Manchester City captain Fernandinho admits he was close to leaving the club last summer.

When his previous contract ran out at the end of the 2020/2021 season, Fernandinho felt his time at the club may be up.

However, his incredible displays during the back end of the season, when City won the Premier League and reached the Champions League final, convinced the club to offer him a new deal.

Fernandinho told FourFourTwo: "Man, I was quite close to leaving – and that's the truth."

He added, "There was so much on the table to analyse, I was in deadlock. That made me leave the decision to when last season was finished."

"First, my priority was to have my mind 100 per cent on the team. Then I negotiated with only one team apart from Man City, which was Athletico Paranaense. They made a proper offer to me."

He went on to say: "My wife and I were like, 'If we go back to Brazil, we will have this; if we stay in England, we will have that.' When City offered me a new contract, we spent a few days at home weighing up both possibilities.

"One of the key factors that made us stay is that we are applying for British citizenship, but it's also a wonderful feeling to captain this club. I take so much pride in it."