Joao Cancelo keeps door open to Man City return and opens up on Pep Guardiola relationship

Joao Cancelo has kept the door open to a return to Manchester City, speaking upon his arrival at Bayern Munich on Tuesday morning.

The Portugal international full-back has signed an initial six-month loan with the Bundesliga giants, keeping him at the club until at least the end of the season, with Bayern Munich having the option to sign the player on a permanent deal in the summer.

Manchester City have installed a €70 million purchase option in the deal, but sources in Germany suggest that the figure can be negotiated, should Bayern Munich wish to turn Cancelo’s loan deal into a permanent one.

As part of the German club’s official statement on the deal, Bayern chief Hasan Salihamidzic said, “We’ve signed him on loan now and have the possibility of signing him permanently in the summer. João is a player we’ve been thinking about for a while now because we very much appreciate his qualities.”

Some however, believe that that is a foregone conclusion, and that Joao Cancelo has already played his final game for Manchester City, especially after the defender released a highlights reel on his Instagram page, thanking supporters for his time with the club.

Nevertheless, the 28 year-old has kept the door open to a return to the Etihad Stadium, responding to a question on his future beyond this season during his first press conference as a Bayern Munich player.

“The video (on Instagram) may sound like a farewell, but it wasn’t meant that way,” Cancelo said. “We have to see what these five months will bring, I want to be here with a clear head. We will then talk about it again at the end of the season.”

Cancelo continued, “But I’m still under contract with Manchester City. I don’t see it as a final departure from the club.”

In recent days, there has also been talk of a escalating tension between Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola and Joao Cancelo – one that ultimately led to the player threatening to leave the football club, according to one report.

Cancelo insists that his decision to leave is not related to Pep Guardiola, stating, “I’ve not had much game time (at Manchester City) in the past few weeks, which influenced my decision.”

“It has nothing to do with my relationship with Pep (Guardiola). 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 didn’t talk explicitly about Bayern with Pep because everything happened very quickly. I wanted to make the right decision for my career and I did that with this great club.”

Joao Cancelo could make his debut for Bayern Munich as soon as Wednesday night, as they travel to take on Mainz in the DFB-Pokal.