Stoke keeper Begovic reveals he was close to Man City move

Tuesday 05 November 2013

Stoke goalkeeper Asmir Begovic has revealed that he nearly joined Manchester City before Roberto Mancini was sacked, ITV Sport has reported.


The 26-year-old has been a regular in the Stoke line up over the past few seasons, and his consistent fine form has seen him be linked to several moves to top clubs over the years. One move that seemed to have substance was that of Manchester City, with Mancini being prepared to follow up his initial interest in the Bosnian stopper before he was sacked last season.

The Potters keeper said: “As players we are the last to find out things, probably our agents and club officials find out first without talking to us, then at the latter stage of negotiations they will tell us.

“As for Manchester City, when Mancini was on the bench, we were very close to an agreement. The transfer was not realised due to several reasons, but the main one was the departure of the Italian manager.”


The Bosnia international, however, insisted he remains focused on his career at Stoke and his country's first ever World Cup appearance in the summer, putting City to the back of his mind.

He added: “Could I still move to City? I really don't know if negotiations between clubs are still ongoing. But for me probably the best thing would be to stay at Stoke until the end of the season as in that way I would be truly ready for World Cup in Brazil.”

Begovic managed to get himself on the score sheet for Stoke on Saturday with a goal within the first minute of their 1-1 draw with Southampton at the Britannia, making him joint top scorer for Stoke.

Stoke face a trip to the Liberty Stadium to take on Swansea and are looking to end a miserable run of form that has seen them go seven games without a win in the league, leaving them just above the drop zone.

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