Manuel Akanji ‘frustrated and disappointed’ to miss Manchester derby
Manchester City star Manuel Akanji says he is ‘frustrated and disappointed’ to miss the huge clash at Manchester United on Sunday afternoon.
The latest edition of the Manchester derby takes place at Old Trafford, in what will be an emotionally charged game following the death of United legend Sir Bobby Charlton.
But one player who will not be involved is Akanji, who misses out through suspension after being show a late red card in the win over Brighton last Saturday.
Akanji’s Red Card
He received his first yellow in the second-half for a professional foul on Kaoru Mitoma but and his second for pulling down Ansu Fati as the Seagulls forward looked to counter in the 95th minute.
But speaking in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday, ahead of City’s Champions League clash at Young Boys, the defender expressed his disbelief that he was sent off.
‘Really frustrated, it was not even a foul,’ the 28-year-old said.
‘I touched him [Fati] a little bit on the hip but let go after less than a second. He took two steps and fell and the ref gave me a second yellow. Really disappointed. I wanted to play in the derby.’
Akanji’s Impact at City
Akanji has been a key part of City’s side this season, starting 11 of their 14 games so far, but thankfully for Guardiola he still has plenty of top defenders at his disposal, like John Stones and Ruben Dias.
As he won’t be available to face United, Akanji is very likely to play against Young Boys in his native Switzerland on Wednesday night.
‘They won’t be scared, will try to play football and be brave. We have to focus on ourselves and get three points,’ he added.
‘I want to go again this season and win all that’s possible. Unfortunately we can’t win the Carabao Cup but all the other competitions I hope we can fight for them and hopefully lift some more trophies this year.
‘I think we started really well in the season, we didn’t win the Community Shield but after that we had a long streak of winning but then the three losses in England. Obviously that wasn’t good for us but it’