Manchester City and Atletico Madrid will play the second game of the Coupang Play Series at Seoul World Cup Stadium at 8 p.m. on the 30th.
The starting list was announced ahead of the game. Manchester City will start with Kyle Walker, Hoobeng Dias, John Stones, Elling Holland, Jack Grealish, Imerick Laporte, Rodri, Julián Alvarez, Bernardo Silva, Ederson and Phil Foden.
Atletico have Cesar Aspilicueta, Chalar Soeyunjwi, Rodrigo De Paul, Coque, Antoine Griezmann, Thomas Lemah, Samuel Reno, Jan Oblak, Alvaro Morata, Axel Vitzel and Mario Hermoso in the starting lineup. Ahead of the season’s opening soon, both teams have made the best roster possible.
In Manchester City, it is noteworthy that Walker and Silva are included in the starting list. Currently, Walker and Silva are rumored to transfer to Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), respectively. South Korean fans are also paying attention to rumors of a transfer between Munich, where Kim Min-jae moved, and PSG, where Lee Kang-in joined.
Walker has asked for a move to Munich. Germany’s Sky Sports said on the 19th (Korea Standard Time), “According to our information, Walker told Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola that he wanted to move to Munich.” Last Friday, Walker had already promised a move to Munich. “We will sign a contract with Munich until 2025 when there is a one-year extension,” he reported.
But Guardiola is trying not to let Walker go. He said, “Just as Munich is confident (to recruit Walker), we will fight (to stay in Walker). I don’t know how it’s gonna end. He is an incredibly important player for us,” he said.
“Workers have very special qualities that are hard to find around the world and cannot be replaced,” he said. We want Walker to stay but we don’t know what will happen. We need the best players to face Munich. We want Walker to stay next season, so why not let him play?” he said, signaling a friendly against Munich. Walker also showed Guardiola’s will as a starter against Atletico.
The same goes for Silva. Santi Auna, a reporter for France’s “Foot Mercato,” a French transfer market expert, said on the 21st, “Man City is still refusing access, but Silva is still PSG’s priority. “The first offer was 42 million euros (about 60.2 billion won) and included one player,” he reported.
However, Manchester City is not expected to let Silva go smoothly. As Saudi Arabia’s Al Ahli suddenly recruited Riyad Mahrez, Manchester City also created a gap in its offense. Accordingly, Manchester City has reportedly decided to protect Silva.
“Man City thought the proposal was inappropriate and judged that there was no possibility of even starting negotiations,” Auna said. Man City have priced Silva high. It is 100 million euros (about 143.3 billion won). Manchester City also knows Silva is open to the possibility of a transfer, he explained.
Silva is also showing that he is a key player in the team by making his name on the starting list against Munich and Atletico.
Meanwhile, about 90 minutes before the match, heavy rain began to pour at the Seoul World Cup Stadium. It rained so much that a heavy rain warning was delivered as a safety disaster text message. Eventually, the organizers decided to postpone the game for 30 minutes.