I was aware that the situation at Manchester City was unfavourable; Liverpool is now interested in my services for £33 million.

I was aware that the situation at Manchester City was unfavourable; Liverpool is now interested in my services for £33 million.

When he entered Manchester City’s contract negotiations, Jeremie Frimpong was aware that his tenure there was drawing to a close. Six years later, he may be making a comeback to the Premier League, albeit not in the blue of City, but in the scarlet of Liverpool.

Liverpool has been the subject of significant speculation regarding Frimpong’s potential transfer this summer, as the Merseysiders are expected to surpass Real Madrid in the pursuit of the right-handed player. The 24-year-old’s form and ability during his time in the Bundesliga will have impressed a significant number of Europe’s top clubs, as Frimpong’s £33million release clause at German club Bayer Leverkusen makes him an attractive proposition.

However, the Netherlands international’s outcome could have been significantly different. He joined City at the age of 10 and advanced through the academy, debuting in the 2019 FA Youth Cup final. However, he departed the Etihad that summer. In an interview with SportBible last year, Frimpong addressed the potential manner of his departure, which had been contemplated.

However, he ultimately resolved the matter when he entered the club to negotiate a new contract.He recalled, “I kept playing [an age group] down, and I think when I was under-23’s at City, I remember going in for a new contract. That’s when I knew my path at City was different.” “They were discussing my inability to make the team and were contrasting me with other players in the academy who were performing better than I was.”

I realised that I had no future in this location, and as a result, I needed to adopt a different course of action. An under-23 fixture between the two teams piqued Celtic’s interest, resulting in a transfer to Celtic. The City bank account received a relatively modest £350,000 transfer fee. Celtic’s domestic treble victory in 2019/20 may have brought the fee closer to £1 million, as an additional £650,000 in add-ons was agreed upon contingent upon performance. Before Leverkusen became interested in Frimpong,

he appeared for Celtic on 51 occasions. Leverkusen reportedly paid a fee of approximately £10 million, which increased to approximately £11.5 million, after Frimpong expressed his desire to transfer from Parkhead to the BayArena. City capitalised on this opportunity by including a 30% sell-on clause in the agreement, which resulted in a tenfold increase in their initial revenue.

City could have received up to £4.3m from a youngster who never made a first-team appearance if Frimpong reaches the utmost add-ons for both transfers. “I recall attending that meeting, and he was expressing his concern that the event would be too physical due to my diminutive stature.” At that moment, I was contemplating, “Oh my God, where am I going?”