Why Manchester City should sign Edinson Cavani as a free agent

Sunday’s 5-2 demolition for Manchester City at the hands of Leicester was a wake-up call for their injury crisis, and Edinson Cavani could be the answer.

Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City were put to the sword in their Premier League home opener, and their striker injury crisis was a hot topic for debate. With both Sergio Agüero and Gabriel Jesus out for multiple weeks at the least, Guardiola was forced into a difficult decision at arguably the most important position on the pitch: play Raheem Sterling, who is not a natural striker and consistently struggles down the middle, or play 17-year old Liam Delap with virtually no experience fresh off a full 90 minutes in midweek. I believe, however, there is a third choice, and it would be to bring in Edinson Cavani.

In hindsight, starting Delap seems like the right choice given his natural finishing ability and Sterling’s struggles, but throwing a player with so little experience into the deep end is a massive risk. Moreover, the problem does not end at Leicester. Will Delap be forced to play again in the Carabao Cup against Burnley? The risk of injury of playing every three days at senior football-level intensity is huge for such a young player.

Delap has given City a new dimension they haven’t seen in some time: physical presence. His header off the bar was the best chance of the second half against Leicester, despite a host of world-class players behind the youth prospect. Edin Džeko was City’s last true aerial threat, and given City’s propensity to fall into a lull of endless crossing with no player capable of getting on the end of them, bringing in a different option could be enticing.

Enter Edinson Cavani. The 33-year old Uruguayan has been one of Europe’s elite strikers for the last decade, but is currently without a club. With the window winding down and City having already spent big money on other positions, Cavani is easily the best available short-term option to get them through this crisis.

All City would need to do is offer him a contract. With Cavani in the team, City have a player with the clinical instinct that Sterling and even Jesus severely lack. He is a pure, out-and-out goalscorer and an aerial threat, and with the services of some elite creative players behind him, he will flourish and allow Delap to focus on his development in the cup and off the bench.

More from Man City Editorials

Cavani’s potential impact is not limited to just the current crisis, however. If he performs, he should be second choice when Agüero returns, and will provide competition to get the best out of Jesus. If Cavani continues to outperform the Brazilian, he can still get into the team out wide and help the rotation, allowing for Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden to play in midfield if needed. He is also hugely experienced, a leader, and a poacher that mirrors Agüero in terms of ruthlessly clinical goalscoring.

The only potential downside would be his fit for Pep Guardiola’s system. The Catalan typically prefers shorter, hard-working forwards who will press nonstop. At Cavani’s age, this would be a tough ask, but given the possible rewards, it could be a season-saving move for City. Therefore, bringing in Cavani on a free is a low-risk move with a potentially huge reward. I have not seen the idea linked even once, but I believe that this would be a brilliant bit of business.