Konstantinos Karetsas, a 16-year old wonderkid, and his family have snubbed Premier League Champions Manchester City. A move to the Etihad was out of consideration, as states Konstantinos’ father, Vaios Karetsas.
Being merely 16, Karetsas has raised many eyebrows with his dribbling abilities. The Belgian is a constant nuisance for defenders in and around the penalty area. His ability to play in tight spaces coupled with his short and long passing ability makes him a valuable asset to any team. Furthermore, Karetsas has shown sparks of good shooting ability.
Undoubtedly, the Belgian has a lot of potential and can become a truly exceptional player if he continues honing his skills.
Karetsas’ return to Genk: Disagreement with Anderlecht’s officials!
Karetsas rose through the ranks at Genk following which he spent 3 years at Anderlecht. The 16-year old returned to Genk in January 2023 and made his senior team debut for Genk against Cercle Brugge.
Konstantinos’ father revealed that he left Anderlecht due to a disagreement with the club’s officials. His father stated:
“He learned a lot there and was able to complement his education. So why did we choose to return to Genk? That mainly had to do with problems at Anderlecht’s board. Jean Kindermans was on his own at the time and we didn’t want to risk our son’s future.
Moreover, Kos has always remained a top Genk supporter. Genk had also indicated they absolutely wanted to bring him back. Dimitri de Condé and Erik Gerits proposed an elaborate sporting plan to us. We thought it was too early for the move abroad.”
Manchester City snubbed by Belgian wonderkid and family: “We didn’t like it”!
Vaios Karetsas opened up about interest from Manchester City, AC Milan and RB Leipzig for the young prodigy. However, discussions with only Ajax were done.
Vaios said:
“RB Leipzig, Milan and even Manchester City invited us several times to come and have a look.
We didn’t like it.
The only team outside Genk where we had discussions was Ajax. Purely because it is close by and we have a lot of respect for that club. That was just one conversation. The second would be about sporting and financial matters, but we had already given our word to Genk at that time.”
As of now, Karetsas continues to offer his services at Genk looking to grow as a professional footballer and prosper in the world of football.
Did Karetsas make the right choice?
Only a player knows what is right for them in a particular time in their career. While players can be wrong about their decisions, however, mostly that isn’t the case if the decision is well calculated.
Karetsas is still a teenager and has a lot of football left to play. Although Manchester City is a well established club and in the time of its life, Karetsas’ decision can be understood. The pressure of playing for a seriously big club is a lot to bear. Moreover, having to play in Europe’s best league requires a lot of talent and hard work. Karetsas is still a developing player.
However, Karetsas is certainly on the right track with a right mindset, focused on his professional career. The Belgian ignores the hype and simply focuses on improving as a player.
The attacking midfielder spoke wisely:
“There are many people who all of a sudden want to be friends or friendly to me, which wasn’t always the case prior. But I am relaxed about all that. I just say hello and move on. I am just trying to stay humble and never get nervous.”
Karetsas can now establish himself as a starter at GENK first. And, if he continues to upskill, surely offers from big clubs like Manchester City are bound to be made for the youngster!
As featured on ManCityNews.com
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