Eliaquim Mangala has had the tag of Manchester City flop attached to him for years, as well as the huge transfer fee the Premier League paid.
Moving from FC Porto in 2014, the move was initially thought to have cost the English club less than €40m, claims later followed which pushed the true Manchester City cost as high as €60m, and with the defender not justifying anything like that on the pitch he became something of a controversial figure.
None of that was his own doing, and Mangala is clearly frustrated that the story has followed him. He went on loans to Everton and Valencia whilst still with Manchester City, before signing permanently for the Spanish club in 2019.
He then signed a short term contract with Saint-Etienne in January 2022, and left in the summer. Now 31-years-of-age, Mangala is searching for a club as a free agent, and feels he still has lots to offer the game.
The defender is quoted by L’Equipe as saying: “When they call me, I will be ready. I know my value, I know my level. In Saint-Etienne, without preparation, I chained fifteen matches together without injury. Now I just have to find the right place.”
Looking back on his move to Manchester City and the controversial involvement of third parties, Mangala said: “A football player is a product, they buy a human being. Football is pure business and I understood that a long time ago. In this environment, we are also products. Today is worse. I am a 31-year-old free agent. If I had been in this situation a few years back, no problem… Today, a club will always favour a young person, because potentially on resale, there will be a profit. Society evolves like that, towards business, while the reality is on the ground.”
Mangala is taking inspiration from Karim Benzema winning the Balon d’Or at age 34, as an example that success isn’t linear, and he still wants to show what a good defender he can be… the just needs the chance.
