Rejecting Arsenal & emulating Hazard - Monga makes debut in Man City win
Jeremy Monga's £10m move from Leicester to Manchester City may have gone under the radar this summer, but the teenager's own career is not expected to go in quite the same manner.
The 17-year-old is the third-youngest player to appear in the Premier League and now settling in at one of the world's biggest clubs, who have former Foxes boss Enzo Maresca in charge.
Monga came off the bench in City's 3-1 friendly win over a K-League XI in sweltering conditions at Seoul World Cup Stadium, with Rayan Ait-Nouri, Tijjani Reijnders and Divin Mubama on the scoresheet inside 23 minutes.
During his half an hour on the pitch, Monga showed his youthful sprightliness and almost made a dream first appearance when a close-range effort was disallowed for handball, while another curling effort was batted away by the goalkeeper.
It looked like Monga would be heading to champions Arsenal this summer as Mikel Arteta's side closed in on a deal, but the Gunners were gazumped by their title rivals.
"It [Arsenal interest] was very strong because it was very close to me going there, very close," Monga told BBC Sport.
"The main decision was probably the pathway and the club itself. They've been so successful that it was a no-brainer when City call. It's every child's dream to win trophies and be at the top with the best.
"Once I get the opportunity I just need to show myself, and once I do that, everything will take care of itself. I feel like, to me personally, I see myself at City more. I see myself in blue."
Who impressed in Man City's win over K-League XI?
Championship a 'dog-eat-dog world'
Monga made his top-flight debut aged 15 years and 271 days old in Leicester's defeat by Newcastle United on 7 April, with the Foxes relegated to the Championship at the end of that season.
The 2015-16 Premier League winners then suffered a further fall from grace last term with a calamitous campaign that saw them drop into League One.
Monga played 30 times last season and took "positives" from his time at King Power Stadium as the club "gave me the foundation and stepping stone" at the start of his career.
He described the Championship as a "tough league" as defenders gave him "less time and [less] respect" compared to those in the Premier League.
"It's a dog-eat-dog world in the Championship," added England Under-19 international Monga. "They were more on me, wanting to be more physical with me and they didn't care about my age too much.
"I don't see the negatives, I see all the opportunities they [Leicester] have given me that I am thankful for. I don't like to think of the negatives, I'm just thankful."
Being direct and a match-winner like idol Hazard
A boyhood Chelsea supporter, Monga rates their former Belgium international Eden Hazard as his idol and is intent on emulating the forward.
When he was born in July 2009, Hazard was still a youngster at French club Lille before going on to achieve a successful career at Chelsea and Real Madrid.
Hazard won both the Premier League and La Liga twice, the Champions League in 2022, as well as being named PFA players' player of the year and Football Writers' Association (FWA) footballer of the year in 2014–15.
Asked what he admired most about Hazard, Coventry-born Monga said: "Definitely his directness, him taking the game by the scruff of his neck trying to win the game by himself and definitely the way he manipulates the ball, trying to implement that into my game.
"Even the way he protects the ball from his opponents and moves around the pitch, everything is what I want to do."
On Hazard moments that stood out? he replied: "His [solo] goal against Tottenham - or the goal against Liverpool. When you see the goal, you remember it."
If Monga goes on to achieve even half of what Hazard produced in his career, he will have done all right for himself.