Excitement levels in the Premier League just keep on rising as some of the best players and managers from around the globe return or begin their new adventure in England. Earlier this season, Manchester City confirmed that former Barcelona and current Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola would be taking over the managerial role at the club 2016-17 onwards.
Lately, Manchester City has been struggling and are just one point away from slipping out of the top 4. With a few players rumoured to leave at the end of the season and some of them looking past their peak, it’s time for Guardiola to find the perfect replacements so that he can keep City’s title hopes alive next season.
Let’s have a look at the 4 players Manchester City need in order to compete not only for the Premier League crown but also in Europe.
Paul Pogba
There have been rumours at Manchester City that Yaya Toure wasn’t happy at the club. It has been going around for a couple of years now, but it was all rubbished as Toure played a huge role in the team’s successful run so far.
But now, it is all but certain that Yaya Toure will be leaving the club at the end of the season and that will leave a huge gap in the Manchester City midfield. Luckily, Pep Guardiola’s arrival will calm the City fans down a bit as they’ll be confident to land a suitable replacement.
Paul Pogba is the first name that pops up when you think about replacing a beast in midfield. The French midfielder is currently at Juventus and surely will be looking to return to England, even if it’s the rivals of his former club – Manchester United.
Manchester City already have Fernando and Fernandinho, but Paul Pogba would be the perfect replacement for Yaya Toure and would bolster their midfield.
Aymeric Laporte
The current first choice center back pairing at Manchester City comprises of skipper Vincent Kompany and Nicolas Otamendi. With Vincent Kompany facing injury problems and also ageing, and backup Martin Demichelis walking towards the exit, City don’t have any other center back except for Eliaquim Mangala.
City’s performance has always seen a drop when their skipper is injured. In order to avoid such a situation in the future, Guardiola will surely look to sign a defender in the upcoming summer transfer window.
Aymeric Laporte has been strongly linked with a move to the blue half of Manchester since the past few weeks. Many papers and websites even confirming that his move to The Etihad is all but done. But in football, you never know what will happen
Laporte is young, quick and agile, and by playing alongside Kompany and Otamendi, he will surely gain a lot of experience and grow used to the Premier League. It is a gamble worth taking for Guardiola and City as they are, apparently, already closing in on the 21-year-old French defender.
Santiago Arias
In the past couple of seasons, we have seen Pablo Zabaleta gallop down the right flank and assist City in attack and then track back and defend beautifully. He is indeed one of City’s best players so far. But age is a big factor these days.
Both right backs at City are now over 30 years of age. Zabaleta is 31, meanwhile Bacary Sagna is now 33. The Sky Blues definitely need a young, pacey and attack minded right back who can be the perfect replacement for Zabaleta.
Time for Guardiola to try his best and get Santiago Arias from PSV. The 24-year-old Colombian is exactly what Manchester City need. It will be a difficult task to lure him away from PSV, but if the efforts pay off, City can stop worrying about that right flank for years to come.
The Colombian international’s style of play is exactly like Pablo Zabaleta’s. He is an attack-minded fullback who is quick enough to track back and defend during a counter attack in an instant, making him, the perfect, long-term replacement.
Mario Götze
During the past transfer window, Manchester City successfully signed two upcoming young talents in Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne from Liverpool and Wolfsburg, respectively. Both these players have been deployed as wingers so far.
So with the flanks strong, the number 10 position requires a little bit of attention because now City is only left with David Silva for that role. We have also seen Yaya Toure in that position but he is going to leave this season as well.
Not to forget that even David Silva is above 30 now. Hence, Guardiola can bring a present for City as he comes from Bayern by getting Mario Götze along with him. The young German international hasn’t played as many games as he would have liked to and is reportedly ready to leave Bayern.
The former Borussia Dortmund star fits in perfectly, right in between De Bruyne and Sterling and in behind the prolific Sergio Aguero. It’s a win-win situation for both, the player and the club. He gets to play regularly and the club gets a perfect attacking midfielder.
