Why Cancelo will probably return to Man City this summer

Carlo Garganese

• Updated: 5 Feb 2023 18:29 GMT
• 3 min read

Manchester City will have to lower their asking price if Joao Cancelo is to make his loan move to Bayern Munich permanent this summer.

Cancelo completed a loan move in January to Bayern,, who have the option to make the deal permanent in the summer for €70 million.

The Portuguese international had requested to leave Man City this window after losing his first-team place at Man City and having a rumoured falling-out with manager Pep Guardiola.

READ MORE: January 2022-23 done deals

But all the signs currently are that Cancelo’s loan move will not become permanent unless the €70m fee is lowered significantly.

What did Pep Guardiola say about Cancelo staying permanently?

“Now he’s at Bayern and we will see what happens next season”, Guardiola said.

“At the end of the season, we will talk many, many things with many, many players. So we will see.”

What did Hasan Salihamdizic say about Cancelo staying permanently?

Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamdizic is certainly not confident about a long stay for Cancelo.

"After the transfer was done, we actually thought again about how long we've been dealing with Joao,” he said.

“We came up with more than four years. Either our position was filled or we didn't have the money for it.

"We're playing with open cards. This sum is difficult for us to imagine in the next few years. If all sides really want a common solution, you can manage that in the end. He knows that he has been one of our dream players for years."

🚨| João Cancelo’s first objective was to join Real Madrid. The offer was loan + option to buy in summer, but Real Madrid weren’t even interested to listen to the proposal. @marca #rmalive 🇵🇹 pic.twitter.com/8BuOfQyW9x

— Madrid Zone (@theMadridZone) February 5, 2023

What did Cancelo say about move?

Cancelo has explained his reasons for leaving City last month and denies that he fell out with Guardiola.

"I've not had much game time in the past few weeks, which influenced my decision,” the Portuguese international said.

“There was speculation that my relationship with Pep was not the best but fact is I wanted to play more,"

"I really wanted to embark on this new adventure at such a club with such a big history. It's a dream for me. I'm very happy to be here and to show my footballing qualities. I know that this club, this team, lives for titles and wins titles every year. I'm also driven by the hunger for success."

Cancelo made his Bayern debut in the 4-0 DFP win over Mainz, grabbing an assist.