Manchester City are always looking at players who could potentially improve their squad – and Douglas Luiz showed again at the weekend why the club are reportedly interested in re-signing him.
City had a very quiet January, as is usually the case.
The club didn’t make any signings for the squad, but did announce a deal for youngster Claudio Echeverri, who has remained at River Plate for the time being.
City did sanction one exit in the window, with Kalvin Phillips joining West Ham United on loan for the remainder of the season.
It was a move the player needed, after really struggling for minutes in the first half of the season.
Phillips is likely to be sold in the summer, meaning the club will need to replace him – and Luiz is making a solid case to be that replacement.
Douglas Luiz is having an amazing season and could be a Kalvin Phillips upgrade at Manchester City
On Saturday, Aston Villa enjoyed a great result against struggling Sheffield United, beating the Blades 5-0 at Bramall Lane. It was an important win, after just faltering a little of late.
Villa, who beat City 1-0 earlier this season, had far too much quality for their opponents, with Ollie Watkins enjoying himself in particular.
But Luiz was also fantastic in midfield.
He only played for 45 minutes, but that is all the Brazilian needed to make an impact.
Luiz completed 29/31 passes (94%), with four of those being ‘key’ – no player in the game made more ‘key’ passes (via Sofascore).
He affected the game very early on when he played in Watkins, who saw his effort cleared off the line only for John McGinn to then tap in.
His standout moment came when he found Watkins with a delicious pass with the outside of his foot. He played the England striker in Kevin De Bruyne-style, with Watkins making no mistake with the finish.
On the latest Rest Is Football podcast, Micah Richards said of this moment: “Oh! It was amazing!”
Luiz is the real deal
It was a sumptuous performance from Luiz, who earned himself a rest from Unai Emery at half-time as a result of his fine efforts against Sheffield United.
This was just one of several great performances from the £75,000-a-week maestro this term. It’s now seven goals and seven assists for the South American, and it’s easy to understand why City may be interested in re-signing him.
Luiz can play as a holding midfield or as an eight.
He just seems to offer so much whatever role he’s playing, and he would surely be a big upgrade on Kalvin Phillips.
He is a little like Rodri in terms of, he is solid defensively but also contributes to the attacks – 14 goal involvements is incredibly impressive.
It was reported back in November that Pep Guardiola was keen on the idea of bringing the player back to the Etihad and hopefully, Luiz will feel he has unfinished business at City and fancy a transfer in the summer.
