Manchester City are looking to revamp their side with a number of fresh faces in the next season after they have let go of quite a few of their veteran players like left back Gael Clichy, goalkeeper Willy Caballero, right back Bacary Sagna and right winger Navas. The Citizens have already started showing their intent for the new season and have brought in the brilliant Portuguese midfielder Bernardo Silva from Monaco and the young Brazilian shot-stopper Ederson from Benfica, who have performed exceptionally well for their teams in their respective leagues.
Apart from the aforementioned positions, Manchester City is in dire need of a good centre back this season to accompany their Belgian ace Vincent Kompany. Reportedly, the Citizens have been looking to bring in Southampton’s Dutch defender Virgil Van Dijk to the club in an effort to stabilise their backline for the next season. However, it will not be easy even for the big spenders like City to bring in the mercurial centre back from the South Coast club, as they have put a hefty price tag of £60 million on their prized possession, which the Citizens are not willing to pay.
In case Manchester City does not get hold of the Dutch centre-back, three players who can come up as ideal alternatives for him are-
Pepe-
Having announced his departure from Real Madrid, the Portuguese is a free agent now and can be picked up by Manchester City for the next season. The ex-Galactico has the physical presence required to stabilise the defence of any top class side and make it an evidently strong one and can do the same by establishing a strong partnership with Vincent Kompany at the heart of the City defence.
Laurent Koscielny-
Manchester City can also look to bring in the Gunners mainstay in their backline, Laurent Koscielny to their club this summer to give a world of stability to their defence for the next season. The ability to tackle cleanly and snatch the ball away from the opposition strikers are the abilities that the Frenchman has that might come handy in case he joins City.
Kalidou Koulibaly-
The Napoli defender has been a top target for this year’s Premier League champions, Chelsea, as well, and might be the perfect inclusion to the Manchester City side to safeguard their backline for the next season. However, there might be strong resistance from his current club to let Koulibaly go in the next term.
