Angelino will have bridges to build if he returns to City

ANGELINO’S stock had arguably never been higher when football was forced to pause in March.

He wasn’t seen as a major miss when he left City on loan at the end of the January transfer window but, parachuted straight into the RB Leipzig side, he made an immediate impact.

Confident performances in the Bundesliga were followed by dynamic displays in the Champions League and he excelled in the thumping of Tottenham - a team that had recently defeated Pep Guardiola’s side.

Having been dismissed as an answer to City’s left-back problems, the 23-year-old was forcing some to reconsider their opinions.

The Blues would have jumped at the chance to sell him on for £25m - a year after buying him back for £5.3m when the deal was agreed with the German side.

They likely still will, but there is less chance of getting the fee given the financial hit on football caused by coronavirus – all teams have lost money and German media Kicker were reporting a month ago that RB Leipzig wouldn’t now be able to afford to buy him.

That shouldn’t matter too much for Angelino given he has impressed under a coach that Guardiola rates highly in Julian Nagelsmann, but comments pointing to not enjoying his football at City will not go down well at the Etihad.

Having spoken about his happiness where he is and hoping he will ‘be stable soon in a place’, the defender was asked by Eurosport where he saw his future. “For me as a player the biggest thing is a coach that gives me confidence so...I’ll leave it there,” was the cryptic comment.

Angelino has impressed during his loan spell with RB Leipzig

Pressed on who gave him most confidence, there was praise for Nagelsmann and telling silence on Guardiola, who he would go on to suggest has had little, if any, contact with him since agreeing to his move away from Manchester.

Angelino may not be revealing anything new about his feelings over his City reunion. The Spanish left-back left reporters on the pre-season tour confused after an interview that did not make it sound like he was being treated as first-team competition for Benjamin Mendy, and his performances there - albeit in a defence that was already creaking did little to suggest that either. If it was always going to take time to get up to speed with Guardiola’s precise style, Liverpool and United horribly exposed any weakness.

However much Angelino may not have enjoyed his football at City, the fact remains he could well be back at the Etihad before next season. Having improved his reputation on the pitch in February and March, making comments that can be perceived as criticism of Guardiola in an interview is a strange way to go about increasing his chances of a City return.