Rayan Aït-Nouri absent from Manchester City squad against United for tactical reasons

Algerian Rayan Aït-Nouri missed Manchester City's squad for the Premier League clash against Manchester United at Old Trafford, but his absence was not due to injury.

According to Manchester Evening News, Rayan Aït-Nouri did not make the 20-man matchday squad for tactical reasons, as the coach preferred other options in the derby match. Nico Aurier returned to the squad after recovering from injury, while Vitor Reis and Rico Lewis were on the bench to provide defensive options.

Rayan Aït-Nouri's exclusion comes amid a difficult start to his second season with Manchester City, as he has not participated for a single minute in the team's first three matches in the Premier League. Coach Kaden Braithwaite preferred to use another player in the final minutes of the 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace.

Rayan Aït-Nouri featured against FC Porto in the UEFA Champions League, where he came on in the second half and assisted Erling Haaland's second goal. However, he was unable to secure a place in the matchday squad against Manchester United.

The Algerian player is expected to get another chance against Norwich City on Thursday in the English League Cup, especially since the coach sees him as closer to playing as a winger than as a full-back or wing-back, after he has become accustomed to playing as an advanced winger in Wolverhampton's five-defender system.