Frank LeBoeuf has said that Josko Gvardiol may undergo a similar start to life at Manchester City as Jack Grealish.
Speaking on ESPN FC, the controversial pundit made this claim after RB Leipzig sporting director Max Eberl confirmed that the 21-year-old could join City in the next few days.
Now, Frank LeBoeuf has said that he expects Josko Gvardiol to take time to settle in at Manchester City in the same vein as Jack Grealish.
Frank LeBoeuf expects Josko Gvardiol to take time to adapt to Manchester City like Jack Grealish
Many would likely disagree with this take, considering the ex-Aston Villa captain had to change his entire style of play to become a success at the Etihad Stadium.
The same cannot be said for the Croatian defender, branded as ‘phenomenal’ by Mateo Kovacic, whose brilliance on the ball and tactical versatility would make him especially suited to a Pep Guardiola team.
However, Frank LeBoeuf has explained why he expects Josko Gvardiol to initially struggle at Manchester City like Jack Grealish did.
“You have paid €100 million (£85.9 million), you deserve to play, you will play because you are under pressure and want to pay back. But we know Manchester City, we know [Pep] Guardiola and we know what happened to Grealish this season, where he took some time for him to settle down and because he wasn’t good enough, he was even on the bench.”
Frank LeBoeuf elaborated on why Josko Gvardiol could undergo the same struggles as Jack Grealish after signing for Manchester City.
“This season showed the talent of Grealish and his patience, and it’s only fair. So, I think for Gvardiol, it might be the same where at some point, he won’t start because when you have [Manuel] Akanji and [Ruben] Dias as centre-backs, you don’t really need a Gvardiol right now. But you might need a Gvardiol next season. And you might need a Gvardiol for some other competitions, the Champions League and the Premier League.”
Frank LeBoeuf also pinpointed that Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola would likely test Josko Gvardiol as he did in the case of Jack Grealish in terms of demanding him to adapt to his commands.
“So, he will test him at some point and little by little, impose him and after maybe a year, he will become a recurrent centre-back. It’s how Guardiola works and I think it will be the same kind of situation with Gvardiol.”
