City have signed off the permanent departure of academy striker Matty Warhurst, who has signed for League Two side Northampton Town in a deal reported to be worth around £100,000.
The 19-year-old leaves the City Football Academy after seven years at the club, having joined from Oldham Athletic back in 2019. His record at academy level is striking: 61 goals in 97 competitive appearances across City’s youth setup, form that ultimately made his case for regular first-team football elsewhere too strong to ignore.
“At the end of last season we reviewed it and thought my next step was into first team football,” Warhurst said on completing the move.
As is now standard practice under sporting director Hugo Viana, City have inserted a significant sell-on clause into the deal, ensuring the club stand to benefit financially should Warhurst’s value increase in future. Northampton are understood to have won a competitive chase for his signature, fending off interest from Swindon Town and Stockport County in the process.
Warhurst becomes the latest in a growing line of academy graduates to leave City’s Elite Development Squad in search of senior football, following recent departures for Jahmai Simpson-Pusey, Reigan Heskey and Isaac Smith.
It’s a modest deal in the context of City’s summer spending elsewhere, but it reflects a deliberate, consistent approach to developing and monetising academy talent even as the first team undergoes wholesale change under Enzo Maresca.
