England star Marc Guehi has ended up at Manchester City in the January transfer window, less than five months after his move to Liverpool collapsed at the last minute
Marc Guehi of Manchester City
Marc Guehi joined Manchester City after his Liverpool move collapsed(Image: Michael Regan/Getty Images)
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Marc Guehi admits he was never left seeing red following the collapse of his move to Liverpool last summer, because he knew once Manchester City came calling, it was his destiny to join Liverpool's bitter rivals instead.
Guehi had completed a medical on Merseyside, after Liverpool agreed a £35m fee with Liverpool. But Palace chairman Steve Parish pulled the plug on the deal at the 11th hour, forcing Guehi to return to the London club. But unlike Alexander Isak, Guehi would never dream of going on strike to force through a switch to Anfield.
The England defender bided his time, and headed back north again once Pep Guardiola wanted him, to join the club which has dominated domestic football for the last decade. Speaking for the first time about what happened, Guehi said: "The medical was pretty much done, and then it got pulled at the last minute.
"So, yeah, I was quite close (to joining Liverpool). I was OK. Yeah I was OK. My mindset is always move on to the next one. God's got a plan for me. Just focus on what I could do for Palace.
"I can't speak on anyone's behalf or about anyone else's decision. That's their life. But getting bought by Palace was such an honour, a blessing, so it would be doing Palace a disservice if I was acting a certain way.
"The least I could do was show up to work every single day, shut my mouth and keep my head down. I think that's most important. I'm just glad that I got to move over the line. I'm really confident that this is the place for me to improve, to grow as a player. So I'm glad I could get over the line."
Guehi couldn't have wished for a more comfortable debut, with City cruising past Wolves thanks to first-half goals from Omar Marmoush and Antoine Semenyo. It was City's first league win of 2026.
Marc Guehi of Manchester City
Marc Guehi looked assured in Manchester City's 2-0 win over Wolves(Image: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
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Guehi's arrival at the Etihad is expected to see the departure of fellow defender John Stones in the summer. Which is ironic, considering Stones was one of Guehi's England team-mates who persuaded him to join City ahead of several other clubs.
Guehi added: "We've been talking for quite a while, and obviously I also talked with different clubs. But I felt from conversations, through talking with some of the players here, that this was the place for me to improve, to get better and just to help as much as possible.
"I had conversations with John and Phil [Foden], so it's been great. I couldn't say it's down to one person, but it's definitely a mixture of everything. They just spoke so highly of the football club and the people at the football club. And for me, that's most important. When you come to a place, you want to feel the love, the appreciation and the welcome. So far since I've been here, I've felt every bit of that."
Pep Guardiola the head coach / manager of Manchester City with Marc Guehi
Pep Guardiola got his man in the January transfer window(Image: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
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But despite having to cope without his new signing for Wednesday's crunch Champions League clash with Galatasary, Guardiola admits he has been impressed with how wackily Guehi has settled into his new life in Manchester.
He said: "The captain of Crystal Palace has to be something special. I'm really pleased for him. He is so demanding of ourselves to do better. Good players adapt quick and understand the game. And that's what he's done."
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