Ake hints at Manchester City exit with World Cup at stake

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The Football Faithful

·3 January 2026

Ake hints at Manchester City exit with World Cup at stake

Nathan Ake has revealed he has been told he risks missing the Netherlands squad for the World Cup unless he can earn regular minutes at Manchester City.

Ake has started just twice in the Premier League so far this season, with Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol preferred at centre-back. Nico O’Reilly’s emergence has also limited potential minutes at left-back, leaving Ake at risk of losing his place with the Netherlands.

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The 30-year-old has been linked with an exit from the Etihad this month and has admitted he is under pressure from the Dutch set-up to play more minutes.

He has played just 21 minutes across City’s last 11 league games and has been an unused substitute on eight occasions. His last 90 minutes came against Everton on October 18th.

The Netherlands boast strong defensive depth, with Virgil van Dijk, Matthijs de Ligt, Micky Van de Ven, and Stefan de Vrij among the competition for a centre-back role.

Speaking to Manchester City journalist Simon Bajkowski, of the Manchester Evening News, Ake said he will continue to fight for his place but revealed the conversations he has held with Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman.

“Ronald Koeman said to me a few times that he wants me to play more and it is difficult to call me up if I don’t play a lot, obvious,” he said.

“Every player wants to play as much as possible. The only thing I can say is I keep fighting every time.”

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