Man City boss Pep Guardiola gives a thumbs up to one of his players. (Getty Images)
According to a report in Sun Football, Premier League’s defending champions Manchester City may make a surprise loan move for Schalke star Sebastian Rudy. Manager Pep Guardiola wants an able cover for defensive midfielder Fernandinho, the only area where City are short in depth. The Spaniard has been taking a close look ahead of a shock deal for the German.
As a de facto, Guardiola knows Rudy from his time in Germany when he was in charge of Bayern Munich. The 28-year-old hasn’t been in great form this season and that’s why the Cityzens are looking to sign him on a short-term deal. (Sun)
However, the player has enough propensities to replace Fernandinho whenever required. Here’s why Manchester City are right in targeting the German as a short-term solution to a long-term issue:
If we analyse as to how Guardiola likes to set up his team, the defensive midfielder is the most important player. He is the one who starts the build-up from the back by taking the ball from the goalkeeper or the centre-backs.
He has to be aware of winning second balls to keep the attack going. Finally, reading the danger and stopping counter-attacks is one of the important facets. And Fernandinho is a master of all these attributes.
The Brazilian is one of the major reasons why City are probably the best team in Europe. We have seen this team crumbling in the games he missed, namely against Crystal Palace and Leicester City last December. Hence, it is clear that the Cityzens do not have a direct replacement for the 33-year-old within the current squad. Thus, dipping into the market is the only solution.
Getting Sebastian Rudy could be ideal, at least for the rest of this season. Despite the German’s patchy form of late, he is a quality player who possesses the ability to replace Fernandinho in this Manchester City team. The 28-year-old could be the man who can be trusted by Guardiola to rotate in defensive midfield and keep the Brazilian fresh for playing the important games.
Rudy has everything in his locker, starting from defensive awareness to accurate passing to physicality in the midfield. All in all, he would be a perfect signing for City, and their quest for quadruple could take a positive turn.
From the player’s point of view, he should come to this club, and try to impress Guardiola to possibly get a permanent move come the summer. At the moment, playing for Manchester City could be the biggest honour for a footballer in terms of enhancing the reputation.