Grealish, Foden and four signings miss out as 19 City players head to World Cup

Manchester City will send 19 players to the World Cup this summer, yet the number could have been higher had a string of transfers, loan spells, and fitness issues gone differently for several members of Pep Guardiola’s squad.

Rayan Cherki and James Trafford are among those who made their respective squads — France and England — after strong seasons at the Etihad. Cherki made his international debut for France last summer and cemented his place following an impressive first year in English football, while Trafford retained his England spot despite limited playing time after City signed Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Not everyone was so fortunate. Jack Grealish, on loan at Everton, could not make a convincing case for England inclusion, hampered in part by injury. Phil Foden, who had rediscovered his best form between October and December, could not sustain that level into the new year and also missed out.

Four more recent signings tell a sharper story. Nico González arrived from Porto for £49 million and deputised capably for the injured Rodri through much of 2025, but once the Ballon d’Or winner returned to fitness, González was almost entirely displaced. The 24-year-old barely started in the final months of the season and was omitted from the matchday squad on several occasions — one of the most dramatic falls from favour in the City squad in recent memory — and did not make Spain’s World Cup party.

Savinho, who joined six months before González, had made 13 appearances for Brazil before arriving at City, but managed just two international caps in 2024 and was not included in Carlo Ancelotti’s 55-man long list for the tournament.

Claudio Echeverri’s situation was more complicated. The Argentine teenager wanted a loan move to accelerate his international prospects, with City preferring Girona as his destination. He instead joined Bayer Leverkusen — a transfer described as a disaster — before ending up at Girona regardless in the second half of the season. Echeverri made Argentina’s preliminary 55-man list but did not survive the final cut.

Norwegian midfielder Sverre Nypan, who joined last summer with considerable promise, had his loan at Middlesbrough cut short after just six months and finished the campaign with City’s Under-21s, ending any realistic hope of a senior international call-up this summer.