The rationale behind Manchester United’s and Manchester City’s rejection of Joao Felix’s summer transfer request has been made public by a Spanish report.
The Portugal international never quite lived up to the anticipation despite showing flashes of brilliance during his second half of the previous season on loan with Chelsea.
Felix made 20 appearances for the Blues in all competitions, tallying four goals along the way. It was not Mauricio Pochettino’s intention to sign him on a long-term basis.
Felix’s agent was working hard to secure a return to the Premier League for his client, but in the end, Felix signed with Barcelona this summer on a season-long loan.
Man City and Man Utd were both offered the chance to sign Felix, as TEAMtalk had previously reported. An agreement to sign him was also made by Aston Villa, but it eventually fell through.
The reason why Man City and Man United passed up the chance to sign the 23-year-old is now known.
Man City and Man Utd missed the opportunity to sign Felix
Felix had a “bad experience at Chelsea,” according to Spanish publication AS, which is why Man City and Man United decided against making a move for him.
As previously said, in his brief time at Stamford Bridge, he only managed four goals. Due to his poor performance, his once-soaring reputation dropped even further, turning away Premier League rivals who were “contacted” by his agent Jorge Mendes regarding a potential transfer.
Felix’s bad relationship with manager Diego Simeone was the reason Atletico Madrid was pleased to let him leave again this summer; as a result, he was free to sign with La Liga rivals Barcelona.
It has also been said that Felix took a significant pay reduction in order to fulfill his “dream” of joining Barcelona. According to a report published in September and reported by the Daily Mail, the attacker would only make £342,000 this season.
In order to sell the Portuguese star for a price of roughly €80 million (£69.3 million) next summer, Atletico hopes he can find his form again this season.
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