Micah Richards, Manchester City’s longest-serving player, has reluctantly accepted he needs to leave the club and decided to turn down their offer of a new contract and pay rise.
Richards, with almost 250 appearances for the club since making his debut in October 2005, believes he needs a fresh start elsewhere if he wants to start playing more regularly and rediscover the form that enabled him, at 18, to take Rio Ferdinand’s record as the youngest defender to win an England cap.
His decision will form part of a gradual exodus of English players from the Etihad, with at least four others on their way out in the summer.
City had been trying to dissuade Richards from joining that list, offering a new deal with improved terms, but Pablo Zabaleta has established himself as Manuel Pellegrini’s first-choice right-back over the past two seasons and that has been uppermost in Richards’ mind.
His talks with Pellegrini have been amicable and there is an understanding within the club that it has been a difficult decision for a player who has been involved with the club since the age of 14. City will want around £7m for the 25-year-old, citing his importance in their title-winning season before injuries allowed Zabaleta the chance to take over on the right side of defence.
The news has been partly expected at City and the club have already started making contingency plans, with rumour of Arsenal’s Bacary Sagna moving to the Etihad this u
Richards, a boyhood Arsenal fan, would be a contender to replace Sagna if the 31-year-old France international leaves London.
