England: a month without competition for Rayan Aït-Nouri

Oct 17, 2026

Excluded from the Greens and relegated to the bench at Manchester City, Rayan Aït-Nouri's situation worsens week by week. During the match against Ipswich, the Algerian once again remained inactive for 90 minutes.

Rayan Aït-Nouri is likely going through one of the toughest periods of his career. This Saturday, during Manchester City's 3-2 victory over Ipswich Town, the Algerian defender stayed on the bench for the entire match. As a result, it has now been exactly one month since he last played a single minute for the Citizens.

His last appearance was on September 17, in the League Cup against Norwich. That night, Aït-Nouri played 90 minutes and provided two assists in City's comprehensive 5-0 victory. Since then, nothing. In the Premier League, he has yet to step onto the pitch after seven matchdays, with Enzo Maresca regularly opting for Nico O’Reilly on the left flank.

The international break did not improve the situation. Selected by Brahim Hemdani for Algeria, Aït-Nouri started on the bench against Zambia before an incident with the coach hastened his departure. The player was ultimately released from the camp for disciplinary reasons and sent back to Manchester.

A month without competition, no minutes in the league, and now an increasingly uncertain position in the national team: the situation is becoming concerning. Especially since Aït-Nouri had shown against Norwich that he could still contribute offensively. With just a few months until the winter transfer window, his future at City is now a real topic of discussion.

DZfoot