Real Sociedad goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli has revealed he had an opportunity to play for Manchester City, but explains why he decided against moving to England.
The 25-year-old was initially on loan at Real Sociedad for two years – 2014 to 2016 – from Uruguayan club Deportivo Maldonado, with City having a hand in the deal. The South American outfit sanctioned his sale to Manchester City in the summer of 2016, who immediately sent him out on loan to Real Sociedad.
In January 2017, the Spanish side signed Rulli on a permanent transfer from the English champions, with claims at the time of a return clause. He has impressed with his displays for Sociedad and recently committed his future to his current employers by signing a new deal, which will keep him in San Sebastián until 2022.
Guardiola was also impressed with Rulli’s display and had contacted him to stay at Manchester City. However, the Argentine international decided to continue in Spain in order to fight for a place in the national team.
“I could go to City, but I preferred to stay in Spain and fight for a place in the Argentine team,” Rulli told Fox Sports.
The Real Sociedad star has now set his sights on returning to Argentina and playing for Boca Juniors. Rulli came to know about the interest from the Argentine Primera División winners through his family and has expressed his desire to play for Boca.
“I learned from my family what is in Argentina about Boca Juniors’ interest. I always said that I would like to play for the best teams and Boca is one of the best. Obviously, I would like to play for Boca,” he said.
So far, there has been no official communication from Boca about signing Rulli. In addition to this, the Argentine giants have not contacted the goalkeeper’s representative or Sociedad to see if there is a possibility of completing the transfer.
It would be no surprise if Manchester City still have a hand in this. The Premier League champions have Ederson now, but at one time Rulli was seen as a future City stopper.
