I left Man City when I realised they wanted me for the wrong reasons - now I'm ahead of Messi.
Manchester City have a host of former academy players impressing in the top European leagues at present. And one has made a successful career for himself out in the USA, playing over 250 times in the MLS and rivalling Lionel Messi's assist record.
In a week where Manchester City's relationship with Slovakian players has come into sharp focus, Vladimir Weiss continues to take the headlines after reportedly retiring immediately after his emotional substitution against the Blues in the Champions League.
He wasn't the only former City player in the Slovan Bratislava ranks - anyone remember Robbie Mak? And while City were in Slovakia for the first time, there is another Slovakian former academy player who has a story to tell from his time in Manchester.
The parallels to Weiss are similar. While Weiss owes a lot of his career to his father (and current, or former, manager) Vladimir Sr, Albert Rusnak was brought to City after his father got a job scouting for the Blues.
"I had great times at the Academy. The facilities for young players at City, the pitches, swimming pool, Jacuzzi, and gym are everything you need to develop your talent," he said in 2015. "It was more about school than football at the start. I went to Loreto High in Chorlton, learned English and got six or seven GCSEs. I was welcomed."
Rusnak took inspiration from Cristiano Ronaldo in the transformation from arriving in Manchester as a scrawny teenager and leaving as a world-class superstar. But he also had to battle constant questions over his physique: "I heard many times that I was too small, not strong enough, that I don't have this or that but in my head I always had the sense that I'm going to make it as a footballer. My dad helped me become a strong character to always fight and believe because he played football himself.
He returned to City, where Vieira instructed him to return to Boundary Park and apologise, but a statement from Latics simply said: “All parties felt it was better" that Rusnak returned to City permanently. A spell at Birmingham followed before a season at Cambuur in the Eredivisie.
"I didn't really talk to Pellegrini, not face to face,'' said Rusnak in his 2015 interview. "When you look at the City squad, there are over 20 world-class players. In my position there were players like David Silva and [Samir] Nasri, world-class players. So you look at it and think I have to choose somewhere else to play week in, week out. Young players don't get much of a chance.
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