Sky Sports Pundit Ian Wright Blasts Riyad Mahrez Over Collapsed Man City Deal
Former Arsenal and Crystal Palace forward turned pundit Ian Wright has spoken out about Leicester winger Riyad Mahrez's behaviour following his move to Manchester City that fell through.
Man City made a total of four bids for the Algerian winger in the lead up to the transfer deadline, with the last offer being worth an estimated £60m. However, The Foxes didn't budge as they stood firm on their £75m valuation of the player.
Since the deal collapsed, Mahrez has missed a total of four training sessions, as well as two Premier League matches for his side.
Although it's understood Mahrez's return to the Leicester squad is something that would be welcomed by manager Claude Puel, Ian Wright wasn't so easy on the Algerian when he spoke to The Debate (courtesy of The Daily Star).
“It’s very unprofessional the way he’s dealing with it." Wright said.
“It’s blatantly obvious for everyone to see. You can’t just down tools because you don’t get what you want. Manchester City - people can say whatever they want. Whether it’s because Sane is injured, they saw a player that they wanted to go for. It was that late in the window and of course people say ‘oh they’re out of order, why didn’t they go for him at the start of the window?"
Wright was perplexed to why Leicester, who bought Mahrez for a mere £400,000, would want to hold on to a player that clearly does not want to play for the club anymore.
"Now the fact is it has disrupted everything for him because he know[s] that he wants to leave Leicester.
“I still can’t understand why Leicester, who bought him for £400,000, wouldn’t want to cash in on that asset who does not now want to play for the club.”
Mahrez will be not included in the Leicester squad when they travel to the Etihad Stadium this weekend to face league leaders Man City.