Business is booming but it's essential not to 'lose homegrown connection' at club

MCA TEE SALE CAN BE JUSTIFIED BUT SELLING LEWIS WOULD LEAVE BAD TASTE

- By TYRONE MARSHALL

HAVING lauded City’s strategy of selling academy graduates and bringing in significant funds in the process, it could be considered slightly hypocritical to warn against them flogging another.

But then, Rico Lewis’ case feels a lot different from those who have gone before.

In recent years, City have become the masters of selling young players. Already this summer, they have brought in close to £30m from the sales of Jacob Wright to Norwich City and Yan Couto to Borussia Dortmund. That is good money for two players who never cracked the first team at the Etihad.

James McAtee’s move to Nottingham Forest was confirmed on Saturday, bringing in another £30m. McAtee's situation is slightly different, and there are plenty who would have liked his case to work out a little differently.

The 22-year-old did make 34 appearances for the club, but only nine were starts.

Making just three Premier League starts last season, when the team had its share of difficulties, confirmed to McAtee that he was never going to get the chance to break through at the club he had been with since the under-11s.