Pep Guardiola must have wished for a better start at Manchester City than what he had in reality. The season has reached exactly the half-way mark and the Cityzens find themselves 10 points behind league leaders Chelsea. Well, we wouldn’t say that Chelsea are uncatchable for City by the end of the season but it won’t be an easy task at all.
As per Express Sport, Chelsea are looking to trump Manchester City for the signing of their number one defensive target Virgil van Dijk and could make a £60m bid for him in January.
Manchester City are in dire need for defensive reinforcements which has become evident in recent weeks and missing on van Dijk could prove to be costly for them. Now, Pep has to look for alternatives to the Dutch international and we thought we might give him a hand. Here are three defenders whom City could move for now.
Inigo Martinez
The Spanish defender was highly sought out in the football world a few years back and it is a bit surprising to see him still plying his trade for Real Sociedad in La Liga. He is still only 25 and exactly the kind of defender Pep is looking for.
The Spanish international is more of a technically gifted defender rather than one who does the dirty work. His eye for passing is top-notch which would go well in Pep’s philosophy. Being from Spain, he could settle quickly under Guardiola and would be a welcome addition at Etihad.
Alessio Romagnoli
Over the years, Italy has produced the best defenders in world and Alessio Romagnoli seems to be the next big thing in Italian football. The 21-year-old has attracted a lot of plaudits from a very early age and has been a key member of the Milan side this season who are doing pretty well in Serie A to restore their lost glory.
The highly-rated Italian stopper has been a subject of interest from a number of big clubs in Europe and if City misses out on van Dijk, they could certainly move for the 21-year-old.
Aymeric Laporte
The 22-year-old burst onto the scene with Athletic Bilbao quite some time back and was a prime target of the Cityzens back in summer. The Mirror claims that the French youngster is looking for a suitable offer to move out of the Basque club and Guardiola being a long-term admirer of the 22-year-old, Manchester city could be his ideal destination. One of the best young defenders in the world, Laporte would be a perfect fit in Guardiola’s Manchester City side.
