After speculation linking Man City with a swoop for Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe, Pep Guardiola has opted to address the rumours head on.
As noted by The Express, the Premier League champions were paired with an interest in the French international and Raheem Sterling was even mentioned as possibly moving in the opposite direction.
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The 19-year-old is undoubtedly one of the top young talents in Europe, winning trophies with PSG last season as well as the World Cup this past summer with France.
Further, he’s bagged five goals and three assists in five games so far this season to build on a successful first campaign with the Ligue 1 champions after impressing for Monaco previously, and so it’s easy to see why Man City would be keen to sign him.
However, Guardiola has ruled that out as he has insisted that they are not pursuing him, in large part down to the fact that he suggests Man City couldn’t afford him.
“That is not going to happen. Sometimes I don’t understand where the news comes from,” he is quoted as saying by Sky Sports.
“Manchester City don’t have, and are not going to spend, the money that maybe Mbappe deserves, or PSG deserves. PSG is not going to sell this kind of player to any other club in the world for the next years, I guess. So that is not going to happen.”
Given his quality and importance to the PSG side currently, coupled with the fact that he has his entire career ahead of him still, there is no reason why the Parisian giants would even consider an exit or why the player might wish to pursue one.
Their ongoing failure in the Champions League could be a factor eventually, but for now, Guardiola has all-but ruled out the possibility of seeing the Frenchman in a Man City shirt in the near future.
Further, Sterling 23, was fundamental to City’s success last season with 23 goals and 17 assists in 46 games, and so Guardiola will surely have no desire to see him leave the Etihad either if he was a necessary part of a possible deal.