The Citizens manager Pep Guardiola surprisingly included Samir Nasri, Eliaquim Mangala, Gael Clichy and Jason Denayer, who have been declared surplus to requirements, shunning Nigeria striker Iheanacho and Ivory Coast forward Wilfried Bony.
His omission from the pre-season tour may have confirmed that Iheanacho will leave the Etihad Stadium this summer.
The 20-year-old fell out of favour under Guardiola during the second half of last season, following the arrival of rising star Gabriel Jesus.
Iheanacho has been linked with a £25m to Leicester City, while Bundesliga clubs Borussia Dortmund and Hoffenheim are also said to be interested in the UAE FIFA Under-17 World Cup Golden Ball winner.
On 10 September 2016, Iheanacho started in the Manchester derby. He recorded an assist and his first goal of the season in the 2–1 win. Four days later, Iheanacho came off the bench to score the final goal in City’s 4–0 home win in the Champions League, against Borussia Mönchengladbach. This was his first European goal for Manchester City. Three days after the 4–0 win, Kelechi scored the second goal, also assisting the third, in City’s game against AFC Bournemouth. That goal took his tally in the Premier League to 10, allowing him to join an exclusive list of players to have scored 10 Premier League goals before the age of 20. This list includes players such as Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs, Nicolas Anelka, Michael Owen and Romelu Lukaku. In October 2016, Iheanacho was nominated for the FIFA Golden Boy award, which was eventually won by Bayern Munich’s midfielder Renato Sanches. Previous winners of the award include teammates Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero, and five-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi.
Iheanacho’s next goal would come in the Champions League, against Celtic, in a 1–1 home draw on 6 December 2016.
