"I have a lot, a lot of incredible, good opinions about him," said Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola when asked about Oscar Bobb in November.

"His intuition is extraordinary. The moment he frees his mind he can do it."

Two months on and Bobb is close to leaving for Fulham for a reported fee of around £30m - the 22-year-old Norway winger the latest City youth graduate to depart after breaking into the first team.

Since Guardiola took charge in 2016 and transformed City into an all-conquering team, Cole Palmer, Liam Delap, Brahim Diaz and Tosin Adarabioyo have also come through the ranks to play for the senior side before departing.

It is a ploy that has served City well.

According to Paul MacDonald from FootballTransfers.com, City have made more than £250m selling young players from their talent factory over the past five years alone.

Including sell-on fees, that figure is closer to £270m, he says.

Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz did not make a competitive appearance for the club before the then 21-year-old was sold to Aston Villa for £15m in 2019.

Jadon Sancho was sold to Borussia Dortmund for a reported £8m in 2017 before joining Manchester United £73m just four years later, while Jeremie Frimpong was signed by Liverpool for £29.5m from Bayer Leverkusen last summer. They have both gone on to make names for themselves after leaving City without making a first-team appearance.

Morgan Rogers, who joined City from West Brom at the age of 17 on a professional contract, was sold to Middlesbrough in 2023 and is now thriving for Aston Villa and England.

City spent a British record £100m on Jack Grealish in 2021, while they invested £77m on Croatia centre-back Josko Gvardiol two years later - and this January spent £65m on Antoine Semenyo and £20m on Marc Guehi.

Yet it is their ability to sell young talent that has helped bring in funds for big-money deals.

With City chasing a seventh Premier League title in 10 seasons under Guardiola, one might expect a player's career to go downhill once they leave Etihad Stadium.

That is not necessarily true.

There are numerous examples of players going on to flourish elsewhere after failing to nail down a regular spot under Guardiola.

Palmer, who made 19 Premier League appearances for City, is a prime example.

Since moving to Chelsea for £42.5m in September 2023, the 23-year-old forward has established himself in the England side and helped his club win the Fifa Club World Cup and the Uefa Conference League.

In 2019, Spanish teenager Diaz signed for Real Madrid from City for a fee believed to be around £15m.

He made five Premier League appearances - all as a substitute - before leaving.

Since then the Malaga-born winger has won two La Liga titles, one Champions League - and, earlier this month, helped Morocco reach the Africa Cup of Nations final.

Spain defender Eric Garcia, who captained City at under-18 level, has won two La Liga titles since moving from Manchester to Barcelona in 2021, when he was 20, after 35 senior appearances.

Meanwhile, striker Delap - who also progressed through City's Elite Development Squad (EDS) - was sold to Ipswich in a deal worth up £20m in July 2024, before Chelsea signed the player for £30m a year later.

The EDS was established to create a bridge between City's academy and first team.

Designed to either prepare top-class talent for City's main squad or to secure huge profit, selling EDS and non-first team players has brought in more than £500m to the club since Guardiola's arrival.

That is significant because, when clubs sell academy graduates, the entire amount is recorded as 'pure profit' in their accounts, helping to meet the top-flight's strict profit and sustainability rules.

Chelsea's Belgium midfielder Romeo Lavia was 16 when he left Anderlecht for City.

Sancho, currently on loan at Aston Villa from Manchester United, was 14 when he moved north from Watford.

Palmer was a childhood Manchester United fan but ended up in City's academy.

"Hugo Viana, he's done it again," was how one City fan put it on social media after the eye-catching signings of Ghana forward Semenyo and England centre-back Guehi this month.

But now the director of football will be praised for continuing the club's remarkable recent record in selling players, with winger Bobb set to join Fulham.

"What City have been good at doing, which has gone under the radar, is selling players very successfully," football finance expert Kieran Maguire told BBC Sport earlier this month.

"In the past three years they have generated £350m profit from all player sales."

That number will edge towards £400m if Bobb completes a move to Craven Cottage, having also generated around £50m by selling James McAtee, Yan Couto and Maxime Perrone in the summer.

Not only do they bring in good money, City also insert sell-on or buy-back clauses when players make an exit and that allows them to keep a portion of control for the future. This was highlighted when bringing back goalkeeper James Trafford in the summer from Burnley, who had signed him in 2023.

Although it won't correlate directly on the balance sheet, the fee received for Bobb effectively pays off the £30.45m spent on Rayan Cherki last June when he arrived from Lyon.

Astute business once again from Guardiola and his senior team.