Manuel Akanji reveals why he played a pass to assistant referee during Manchester City clash with Inter

Manchester City defender Manuel Akanji has revealed the hilarious reason why he played a pass to one of the assistant referees during the 0-0 draw with Inter this week.

The UEFA Champions League finalists of 2023 played out a reunion at the Etihad Stadium on matchday one of the brand new league phase format of the competition on Wednesday night, with both teams unable to break the deadlock in the contest.

Ilkay Gundogan and Phil Foden would have late opportunities to claim all three points for the hosts, but were squandered by Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer with relatively tame efforts from close range.

The match itself had already written headlines prior to kick-off, with Manchester City taking the decision to debut their ‘Definitely City’ fourth kit despite playing at home, in a new strip that had been part-designed by Oasis legend, Noel Gallagher.

Speaking to TV broadcasters after the game, Manuel Akanji was quizzed around his thoughts on Manchester City’s brand new fourth kit, before revealing how it meant he would play a pass to an assistant referee during the match.

“I like it a lot. I’d seen it already, as I was at the shoot when we did it for Puma,” Akanji admitted.

He continued, “It’s just in one action I got confused with the referee on the sideline, I thought it was Bernardo (Silva) so I passed the ball to him. But otherwise I like the kit a lot and look forward to playing more in it.”

When it was pointed out that Manchester City should perhaps use alternative colours during future kit designs, the Swiss international suggested, “Maybe the referee should wear another colour!”

Manchester City are not expected to use their fourth kit again at home this season, and the club have already confirmed that the strip will not be used outside of European competition for the duration of the campaign.

City will only use the kit during selected away trips in the UEFA Champions League, with visits to Slovan Bratislava, Sporting CP, Juventus, and Paris Saint-Germain all scheduled in their eight league phase fixtures.