Manchester City are reportedly spending around £100m in order to strengthen their full-back options per express demands of Pep Guardiola and have concluded the signing of Kyle Walker from Tottenham Hotspur.
After seeing their key target Dani Alves move to PSG, The Citizens promptly put an end to dilly-dallying and chose to meet Daniel Levy’s valuation of the England international according to reports. The 27-year-old could be part of City’s pre season squad travelling to the USA.
With AS Monaco’s Benjamin Mendy also reportedly Manchester bound, City have readied a bid in the region of £25m for Southampton left-back Ryan Bertrand.
An ex-Chelsea player, Bertrand featured heavily in Chelsea’s Champions League winning season and was part of the first eleven that faced Bayern Munich in the Allianz Arena, owing to a number of high-profile names missing out due to injuries and suspensions.
He moved to Southampton on a season long loan deal in the summer of 2014 which was made permanent in the following season for a fee in the region of £10m.
City have released the ageing full-back trio of Gael Clichy, Bacary Sagna and Pablo Zabaleta and are in the midst of a squad overhaul. Guardiola’s preference of inverted wing-backs is common knowledge and it is one of the foremost areas the Catalan has chosen to seek reinforcements for in the ongoing window. In an inflated market, City have no choice but to meet the going price of players in an area that is evolving and has a dearth of talented individuals suited to the full-back role. Managers like Guardiola and Antonio Conte use their fullbacks in capacities specifically suited to their conception of the game.
It is next to impossible to identify ready-made full-backs in the market that can be slotted in as an automatic choice. Most fullbacks that are operating in the game currently are converted wingers a la Victor Moses or attack-minded defenders who can simultaneously be a threat in the opponent’s half and nullify wide players of the opposition.
Following Chelsea’s trendsetting season last year, full-backs are a sought after quantity. Ryan Bertrand at 27 isn’t the youngest around but could be moulded into the role owing to the player’s versatility. The England international is a natural left-back but is equally at ease higher up the field as a wide midfielder.
Although not among the sturdiest of defenders out there, Bertrand is quite agile on his feet and has the stamina to cover the lengths of the field many times over, which is one of the prerequisites of the position. With Benjamin Mendy City-bound, Bertrand could provide cover in the left flank in a season that would see City compete on multiple fronts.
Southampton are reluctant to sell Bertrand who signed a 5-year contract with them last summer running till 2021 but could find it hard to resist Manchester City’s persistent ways.
