Manchester City host Bayern Munich tonight in the Champions League quarter-finals, and Joao Cancelo is available to face his parent club, despite being on loan from the Citizens. Read on to find out why.
To the surprise of many, Cancelo was loaned out to Munich in January after enduring a tricky last couple of months of 2022 where it seemed his relationship with Pep Guardiola weakened.
Bayern loanee Joao Cancelo will face off against parent club Man City tonight 👀
This assist to Erling Haaland in the #UCL group stage was a joke 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/7u2W2409VR
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) April 11, 2023
So, even with the Portugal international being on loan from City at Bayern he can still play against them tonight in the Champions League, and below you can find out why.
In UEFA competitions, there is no rule that stops loan players from playing against their parent club. City could have blocked Cancelo’s involvement in the last-eight when the deal was agreed back in January, but it’s understood that there is no such clause active.
It’s completely opposite to Premier League rules we are all too familiar with where they state that a loanee cannot face his parent side if they’re on loan at another side in the league. So, if Cancelo was on loan at another Premier League side, he wouldn’t be eligible to play against City.
Has This Happened Before?
Yes – Bayern have a track record of this same scenario! When Philippe Coutinho was on loan at Bayern back in 2020, he scored twice and provided an assist against his parent club. The German side won 8-2 in the Champions League quarter-finals against Barca, with the Brazilian being heavily involved.
It’s also happened on two other occasions for the Bundesliga side. Kingsley Coman scored for Bayern against his parent club Juventus back in the 2015-16 campaign.
Another time where a loanee has played against their parent club for Bayern was back in the 2017/18 campaign where James Rodriquez featured against Real Madrid and like the two others, he scored against the side he was on loan from.
City defender and international teammate Ruben Dias has said “it will be strange” to face Cancelo.
🗣️ "It will be strange." 🤔
Ruben Dias reacts as Bayern Munich's Joao Cancelo prepares to face his parent club, Man City, in the Champions League 🏆 pic.twitter.com/ZWnIredERA
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) April 11, 2023
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