Germany legend Lothar Matthäus has claimed Manchester City sold Leroy Sané to Bayern Munich this summer because of his inability to track back.
Sané moved to Munich in a £40.5m deal in the summer after more than a year of speculation about a transfer to the German giants.
He was heavily linked with a transfer the year before, but a cruciate ligament injury in the Community Shield ended those hopes.
He finally got the move last summer, but it has not turned out how he would have anticipated, with him struggling to get past Kingsley Coman and Serge Gnabry in Hansi Flick’s starting eleven.
Matthäus believes there is a specific reason he’s not getting regular playing time, though, and that is his lack of defensive work.
“Being a regular would mean that he has to get past Kingsley Coman and Serge Gnabry. The hurdle is high. Sané was injured for a long time,” he told t-online.
“He has to get used to the FC Bayern system, the high and aggressive pressing. He has deficits on the defensive side anyway. He has to work on that.
“Pep Guardiola has already criticised him for it at Manchester City. That’s probably why he let him go because Sané doesn’t work backwards as he imagines.
“He still has to learn about moving backwards. Gnabry and Coman have internalised that.”
