Forget Haaland. Forget Foden. The most remarkable story at Manchester City right now is Rayan Ait Nouri, the £40m left back who barely played for six months and is now ESSENTIAL .
The Algerian’s journey from forgotten man to Guardiola’s go to has been nothing short of bizarre. Injured, overlooked, then thrown in at the deep end. Now he’s starting every big game and making himself undroppable .
THE NIGHTMARE START
It would have been Very Typical City, finally signing a left back after years of fan grumbling, then not playing him. And it was.
Ait Nouri’s debut at former club Wolves was fine. Then came the injuries. Twenty minutes into the Spurs defeat, he was off. Came back for the Brighton loss, then out for six weeks .
When he finally returned in October, his only starts before the Africa Cup of Nations were the Carabao Cup at Swansea and the Champions League at Leverkusen . Subbed after an hour against a Championship side. Hooked at half time with Leverkusen ahead .
Meanwhile, Nico O’Reilly had locked down the position. Ait Nouri barely got a kick. For all the fuss about African players being released late for AFCON, he was barely playing anyway .
THE TURNING POINT
Then came Newcastle. A cancelled flight home from AFCON meant Ait Nouri was back in Manchester later than planned. He made sure he was in the squad anyway .
City were in defensive disarray, Gvardiol, Stones, Dias, Gonzalez all out . Ait Nouri came off the bench for the closing minutes and teed up Rayan Cherki for the crucial second goal .
Guardiola noticed. Players who put their hand up when the squad’s bare? They go a long way.
THE RUN
Since then? Nine straight starts. The longest current streak in the squad . Performances at Liverpool and Leeds have been essential . He’s playing with confidence, aggression, and that quality on the ball Guardiola craves.
“There was a period where he didn’t play much and Nico O’Reilly played there,” Guardiola explained. “After that, we didn’t have the consistency with second balls… we brought Rayan from Wolves to play and he’s playing really good.”
THE VERDICT
“He made steps forward a lot in the last games, understanding what we needed and his quality with the ball is fantastic,” the boss added. “He gives us extra passes and defensively he is more aggressive and faster than people could think. In the question of working the line, he’s getting better.”
City fans are just happy to see a left back playing like a left back. Guardiola’s got something more, a player who’s fought through injuries, setbacks, and international duty to become essential.
Ait Nouri doesn’t seek the limelight. He’s quiet, unassuming, happy to give his shirt to a young fan after games . But on the pitch? He’s making noise.
And in a season where City are chasing four trophies, that noise matters.
