A shooting star. Arriving in Ligue 1 on July 24, 2023, from Energetik Minsk (Belarus), Abdukodir Khusanov did not last long in France and its famous Talent League. After only 31 games played in all competitions (1 goal), the native of Tashkent in Uzbekistan moved to Manchester City. In search of one or more reinforcements in defense, the Skyblues did not hesitate to drop €50 million (€40 million + €10 million bonus, editor's note) for the young 20-year-old talent, who signed a lease until June 2029. A simply exceptional operation for the Sang-et-Or since they bought the player for “only” 100,000 euros a year ago and half. The added value is XXXL. For Gairat Khasbiullin, one of Khusanov's agents with Ulugbek Asanbaev, it is also the transfer of a life and a career.
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The one who manages the interests of the footballer born on February 29, 2004 recognized this during a very long interview given to Championship. He first spoke of the moment when the Citizens positioned themselves on his client. “End of November 2024. Information has reached us about the presence of scouts. Lens reported that City were actively interested. At the beginning of December, serious conversations began. Around 12 Premier League clubs have expressed interest. It was clear that City would be among them. Another thing to point out is that not all clubs could afford to make a bid now as they faced financial fair play restrictions. City had no such problem, so they quickly convinced Lens for €40m plus €10m in bonuses. All that remained was to reach an agreement with us.”
More than 20 clubs were there
What happened next. “Our team clearly does not make such transfers every day. In general, everything happened quickly, there was great desire from both Lens and City. It was more difficult to get from Belarusian Energetik to Lens. It’s easier to negotiate when there’s such a demand for you.” In the process, Khasbiullin mentioned the other clubs which were ready to sign the defender.“Newcastle were very close to a deal. He even remained one of the favorites, then was the last to leave the race with City. From what I understand, Financial Fair Play also had an impact. Well, they didn't have enough time. Perhaps if they had made an offer earlier, they would have had time to reach an agreement. Then City put so much pressure on Lens that it was difficult to make a comparable offer. This was also influenced by the fact that the French needed this money. Last summer, Lens' transfers failed. Danso and El Aynaoui remained in the club, this represented a shortfall of €50 million. There was also less money coming in from TV rights, and the hole in financial fair play had to be plugged. It was urgent to compensate these €50 million.”
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He continues: “unexpectedly, the transfer of Khusanov became a salvation for the club. Of course, we could have acted selfishly, refused and waited until the summer, because he was playing, everything was going well, but Lens did a lot for us. We handled the situation with understanding. You may have noticed that during this transition, there have been no rumors.” Yet, Khusanov has been linked with many clubs, such as Tottenham, Real Madrid, Chelsea, PSG and many others, according to his agent. “The German clubs wanted him. All major German clubs, except Bayern Munich. We spoke with Leipzig, Stuttgart, Bayer Leverkusen and even Borussia Dortmund. Several Italian clubs, too.” But it was Manchester City who won among the twenty interested clubs. However, the player had been in the sights of the other Mancunian club, Manchester United. It was even the first big club that was interested in him according to Gairat Khasbiullin.
Erik ten Hag recalled it to Man Utd
“In May 2023, United scout Nicolas Chenalli was in Argentina for the U20 World Cup. After Uzbekistan's second match, he found my contact and wanted to meet me. I was also in Argentina at that time and we were thinking of meeting in Buenos Aires, but it didn't work out because of the matches. Then it turned out that he only stayed in Rosario for a day and then flew away. I went out into the street in Buenos Aires and took a taxi to Rosario (…) The recruiter told me that Khusanov has Manchester United DNA. That's when I realized the guy would end up at a big club. The scout gave a detailed report, but coach Ten Hag said the defender wasn't quite ready to help the team at that time. Recently we corresponded with this Manchester United recruiter. He congratulated him on his move to City, but regretted that the player did not end up at United.
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But City, who paid the price, was more lively and made him understand that we would count on him. “He started learning the language two months ago. We originally thought we had six months. It looked like the player could remain on loan at Lens until the end of the season. Then we realized how much City wanted the player (…) I think no one wants to take a player for €50m and send him out on loan. This amount of money is not paid for a player who is not part of the team. Especially since Pep Guardiola wet the jersey to recruit him. Moreover, the recent extension of the Spanish coach was an argument which tipped the balance in favor of the Skyblues. Without that, Khusanov's choice might have been different depending on his agent. “Yes, it’s entirely possible. Pep is one of the main reasons for City's choice. He wanted to work with the best coach in the world. He who has a lot to learn, but who already has many qualities according to his advisor.
He will bring money to his former clubs
“On the field, he's a natural fighter, but in life, he's a modest guy, calm on a daily basis. He doesn't give interviews because he's shy. It's easier for him to play 90 minutes against PSG than to talk to a journalist for 10 minutes. At the same time, his power in the game is frightening. I attended his matches a lot. I already notice when he chooses a “victim”. Khusanov feels the moment when he must engage in single combat. Lens coach Franck Haise said after the second training: “He behaves like a 25-year-old footballer.” In general, everyone on the team treated him well.” He hopes it will be the same at Manchester City; he who is the first Uzbek footballer to play in the Premier League. Which could open the way for others.
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“We are already feeling the demand in Europe (for talent from Uzbekistan, editor’s note). This has increased tenfold. They are constantly interested and asking. When we opened our agency, I traveled across Europe with footballer profiles. Interest was very low, including for Khusanov. The chief scout of a major European club once said: “Tell me at least one football player from Uzbekistan who plays in one of the five major leagues. When there is one, let's talk about it. ” Shomurodov's move to Serie A was then underway, but had not yet happened. Now the sports director of this team came back to me and was interested in Khusanov. I told him that at one point, his club had refused to take this defender into consideration. Khusanov, who should bring in €500,000 to Energetik Minsk according to Championshipas well as money to his training club (FK Bunyodkor); entered the big leagues at Manchester City. The perfect place for this star to shine.
Pub. the 23/01/2025 20:01
– UPDATE 23/01/2025 20:23
