After transferring to Manchester City for a €37million (£31.8m) plus €6m in potential add-ons last summer from Wolverhampton Wanderers, Rayan Ait-Nouri was expected to hold down the position as the club’s first-choice left back given his quality and Premier League experience.
However, the sudden emergence of the brilliant Nico O’Reilly, who transitioned from a box-to-box midfielder into an inverted, marauding left-back, meant that the Algerian’s game time was limited.
A combination of a competition for places, Africa Cup of Nations duty, and injury limited Ait-Nouri to just 12 Premier League starts, while O’Reilly was named as the PFA Young Player of the Season.
For Algeria, after Riyad Mahrez, Ait-Nouri is one of the most well-known and talented members of the squad. For Wolves, he earned a formidable reputation as an attacking, technically gifted full-back.
The 25-year-old will be expected to perform the same duties for Algeria and is arguably his country’s biggest threat on the left-hand side, with Riyad Mahrez potentially playing on the right.
