In January, Manchester City invested nearly the same amount as the entire Premier League combined in an effort to rescue their season and initiate a rebuild of their team. Pep Guardiola sought another successful year from his squad that had won the Premier League four times in a row, but the demand proved excessive. Despite leading the league in early November, City has since fallen out of the title race. Key players like Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne have not been able to perform at their usual levels, and a severe injury crisis has deprived Manchester City of the key player Rodri, along with their entire starting center-backs at different times this season. This has prompted a significant financial investment, culminating in a £180 million spending spree that concluded just before the transfer window closed with the signing of Nico Gonzalez from Porto for £50 million. His arrival complements Omar Marmoush’s transfer from Frankfurt, along with the young defensive pair of Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov. City’s expenditure on these four players amounts to £10 million less than the total spending of the other 19 premier league clubs. However, despite this considerable investment, City has not addressed a significant issue and must confront another reality. Kyle Walker’s loan move to AC Milan has left Pep Guardiola short at right back, especially since he opts for Mathues Nunes, a midfielder, over Rico Lewis. The latter appears to be what he truly is – an athlete playing in the wrong position. Although Lewis has some drawbacks in his role, especially evident during the early weeks of the season, he is undoubtedly a superior option compared to Nunes. To address this issue, the ideal approach would be to acquire an additional right-back for competition and stability—something Andrea Cambiasso could have offered if City had pursued their interest in the Juventus player. Guardiola could consider one of his center-back choices, enhanced by the additions of Khusanov and Reis, as a possibility for the right side. However, John Stones and Manuel Akanji, the primary candidates, are needed in the central positions due to Nathan Ake and Ruben Dias being unavailable. Consequently, the issue with the right back will persist over the next few months and needs to be tackled firmly during the summer. While resolving that is the top priority, the second major concern for the team lies in the goalkeeping position. Stefan Ortega filled in for the injured Ederson during the heavy defeat against Arsenal on Sunday and did not perform well.
