Manchester City defender Rayan Ait-Nouri is reportedly ‘finished’ at the Etihad Stadium having fallen down the pecking order under manager Enzo Maresca.

Ait-Nouri was signed by Maresca’s predecessor Pep Guardiola in the summer of 2025, joining from Wolverhampton Wanderers in a £31m deal and penning a five-year contract.

The 25-year-old left-back chipped in with five assists in 28 appearances for City across all competitions last season, missing the majority of December and January following his involvement with Algeria at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Ait-Nouri celebrated winning both the FA Cup and EFL Cup in his debut campaign with the Sky Blues, though he did not feature in either final played at Wembley.

This term, Ait-Nouri has struggled to force his way into Maresca’s first-team plans and is currently viewed as a third-choice left-back behind Josko Gvardiol and Nico O'Reilly.

Ait-Nouri is yet to make a single Premier League appearance for Man City in 2026-27, while he has made just two substitute appearances in the Champions League – his only two starts have come in the EFL Cup.

Ait-Nouri may push for January exit after failing to impress Maresca

Although Ait-Nouri is said to remain keen to fight for his place at Man City, Football Insider claims that the defender has failed to make an impression under Maresca.

The report adds that Ait-Nouri is unlikely to play ahead of either Gvardiol or O’Reilly any time soon, and could therefore push for a move away from City during the January transfer window in search of regular first-team football.

Maresca recently admitted that Ait-Nouri is struggling for game time, telling reporters: "He's a clear full-back. In that position, we have [Gvardiol], who is doing fantastic, we have [O'Reilly], who when he is fit is doing fantastic; and he's the same position, so it's just competition between them."

A surprise transfer to City’s rivals Manchester United was mooted for Ait-Nouri in the closing stages of the summer window, and the possibility of the Red Devils making a January swoop is said to have been explored.

While agreeing personal terms would seemingly not be an issue for Ait-Nouri, who could be receptive to a switch across Manchester, it is understood that the relationship between City and United is the ‘main issue’ that could scupper this potential move.

Serie A giants Juventus have also been consistently linked with a move for Ait-Nouri and a switch to Italy is thought to be more realistic at this stage, though the Old Lady may prefer to negotiate an initial loan deal.