run to the FA Youth Cup final and was also included by Pep Guardiola in a matchday squad, taking a seat on the bench for the Champions League game with Celtic in December.
Commenting on his prizes, he tweeted: “Would like to thank my team, couldn’t of done it without you.”
The awards in the EDS were split between two starlets.
Spanish attacker Paolo Fernandes was voted their Player of the Year after a string of eye-catching performances in the team that finished second in their domestic league.
Dutch midfielder Rodney Kongolo, who captained the Under-19s team in the UEFA Youth League, was named Players’ Player for the EDS. YAYA Toure is the only one of City’s six out-of-contract stars whose future remains uncertain.
Bacary Sagna, Willy Caballero, Jesus Navas and Gael Clichy will all leave the club this summer, after the fans said an emotional farewell to Pablo Zabaleta last week.
And that means Toure, who is understood to have been offered a one-year extension to his expiring contract, is the only one whose position is still to be resolved at the Etihad.
Toure said at the weekend that he wants to stay, and that money is not a consideration – which may be as well, with City expected to offer him a pay cut to stay.
Talks with Toure and his representatives are underway, but reports that a deal has already been agreed are thought to be premature.
Toure told M.E.N. Sport at the weekend he wants to remain at the Blues and that money would not be an obstacle, while Pep Guardiola is understood to have told the Ivorian he wants him to remain for another year.
Toure is understood to accept he will need to take a cut in his £220,000-a-week wage, but he is not likely to accept a huge change.
City said farewell to Zabaleta last week after the iconic Argentine decided to leave rather than accept a one-year extension – he is said to be close to agreeing a deal with West Ham.
And then yesterday they announced that Clichy, Sagna, Caballero and Navas will also go as Guardiola seeks an overhaul of his defence.
Clichy told City fans at a documentary screening on Monday that he was leaving, and the Blues have now confirmed it.
That was quickly followed by the news that Navas would also be on his way out, despite reports a fortnight ago that he was being offered a new deal after his displays as a right-back.
Caballero’s increased the departure likelihood has that Claudio Bravo will remain, as he is just one year into a four-year deal.
City are likely to seek a new goalkeeper in the transfer window, and leave 34-year-old Bravo to fight it out with the new man. The last player to be announced was Sagna, who told M.E.N. Sport on Sunday that he was still in the dark over his future. The 34-year-old had expressed his desire to stay but Guardiola is intent on an overhaul of his back four – and has been strongly linked with Kyle Walker, Hector Bellerin and Fabinho. Sagna’s departure means that three of the five players to have turned out at right-back this season are going – with only midfielder Fernandinho and youngster Pablo Maffeo left.
The only other first-team player out of contract this summer is central defender Tosin Adarabioyo, but City have maintained that they are confident the promising 19-year-old will sign a new deal to stay at the club.