There are many players sold by Manchester City in the Premier League. Some major teams in the league always turn to Pep Guardiola’s side when it comes to player recruitment.
Since the arrival of Pep Guardiola in Manchester, the Sky Blues have become a dominant force in the English league. They have won many trophies and broken many records. This includes winning the league title four consecutive times and winning all the available domestic cups in a season.
With the achievements recorded, many clubs in the league are always ready to buy City players to their sides, maybe due to their experiences or as a result of their supposed special talents.
Therefore, this list comprises players sold by Manchester City to their league rivals since Pep Guardiola took over in the summer of 2016.
Raheem Sterling To Chelsea €56.20m
Among the players sold by Manchester City is a talented England International, Raheem Sterling. The Englishman was a player to watch during his days at Liverpool before his move to the Etihad in 2015.
Even though the winger joined City a year before the arrival of Pep Guardiola, he had many successful years under the Spanish coach. He was one of the favourite players among the City fans and earned the trust of the Head Coach with his performances on the pitch.
Sterling made 339 appearances for the club across all competitions. He scored 131 goals and provided 95 assists during these games. The Englishman won 11 major trophies with the Sky Blues and 9 individual awards.
However, Sterling wouldn’t end his career at a club where he achieved his career dreams. There will always be an opportunity to play elsewhere and face new challenges. Therefore, in the summer of 2022, Raheem was one of the players sold by Manchester City.
He did not move away from the English Premier League, where he has become a legend. He instead moved from Manchester to London as he was sold to Chelsea FC in a €56.20m deal.
Gabriel Jesus To Arsenal €52.20m
In May 2018, Gabriel Jesus wrote his name in Manchester City history by scoring the only goal as the Sky Blues became a centurion. Like many other players who played at City recently, Jesus had a successful year at the club. However, his dramatic added-time goal against Southampton, which gave City 100 points, was iconic and would be remembered forever.
Meanwhile, in all competitions for City, the Brazilian who joined the club from Palmeiras, had 141 goal contributions in 236 matches. He scored 95 goals and provided 46 assists.
In the summer of 2022, the Centre-Forward joined Mikel Arteta at Arsenal. He had previously worked with the Arsenal Head Coach at City when he was assistant manager to Pep Guardiola. Jesus was one of the high-profile players sold by Manchester City during that summer transfer.
Cole Palmer To Chelsea €47m
Cole Palmer, a young player ready to prove himself, said goodbye to his boyhood club in the summer of 2023. The Englishman wouldn’t allow being relegated to the bench by Pep Guardiola despite having so many talents.
Should we blame the manager who demanded more patience from his talented young player, or blame the player for taking his chances with another team? None of them was wrong, Palmer wouldn’t bench his superiors at City who just one the treble and Pep was also right to let him go.
When it comes to Palmer, one thing is certain: he’s a talented player whose qualities are difficult to find among his colleagues.
Pep confirmed this when he said: “Cole has a special quality in front of the box, a talent that is difficult to find. When he has the ball there, most of the time it ends up in the net. It’s difficult to find that.”
These qualities are what Chelsea saw and decided to invest €47m in an untested academy player. However, it seems the investment is paying up just two years after signing him.
Oleksandr Zinchenko To Arsenal €35m
Just like Sterling and Jesus, Zinchenko is one of the top players sold by Manchester City in 2022. The Ukrainian reunited with Mikel Arteta at Arsenal.
He left the Sky Blues in a deal worth €35 million to seek new challenges. The left-back could keep his place in Pep Guardiola’s XI; therefore, he took the opportunity to try elsewhere.
Kelechi Iheanacho To Leicester City €27.7m
The last player on this list is the Nigerian Center-Forward, Kelechi Iheanacho. The striker was bought as a back-up to Sergio Aguero and had a few opportunities to prove himself. However, he wouldn’t stay too long at the Etihad Stadium as he was sold to Leicester City.
He joined the Foxes in the summer of 2017 in a deal worth €27.7 million.
In a related article, CityReports.co.uk has compiled a list of some players that can be sold by Manchester City during this summer transfer.