Oleksandr Zinchenko has revealed Manchester City kept him on an “academy contract” during his first three seasons at the club, despite playing a part in two title-winning campaigns.
Zinchenko joined City in 2016 from Russian club Ufa, having been spotted by club scouts a year earlier playing in the Youth Champions League for Shakhtar Donetsk against his current club, Arsenal.
The Ukrainian jumped at the chance to join City but says he was initially told he would be on youth wages until he broke into the first team. He was sent on loan to Dutch club PSV before returning to win back-to-back Premier Leagues under Pep Guardiola, but claims he was still not awarded a professional contract until June 2019.
Writing in his new book Believe, Zinchenko explains: “The City lawyers said: ‘Look, this is an academy player contract, right? As soon as you make your first official game for City, we’re going to extend your contract with the real money that we pay full professionals. Not this academy player deal. So trust us.’ Of course I said yes. Follow the dream. But do you know when my next contract came? The one that put me on full professional money? After I had played 43 games in the Premier League! I won two Premier League titles playing on an academy contract.”
Zinchenko also revealed out how he learnt not to cross manager Pep Guardiola, after biting back in training.
“Out loud I said: ‘Mister! Like, I just did one wrong pass, you know?’ And his reaction was incredible,” Zinchenko writes in his book. “‘Oh, OK, sorry, sorry, Mr Zinchenko. Sorry,’ said Pep. ‘OK, guys, thank you, everyone inside.’ And he went in, walked to the changing room. Training over, all because I talked back. I knew I was in trouble.”
Zinchenko was benched the next game and later apologised to the manager.
“Listen, first of all, I was not right,” he told the Guardian. “I understood straight away, but it would have been silly if I went right to his office and apologised. It was game day minus one and I knew his head was totally on the gameplan. But I did apologise after the game.”
Their relationship strengthened after the incident, so much so that Guardiola phoned Zinchenko the night City won the treble last year – by which time the defender had been an Arsenal player for a full season – to say thank you for his contribution.
Manchester City have been contacted for comment.