Former Manchester City star, Shaun Goater, has said striker Kelechi Iheanacho will not get a proper run in the first team because Pep Guardiola does not trust him.
Last season, the Nigeria-born youngster ended the season with 14 goals, a tally only bettered by Sergio Aguero and Kevin de Bruyne.
However, Guardiola’s arrival has seen the 20-year-old struggle to hold down a place in the team, with time on the pitch often reduced to substitute appearances.
Iheanacho even scored twice at Hull on Boxing Day, taking his tally to 12 goals in 38 Premier League games.
The double also meant his ratio of a goal every 96 minutes made him the most prolific striker to have scored at least 10 goals in Premier League history.
However, Goater, who played for City for five years until leaving in 2003, believes that privately City’s boss does not rate him as highly as he says publicly.
He said: “I’m a massive believer in what a manager does rather than what he says and I’m sure he thinks and says that Kelechi is a great young talent but Guardiola’s actions make it clear that he doesn’t believe he’s good enough.
“You can’t bring him on with very little time to go to score a goal.
“He obviously doesn’t have confidence in him to play him alongside Aguero more regularly if things aren’t going right.
“He has consistently come on and scored goals but still Guardiola doesn’t trust him.”
Goater, who scored 32 times in 36 international appearances, is now 46 and captained City in their final game at Maine Road, which was also his last for the club.
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