“I’d be surprised” - pundit plays down Wilfried Gnonto exit rumours amid Man City links

Former Manchester City winger Steve McManaman has played down rumours linking the club with a summer move for Wilfried Gnonto. The Leeds United youngster has caught the eye of several teams after an impressive spell in the Premier League.

Gnonto joined the Whites last summer though didn’t make his senior debut until November and went onto shine as one of their best players this season, bagging five goal contributions in 16 matches. The 19-year-old could already be on his way out of Elland Road if they are to be relegated and Man City are one club said to be interested.

However, McManaman has claimed it would be a bad decision from his former club if they were to sign Gnonto. Speaking to Betfred, he said: “He is a very tricky winger but unless Manchester City get rid of a couple of wingers, then I don’t see why they’d go for him. In Gnonto’s case, why would he go there if he has competition from Riyad Mahrez, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish and Bernardo Silva?

“He would know that he’s not going to play every single game and his gametime should be at the front of his mind if he’s receiving interest from a prospective buyer. I’d be really surprised if this transfer was to happen this summer. You can’t play well for 11 or 12 games and then be suddenly linked with the best teams in the league. That doesn’t make sense at all.”

Leeds paid FC Zurich only £3.8 million to lure Gnonto to the Premier League in September, however any interested party would certainly have to cough up significantly more than that if the Whites were to consider parting ways with their star boy. With both Chelsea and Arsenal also linked with the Italian, it will be a tough summer for Leeds - though Gnonto is unlikely to pick up regular game time at one of the big clubs.