Guehi: Discussions with Foden and Stones swayed Man City move

Marc Guehi revealed conversations with England team-mates Phil Foden and John Stones helped him decide to join Manchester City from Crystal Palace.

Guehi joined the Citizens on Monday in a deal worth £20m and made his debut in their 2-0 Premier League win over Wolves on Saturday.

The defender made a solid first appearance for City, with the most attempted (105) and accurate (98) passes of anyone in the team, while only Rodri (117) bettered his 115 touches.

With a lot of clubs rumoured to be interested in Guehi’s signature, he admitted it was discussions with Foden and Stones that swayed him.

“We’ve been talking for quite a while and obviously talked with different clubs,” said Guehi.

“I felt from conversations, through talking with some of the players here, that this was the place for me to improve, to get better, and just to help as much as possible.

“Phil and John, conversations with the manager [Pep Guardiola], conversations with [director of football] Hugo [Viana], so it’s been great.”

Guehi’s Palace contract had been set to run out at the end of the current season, and he had attracted interest from the likes of Arsenal, Bayern Munich and Barcelona.

Liverpool were also thought to be in the mix, and the 25-year-old had been close to a move to the reigning Premier League champions in the summer, but his move to Merseyside fell apart in the closing stages.

“Very close, very close,” he said of how close he was to a deadline-day move.

“The medical was pretty much done, and then it got pulled at the last minute. So, yeah, I was quite close.

“I was OK. My mindset’s always move on to the next one, but my mindset is what will be, will be.

“God’s got a plan for me. Just move on to the next one. It was just focusing on what I could do for Palace.

“It feels like it’s been going on forever. But, you know, I’m just glad that I got to move over the line.

“I’m really confident that this is the place for me to improve, to grow as a player. So I’m glad I could get over the line.”