Semenyo took that advice on board and the following season he contributed to 20 league goals. Midway through the next campaign he joined Bournemouth for £10m.
"I’ve had to be a strong character," Semenyo said of his tough journey to the top after joining City. "Emotionally and mentally, I’ve had to get really strong. I have my family, friends and fiancée around me – keeping me uplifted and always pushing me. I’ve had to push myself quite a bit to get through a lot of hard times – it’s made me the man I am today; strong, fearless and ready to attack the world."
Attack the world is just what he did at Bournemouth. He got eight goals and two assists in his first full season in the Premier League and then 11 goals and five assists last campaign. He almost matched that tally barely halfway through this season, his 10 goals only being bettered by Haaland and Brentford’s Igor Thiago, both centre-forwards.
It means he arrives at City with more goal contributions than every player besides Haaland, while his numbers put his fellow wide forwards to shame. Cherki has two goals although his seven assists are what have stood out, while Doku has one goal plus four assists. Bernardo Silva, Omar Marmoush, Savinho and Oscar Bobb have failed to score in the Premier League.
Phil Foden is the nearest challenger to Haaland and now Semenyo with seven goals, although his recent performances have been poor, falling flat as City have drawn their last three games to fall six points behind Arsenal in the title race.