MX23RW : Thursday, December 19 12:11:32| >> :60:664:664:

Manchester City youngster Matondo completes move to Schalke

Manchester City youngster Matondo completes move to Schalke
© Reuters
The 18-year-old was regarded as one of City's most promising academy players.

Schalke have signed Wales winger Rabbi Matondo on a permanent deal from Manchester City.

The Bundesliga club have announced the 18-year-old has signed a four-and-a-half year contract after moving to the Veltins Arena for a reported £10million fee.

Matondo never made a first-team appearance for City but was regarded as one of their most promising academy players and was capped by Wales last autumn.

He is the latest highly-rated young player to leave City for opportunities abroad following Brahim Diaz, who joined Real Madrid earlier this month, and Jadon Sancho, who moved to Borussia Dortmund in 2017.

Matondo believes he is following in good footsteps by joining Schalke, who are currently 12th in the Bundesliga.

He told the club's website: "I already knew something about Schalke before the offer – Mesut Ozil, Ivan Rakitic and Leroy Sane took important steps in their careers (here).

"There were very good discussions with the coach and my new team-mates had only good things to report.

"In addition, the Bundesliga is a great league. Schalke is the right choice for my footballing future and I'm looking forward to being part of the club and its plans for the future."

Matondo was born in Liverpool but raised in south Wales. He joined City from Cardiff in 2016.

He represented Wales at youth levels and was handed his first senior cap as a substitute by Ryan Giggs in last November's friendly defeat in Albania.

Schalke manager Domenico Tedesco said: "He is extremely fast and technically good, but we must not forget that he is still very young. That's why we'll give him the time he needs to get a grip on Schalke and the Bundesliga."

Intriguingly, City play Schalke in the last 16 of the Champions League, with the first leg taking place in Germany on February 20.

Schalke's interest in the player had largely gone unnoticed until earlier this week.

Sporting director Christian Heidel said: "We are glad that in the past few weeks we have been able to convince Rabbi in peace, and without much publicity, that a change to us is the right decision for him."

City manager Pep Guardiola spoke about the potential deal earlier this week, stressing that yet more interest in a player from a leading European club can only reflect well on the academy.

He said: "I know how good he is, an incredibly fast winger and a young talent. That is a good signal of how good this club is working."

ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Andy Hampson, Press Association Sport');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', '6ad53f9a-279d-4ead-9f16-82dddc8e8c17');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:club-news,paservice:sport:football,paservice:sport:uk,paservice:sport:world');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Manchester City youngster Matondo completes move to Schalke'});

ID:348676: cacheID:348676:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5086:
Written by
P A
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Manchester City youngster Rabbi Matondo in action during a Wales training session in November 2018
Read Next:
City 'set to lose £10m youth prospect'
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool15113131131836
2Chelsea16104237191834
3Arsenal1686229151430
4Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest168442119228
5Manchester CityMan City168352823527
6Bournemouth167452421325
7Aston Villa167452425-125
8Fulham166642422224
9Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton166642625124
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1672736191723
11Brentford167273230223
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle166552321223
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd166462119222
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham165472129-819
15Crystal Palace163761721-416
16Everton153661421-715
17Leicester CityLeicester163582134-1314
18Ipswich TownIpswich162681628-1212
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1623112440-169
20Southampton1612131136-255


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!