Manchester City Transfer News: Search for Replacement Left Back?

The Injury to Manchester City’s Left Back Ben Mendy May Mean a Change of Transfer Priorities in January

Manchester City’s problem at full back goes back to the ageing players who Guardiola inherited at the point he joined. The Pellegrini era concluded with Aleks Kolarov and Gael Clichy as the only recognised left sided defenders at the Club. Both of these players were the wrong side of 32 and Guardiola quickly concluded Clichy was not able to cope with the particular demands he places upon full backs in his system.

Kolarov looked a better bet, and crucially also afforded cover at centre back. In Guardiola’s first season at Manchester City Kolarov enjoyed a renaissance and looked to have achieved a level of playing consistent with Guardiola’s demands. However Kolarov asked to move to Italy to see out his playing career and Manchester City were forced into the transfer market.

The sheer amount of spend necessary to reshape the squad limited the funds available for defensive cover. The well made plans were stretched further when Dani Alves promptly changed his mind at the last moment and signed on a free transfer at Paris Saint Germain rather than City. This prompted a last minute purchase of Kyle Walker at £50 million to supplement the already committed £50 million for Ben Mendy. Danilo was added as the only available cover, but he was a right sided player.

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The injury to Mendy last season which effectively ruled him out for all but a handful of games was the worst possible injury to sustain given the position of the squad. However Guardiola solved his initial problem through the use of Fabian Delph and Zinchenko and the record books detail the outcome.

Since that point there has been an acknowledgement City have not addressed the squad shortcomings at left back. Delph has been somewhat injury prone and Zinchenko very nearly moved on during the summer. The further injury this season to Mendy has again highlighted the need to secure some additional cover in the squad. Whilst Mendy is thought to be out this time for around 6 weeks, that absence could be lengthened. Courtois suffered a similar injury at Chelsea and was out for 10 weeks.

The current Mendy injury adds to the 8 weeks he has already missed since August with other minor injuries. All of this suggests it may be prudent to look at left back options.

But who is out there realistically as a target? Well, there are 2 distinct strategies which could be taken – an older player available for less – or a rising star who is likely to cost a princely sum. Guardiola could take either approach, much will depend upon how much funds they are seeking to retain for their main transfer targets – a new defensive midfielder and maybe a new striker.

If City are looking for a younger player than the Spanish market may be good because of the operation of minimum release clauses it may prevent any transfer from becoming drawn out. Guardiola is a known admirer of Lucas Hernandez at Athletic Madrid and have been linked in the past to Jose Gaya at Valencia. In Germany both Baba Rahman and Aaron Martin will be being scouted by bigger clubs.

Of course this season Guardiola will have seen Ferland Mendy of Lyon in operation at close hand and he may well be an option. He has also replaced Ben Mendy in the France national squad following the injury.

This week Guardiola has been sighted at Bayern Munich which has started a series of rumours given City may well be in the hunt for a left back and they have one of the World’s best – David Alaba – but such a move would appear unlikely. The relationship between the clubs may be unlikely to foster any deal.

Of more chance in the search for a younger full back may be the relationship with Leicester City and the prospect of Ben Chilwell. A player who fits some of the criteria Guardiola may be looking for but who lacks a consistently good distribution.

Finally if City were to look for an experienced full back at a reasonable price on a short term deal then Filipe Luis’ contract expires next summer so may be available at a knock down price. At 33 he may offer some experience to our squad as we approach the business end of the season.

Whatever happens, you can guarantee that right now Manchester City are busy with their transfer plans, not just for January 2019 but for Summer 2019 too. Given their track record in recent years of recruiting the right players, we can all look forward to the window ahead and relax.