Bony: Injury ruined my spell with City

FORMER City striker Wilfried Bony has revealed injury problems stemming from winning the African Cup of Nations in 2015 resulted in his failed spell at the Blues.

Bony arrived in England in 2013, joining Swansea from Vitesse after racking up an impressive scoring record in the Eredivisie.

After netting 20 goals in the 2014 calendar year – the most out of anyone in the Premier League – City paid £25m, potentially rising to £30m, to lure him to Eastlands the following January.

However, his arrival at the club was delayed due to participation in AFCON and Bony has revealed that injury troubles following the tournament meant his start with the Blues was extremely difficult. He said: “I came back after winning the Cup and my body was kaput – that didn’t help me.

“I tried hard but I was not good. I kept getting injuries – hamstrings, calf – because I was tired. That season was very difficult.”

Bony eventually earned a spell in the side and rediscovered his goalscoring touch, netting eight in 16 games.

However, another injury soon put him out of the side again which led to his eventual departure.

Bony added: “I wanted to do good, I wanted to do more but my body was tired, not able to provide what I would expect. I’d played two or three years without a rest.”

Bony was loaned out to Stoke City following the arrival of Pep Guardiola and rejoined Swansea in the summer of 2017. The 31-year-old is a free agent after being released by the Welsh side.