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Man City is home to some of the brightest prospects of the future. The likes of Phil Folden and Brahim Diaz have graduated from the academy and have become members of the first team. Folden has a chance this season to become a regular in the starting 11, and Diaz has interest among Europe's top clubs.
Man City have invested over £200 million alone on their academy. This has started to show with Folden making an impact. However except these two players, very few have actually progressed from the academy in recent years. This is partly down to Pepe Guardiola. However, it is surprising when you look at the players who started off at Man City. These players have all gone on to do great things for other clubs. So why did City not keep them?
#5 Kieran Trippier
The Tottenham defender started off his career at Man City in their academy. He was part of the Man City squad who won the 2008 FA Youth Cup. It looked like he had made his first-team breakthrough when he was part of the 2010 Man City pre-season tour.
However, this was not the case. He failed to make a competitive appearance for City. This was partly due to Pablo Zabaleta and Micha Richards blocking his way at the right back position.
He left for Burnley, where he made an instant impact. This included a great 2014/15 season. This was rewarded with a move to Spurs in 2015.
He has continued to do well at Spurs, and he was even part of the 2018 England World Cup squad that got the the Semi Final. It looks as though Man City will regret letting Trippier go.
#4 Adrien Rabiot
It is weird to think that Adrien Rabiot was once part of Man City's academy. A player who is now seen as one of the top midfielders of his age, it's odd to think he could not get into the first team.
He was only at City for a few months, due to switching clubs very often, until he settled at Man City. Imagine if he had stayed! He went on to PSG were he still is and is an integral part of the team. He has also made his debut for the French national team, although he missed out on a World Cup place.
Although he left he could still return. With less than a year left on his PSG contract, City may look as him for a replacement for Yaya Toure.
#3 Loris Karius
Karius caught Man City's eye when he was playing for Germany under 16ys against Azerbaijan in 2009. He was invited to Man City for a trial, and he signed in July 2009. Sadly he never came close to the first team and he left for Mainz.
At Mainz, he had great success where he became one of the best keepers in the Bundesliga. He was particularly impressive in the 2015/16 season where he was named the second best keeper behind Manuel Neuer.
He then signed for Liverpool. He struggled at first and was the number 2 behind Simon Mingolet. However, in the 2017/18 season, he became the number 1 and had a fairly good season for most of it, It was in the last game of the season that things changed. It was against Real Madrid in the Champions League Final. He made two huge mistakes which lost Liverpool the match.
This resulted in him leaving the club to go to Beskitas.
#2 Ben Mee
The captain of Burnley never played for Man City in the Premier League. However, he should be proud of what he did in the academy. He led Man City to the Fa Youth Cup in 2008 as the captain alongside Kieran Trippier.
He was rated highly by Roberto Mancini and was included in a pre-season tour to the United States. He played once in the Carling Cup against West Brom, but that was it sadly.
He ended up moving to Burnley. This turned out to be the right move as he's made over 250 appearances for the club and he's now the current captain. Mee is now well known for loving a challenge.
#1 Denis Suarez
Everyone believed that when he signed for Man City in 2011 that he would become one of the best players in the World. Clubs such as Chelsea and Man United had been desperate to sign the young playmaker, but he eventually joined Manchester City.
Despite being named Man City's player of the year in 2012, it was clear that his time at City would be short-lived. Denis felt his time was up so he left for Barcelona in 2013.
After a loan spell at Sevilla in 2014, Barcelona sold him to Villareal in 2015 and included a buy-back clause. This was activated in the summer of 2016 and they brought him back.
Sadly he has struggled since at Barcelona, and he has a reputation for being a bit of a bench warmer.
