Jeremy Doku has reportedly made his position clear regarding the possibility of Manchester City being relegated from the Premier League, with the Belgian winger allegedly prepared to consider his future at the Etihad Stadium if the club is forced out of England’s top flight.
The situation surrounding Manchester City has become one of the biggest talking points in English football following the Premier League’s recent financial-rules verdict. An independent commission found the club guilty of breaching a large number of financial regulations, while City have rejected the findings and are pursuing an appeal. Possible sanctions could include a points deduction, a fine or, in the most severe scenario, expulsion from the Premier League.
With the possibility of a major sporting punishment hanging over the club, attention has naturally turned towards the futures of Manchester City’s biggest players.
Doku is now being mentioned among the players whose futures could become a major talking point if City were eventually relegated.
The Belgian winger has become an important part of Manchester City’s squad since arriving from Rennes in 2023. His explosive pace, one-versus-one ability and creativity have made him one of the club’s most dangerous attacking players, while his performances have continued to improve during his time in England.
The 2025/26 campaign was particularly productive for Doku. He finished the season with eight goals and 14 assists and played a significant role as City won both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup.
Those performances were followed by an important decision from the club, with Manchester City handing Doku a new long-term contract that keeps him at the Etihad until the summer of 2031.
At the time of signing the agreement, Doku described remaining at Manchester City as a privilege and made it clear that he believed he was at the right club to continue developing and competing for major trophies.
However, the possibility of relegation would completely change the situation.
According to the hypothetical report surrounding Doku, the winger would be willing to reconsider his Manchester City future if the club were removed from the Premier League.
The reason would not necessarily be a lack of loyalty towards City. Instead, the situation would be connected to the competitive ambitions of a player who wants to continue playing at the highest level, competing for major trophies and representing his country at the highest level.
Doku has previously spoken openly about his desire to compete for trophies. When discussing his new contract, he explained that players want to be part of teams capable of winning major honours and said he believed Manchester City was the right environment for him to continue growing as a footballer.
That makes the prospect of City being relegated particularly significant.
A move out of the Premier League would potentially mean Manchester City spending at least one season outside England’s top division, depending on the eventual punishment and subsequent results. Such a situation could dramatically change the club’s squad, finances and recruitment strategy.
Doku would almost certainly attract interest from clubs across Europe if he became available.
His combination of speed, dribbling ability and attacking versatility would make him an attractive option for several elite clubs. He is still young and has already demonstrated that he can perform at the highest level in English football.
The winger’s potential departure would therefore represent another major concern for Manchester City if relegation became a reality.
There have already been discussions in football about the possibility of a player exodus should City suffer a severe sporting punishment. Reports have suggested that several of the club’s leading stars could become targets for rival clubs, although the legal position surrounding player contracts is more complicated than simply allowing everyone to leave automatically.
A sports lawyer recently explained that relegation itself would not automatically give Manchester City players the right to terminate their contracts. Individual agreements would need to be examined, and relegation-release clauses are reportedly unusual.
That point would be especially important in Doku’s case because his current Manchester City contract reportedly runs until 2031.
Therefore, even if the Belgian decided that he wanted to leave following relegation, a transfer would still require the appropriate contractual and legal process unless his agreement contained a specific provision allowing him to depart.
Nevertheless, the hypothetical warning attributed to Doku would put further pressure on Manchester City.
The club’s supporters would naturally fear that relegation could trigger a chain reaction, with some of the team’s most important players deciding that their ambitions would be better served elsewhere.
Doku’s situation would be particularly interesting because he has already committed his long-term future to the club.
Only recently, the winger spoke positively about his development at Manchester City and expressed his happiness at continuing his career at the Etihad. He described himself as an “unfinished product” and said he wanted to keep improving in the coming seasons.
That makes the relegation scenario even more dramatic.
If City were forced into the Championship, Doku would potentially face a difficult decision between remaining loyal to the club that invested heavily in his development and seeking a move that would allow him to continue competing at the highest level.
The Belgian international would not be the only player facing such a dilemma.
Manchester City’s squad contains several players who have established themselves at international level and have ambitions of competing in the Champions League and major domestic competitions. A prolonged absence from European football or the Premier League could therefore create significant pressure on the club’s ability to retain its stars.
For Doku, the Champions League would be an especially important consideration.
The winger has developed into a player capable of competing against Europe’s biggest clubs, and a move away from Manchester City could become attractive if his current club were no longer able to provide that platform.
However, there is another side to the argument.
Doku could also choose to remain at Manchester City and help the club immediately fight its way back into the Premier League.
That would be a completely different challenge for the Belgian.
Rather than leaving during the club’s most difficult moment, he could become one of the players responsible for rebuilding the team and leading an immediate promotion campaign.
Such a decision would potentially make Doku an even bigger figure at the Etihad.
He could become one of the faces of the club’s response to the crisis, particularly given his age and his importance to the team’s attacking structure.
For now, however, the biggest issue remains that Manchester City have not been relegated.
The Premier League’s independent commission has delivered its verdict, but the final consequences are still part of an ongoing process. City have denied wrongdoing and are challenging the findings, meaning the ultimate sporting punishment remains uncertain.
That means any discussion about Doku leaving should be treated as a hypothetical scenario rather than an imminent transfer.
Manchester City will be hoping that the situation ultimately does not reach the point where their players have to make such decisions.
The club’s supporters will also be hoping that the appeal produces a result that allows the team to continue competing at the highest level.
For Doku, meanwhile, his immediate future remains tied to Manchester City under the long-term contract he signed earlier this year.
But if the worst-case scenario were eventually to become reality, the Belgian winger’s future could quickly become one of the biggest stories surrounding the club.
A player who recently described staying at Manchester City as a privilege could suddenly find himself at the centre of a major transfer battle.
And if Doku genuinely decided that relegation was a line he could not cross, Manchester City could face the painful prospect of losing one of their most exciting attacking players at precisely the moment they would need their best players most.