MAN CITY MESSED UP WITH 300K SALE WHO'S NOW WORTH MORE THAN LEWIS

Manchester City head into the first international break of the 2024/25 campaign at the top of the Premier League table after the first three matches.

Erling Haaland has enjoyed a sensational start to the season, with a whopping seven goals and two hat-tricks in those three games, and looks set for another superb year in England.

The Norway international kicked his campaign off with a clever finish at Stamford Bridge in a 2-0 win on the opening day, before netting trebles against both Ipswich Town and West Ham United.

He has been the star of the show so far, with his exceptional work in front of goal in the Premier League, but the prolific centre-forward has not been the only eye-catching performer for Pep Guardiola.

Lee Carsley, who is the interim manager of England following the departure of Gareth Southgate, recently named his first senior squad and selected Cityzens academy graduate Rico Lewis, who has begun the season as a regular starter for City.

The impressive youngster has been capped once by the Three Lions to date but was not selected for their squad in Germany for the European Championship in the summer.

Rico Lewis' current market value

This could be a full-on breakout year for Lewis if he can establish himself as a regular starter for both Manchester City and England over the coming months.

His rise through the ranks to become a genuine first-team option for Guardiola has been a big success story for the academy, as they have developed a hugely talented player, who is now an asset for the club.

At the time of writing (06/09/2024), Transfermarkt values the England international at €38m (£32m) and that is a gigantic rise from his valuation of just €1m (£843k) in November 2022.

This means that his value his soared by a staggering 3,695% in less than two years, which perfectly illustrates his incredible rise over the last two seasons.

In the 2023/24 campaign, Lewis produced two goals and four assists in 27 appearances in all competitions, but only started nine matches in the Premier League.

As you can see in the table above, the 19-year-old dynamo has already started three games in the division this term and put in fantastic performances.

The teenage battler has made an impressive nine tackles and interceptions combined and 21 ball recoveries without being dribbled past a single time, which shows how strong he has been out of possession.

Whilst his emergence has been a joy to watch, City may wonder if they could have already had a supreme young talent emerge in his position had they not cashed in on Jeremie Frimpong too early.

How much City sold Jeremie Frimpong for

The Premier League giants reportedly sold the academy prospect to Scottish Premiership side Celtic for a fee of £300k ahead of the 2019/20 campaign, as Pep Guardiola decided that he was not in his first-team plans moving forward, as the youngster had not made a single senior appearance.

He had come up through the ranks with the Cityzens, making 62 appearances for the U18s and U21s combined, but was seemingly not deemed to be a big enough talent to either remain at the club or command a much higher transfer fee.

Frimpong, who was a Netherlands U19 international during his time at City, produced three goals and seven assists from a right-back position in those 62 outings for the youth sides, which shows that his attacking quality was on display.

The Dutch gem immediately became a first-team regular for Celtic and contributed with three goals and eight assists in 51 matches in just 18 months with the Scottish giants, which shows that he was already prepared to play senior football by the time of his exit from England.

Guardiola and City had a nightmare with the £300k sale as Frimpong starred for the Hoops and secured a big move within 18 months of leaving The Etihad.

In January of 2021, German giants Bayer Leverkusen came in and snapped up the Dutchman for a reported fee of £11.5m, which represented a huge profit for Celtic, who had only paid £300k to sign him in 2019.

Jeremie Frimpong's current market value

At the time of writing (06/09/2024), Transfermarkt has Frimpong's current market value at a whopping €50m (£42m), which is considerably more than the £11.5m the Bundesliga side paid for him.

It also means that his value has skyrocketed by an unbelievable 13,900% since Manchester City and Guardiola decided to cash in him for £300k just over five years ago.

The 23-year-old whiz has starred for Leverkusen in recent seasons and his performances on the pitch have seen his value soar, to a point where he is currently worth more than Rico Lewis (£32m).

Frimpong has racked up 26 goals and 33 assists in 146 matches or the German side over the last few years, predominantly featuring as a wing-back on the right side.

He made 47 appearances in all competitions during the 2023/24 campaign as Xabi Alonso's team won the German Cup, the Bundesliga unbeaten, and reached the final of the Europa League.

As you can see in the table above, Frimpong played a crucial role in their success in the Bundesliga last season with 15 direct goal contributions in 31 outings as a wing-back for the Spanish head coach.

He has emerged as one of the finest players in his position across Europe and that is further illustrated by reports linking him with a return to Manchester City this summer.

Whilst the club did not end up re-signing the full-back, the reported interest in bringing him back to Manchester is an admittance that they got it wrong when they sold him for £300k in 2019, as Guardiola and the club had a nightmare by allowing him to move on for such a small fee.

2024-09-07T05:20:49Z dg43tfdfdgfd