Guardiola turns back on sulking Mahrez
MANCHESTER CITY boss Pep Guardiola is set to turn his back on sulking Leicester star Riyad Mahrez (caricature) for good.
Guardiola has been left shocked by Mahrez’s behaviour after failing to secure a deadline-day move to the Etihad.
And Starsport understands Mahrez’s vanishing act has now wrecked his chances of joining City once and for all.
The Algerian winger, who yesterday was AWOL from training for the fifth time in a week, has missed Leicester’s last two games.
Guardiola was considering making another bid to land him in the summer as he looks to add another attacking star to his squad.
But the Spanish boss is said to have major concerns about the character of Mahrez and will now look elsewhere.
A club source said: “The manager loves him as a player, there is no secret about that, but what he’s seen in the last week or so has given him huge doubts about what sort of person he is.
“You need strong characters to win titles. Going missing is not the thing to do. You have to show more bottle than that and not desert your teammates.”
Mahrez will once again sidestep Saturday’s clash against Guardiola’s Premier League leaders.
He claimed he was depressed when his proposed move collapsed after Manchester City bosses refused to meet the asking price.
The Foxes wanted a package totalling around £95 million (RM523m) but City chairman Khaldoon Al-Mubarak was not prepared to go higher than £60 million (RM330m).
City’s sudden interest in Mahrez came only after Leroy Sane sustained an ankle injury in the FA Cup tie with Cardiff.
Leicester have failed to win both games without Mahrez and his continued absence is threatening to damage their hopes of securing European football next season. The 2016 Premier League champions have been reluctant to discuss the situation and have to be careful how they deal with Mahrez if his claims at being depressed prove to be true and he has a genuine illness. He has received an offer of help from the Players union (PFA) whose chief executive Gordan Taylor confirmed the organisation’s offer yesterday, adding that “we are ready to act if we are called in”. “We offered our services last week to the club to try to help resolve it and I was told that they were hoping with the passage of time that it could be resolved, but I’ve not heard anything back from them since,” he said. “We are ready to act if we are called in. “We’ve got to reconcile a difficult situation. It’s public knowledge about Manchester City wanting to take him. It didn’t take place, and there’s a fallout, which makes it difficult. You can see the problems with both sides.
“I don’t claim we can make a difference, but in the past we have made a difference when we’ve been called in to mediate and understand the situation from both sides. We can only do our best. I just feel it needs somebody from outside to deal with it.”
Leicester, however, are hoping to resolve the issue internally and are prepared to give the Algeria international time to reintegrate back into the squad.
At least Mahrez’s national team manager Rabah Madjer stuck up for him. Madjer told Goal.com: “Mahrez currently deserves better than Leicester. But we must not forget that it was Leicester who put him on the right track.
“I think a serious conversation with his board is needed. He wants to go to a bigger club in the English league. I do not know what really happened about his transfer.” – Daily Star/The Independent