According to the British media Manchester Evening News, many German clubs once wanted McCarthy, but the offer was rejected by Manchester City.

media pointed out that Nottingham Forest introduced Manchester City's 22-year-old midfielder McCarthy to reach an agreement with a transfer fee of 30 million pounds.

Previously, many German clubs were interested in McCarthy. Players may transfer to the Bundesliga for a time, but Manchester City valued the players very high, although his contract was only one year left. Manchester City rejected multiple offers of around £25 million, when the asking price was close to £40 million.