At 30 years old, Joao Cancelo has been through many clubs. He first shone at Benfica and Valencia, then went through Inter Milan and Juventus, before arriving at Manchester City in the summer of 2019. From that moment on, he came under the orders of Pep Guardiola and quickly gained the trust of the Catalan coach, who established a new position for him, that of a full-back who plays as a central midfielder.
This 'experiment', which Guardiola had already successfully tried in his career, allowed the Portuguese to become one of the best players in his squad. Being a versatile player, Pep was able to count on him for defensive tasks, reaching the byline to finish plays or participating in the creation of plays. His performance was key to winning 2 Premier League titles and a League Cup between 2020 and 2022, where he played everything and earned the recognition of the football world.
However, things began to change when Cancelo missed a game and had no problem showing his annoyance in the sky-blue dressing room. Upon arriving in Manchester after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, his differences with Guardiola began. In the first match of 2023 he started against Chelsea and was substituted at half-time. After the match, the Spanish coach sarcastically regretted having counted on the Portuguese at right back. In the second match Rico Lewis emerged in the first team and the player ran out of patience, so he was loaned to Bayern Munich on the last day of the January transfer market and returned to England in the summer, after the Germans did not exercise their purchase option.
Cancelo shined at FC Barcelona
In the summer of 2023 he went out on loan again, but this time he ended up at FC Barcelona. Under the direction of Xavi Hernández he was the fourth player who played the most minutes during the campaign and regained that shine that he had lost. His experience in Barcelona was so good that the player wants to return to the club and play for at least one more season while his situation with Manchester City is resolved.
The biggest problem with this operation is that the English want to sell him, despite the fact that the player has asked the board to facilitate his departure to head to Barcelona. Even though it is a loan, the full-back will have to lower his salary expectations if he wants to work under Hansi Flick, something he would be willing to do as long as he does not stay in Manchester.
Guardiola would be willing to give him another chance
Although Pep Guardiola could ruin his plans. The Portuguese is still in England training in these last weeks of the transfer window under the supervision of the Catalan, who would be willing to allow him to show his worth and that he deserves a place in the 'Citizen' team. This was revealed in a press conference prior to the Premier League debut against Chelsea: "Maybe he will stay or maybe he will go on loan. He is training well and behaving well. What happens will depend on his agent, we will treat him like everyone else, with respect and trying to make the most of his quality. I never doubted his quality, but we will have to see what happens.”
Right now nothing is certain, so the player will have to make a decision soon about his future. The Portuguese is one of the best in the world in his position and any team would benefit greatly from having him. The Barça board is interested, but it remains to be seen what the decision of all parties will be. Will it be Spain or England? We will find out soon.