SAD News for Pep Guardiola and Manchester City as THREE BIG NAME player has informed the club that the will be leaving this summer
Twelve months ago, Manchester City’s defense and goalie were so strong that the fans had a song to praise them.
Both Ederson and Ake. Both Walker and Akanji. Ruben Dias. Jack Stones.
You couldn’t drop the goalkeeper, and his success in Istanbul helped his manager’s unwavering trust. By moving into the middle of the field, Stones changed the job of center back. City had been looking for a “real” left back for a long time before Nathan Ake arrived. And Manu Akanji was filling in anywhere after signing for a low price of £14 million.
After the triple, Kyle Walker was the only one who was still unknown. He didn’t play in the final and thought about moving to Bayern Munich, but he decided to sign a new deal instead. He became captain, and no other defender started more games all season.
Walker, who turns 34 today, says he might not play as much in the next few seasons, which makes people wonder what will happen at right back. During the run-in, Stones wasn’t in the running for the first team. He will have to work hard over the summer to get back in.
It wasn’t safe anywhere, not even Dias’. They lost their spots on the team because of steady high-level play from rookie Josko Gvardiol and because Ake and Akanji earned their spots in the last few months of the season. As Guardiola always says, a player who does a good job will keep the shirt. This caused a stir in the leadership.
Ederson has been linked with a move out of defense and a back-up role. If Stefan Ortega wants to play more, he says he might leave this summer.
Here is the first part of a three-part review of the team. It looks at where each goalie and defender stands after 2023–24 and what they need to do next season:
Who could leave?
First, let’s talk about the bad news. The first player to say he might leave this summer was Stefan Ortega. He had been having a good run of games. Pep Guardiola has told him over and over that he will still be the number two player next season, even though he wants to play more.
He has to make a choice because he is having his second child, but he said last week that so far there have been no offers that come close to what City is giving him. There are rumors that Ederson wants to move to Saudi Arabia, which could make things more difficult, but Guardiola and City want him to stay.
In defense, Sergio Gomez is the only player who might be able to leave. He only played six times in the Premier League, for a total of 47 minutes, and averaged 29 minutes per game in a forgettable season. The 26-year-old has two years left on his deal, but he will definitely try to leave, either permanently or on loan, to get more playing time.
At best, he is the fifth choice at left back, and he plays further back on the wing. This won’t change for the better next season.