PSG Already Looking to Take Advantage of Manchester City’s Champions League Ban

It was only a matter of time until Paris Saint-Germain was linked to a Manchester City player following the news of the English club being banned from the UEFA Champions League for two seasons.

City are trying to appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport but there could be an exodus of players this summer who don’t want to waste two years of their careers not playing in the most prestigious cup competition in club football.

According to Calciomercato (via Daily Mail), Paris Saint-Germain could take advantage of the situation as they have targeted Riyad Mahrez who has scored nine goals in 37 appearances for City.

Mahrez got his start in French football coming up through the Le Havre system before joining Leicester City FC where he was on the famous 2015-16 team that shockingly won the Premier League.

Mahrez’s contract expires in 2023 and the 29-year-old likely wants to play out the last few years of his career as an elite footballer on a team competing in the Champions League.

Mahrez is capable of playing on either wing in the attack but it’s hard to imagine him being a regular starter at PSG. If Kylian Mbappé and Neymar Jr. remain at the club, the Algeria international wouldn’t start over them. Even Angel Di Maria and Pablo Sarabia would likely be preferred over Mahrez unless he was able to prove he was substantially better for the team.

If Mahrez came to PSG, he would likely be no higher in the pecking order than where Julian Draxler is now. Would Mahrez be OK with that? I highly doubt it. If this transfer rumor is to become reality, PSG will need to offload some of their wide attacking players to accommodate Mahrez and given the quality already in the team, I’m not sure that’s a good strategy.

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Tags Angel Di Maria Julian Draxler Kylian Mbappé Manchester City Neymar Pablo Sarabia PSG Mercato Riyad Mahrez
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