Manchester City: Should they leave or should they stay?

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MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 18: Fernando of Manchester City (L) and Alexis Sanchez of Arsenal (R) battle for possession during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium on December 18, 2016 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images) /

Analysis

Fernando joined his Porto teammate Eliaquim Mangala in relocating to Manchester. Sadly, neither of them were able to call Manchester their true home. While both of them were thought to have the physical tool to succeed in the Premier League, they just could not get the trust of their managers to become a regular first team member. While he proved that he can pass well enough to fit in Pep’s system, he struggled in a surprising aspect – defending. His tackling and positioning were all over the place as he relied on his physical nature more than anything else.

However, Manchester is short on these defensive midfielders. Yaya Toure was rumored to leave the club before signing his new contract. Fabian Delph is not good enough and Fernandinho has been deployed in so many other positions. Toure and Gundogan seem plausible, but neither are defensive stalwarts. Fernando has become too similar to Toure to justify his place.

The Brazilian has been in demand, however. Newcastle seems to be in the lead for signing Fernando for a cool price of £5m.

Verdict: SELL

It will be near impossible to make a profit off of the midfielder, but he simply does not have a place here. It will be better for all parties if he takes his talent elsewhere.