Manchester City are seeking to prevent a mini-crisis this weekend when they take on Brighton in the Premier League.
Manchester City fell to a chastening defeat in midweek in the Champions League against Sporting CP, losing 4-1 in Lisbon.
This followed losses to Bournemouth in the Premier League and Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup.
Fans are slightly concerned at the moment, with performances not particularly good before this three-game losing streak. The team has not settled in the absence of Rodri, and Pep Guardiola is contending with a number of injury problems at the moment.
Certainly, City could do with getting back on track against Brighton – a fourth straight defeat doesn’t really bear thinking about.
For a lot of City fans, all eyes are on January already – but will City be making any moves?
Man City board to take measured approach heading into January
It has been suggested that Man City could seek to sign a replacement for Julian Alvarez in January.
There has also been some talk about the club landing a holding midfielder to replace Rodri.
Fans are talking about the club bringing in new players, but City look set to take a measured approach heading into January.
Manchester City News spoke with transfer expert Graeme Bailey, who says that the City board is not panicked by the current situation with players being injured and results and performances being poor.
He said: “They don’t panic. It’s the first time they’ve lost three in a row for six years. It’s one of those where they’re happy with what they’ve got.
“They know injuries have hampered them slightly, but they’re still in fine fettle in every major competition they want to be in.
“If the right situation arises they’ll do it. Like what happened to get (Claudio) Echeverri in before that. Savinho’s come along and been excellent for them, so it’s going to be quality over quantity. We might see the boy Christian McFarlane come in from New York City. They’re assessing it now, they’ll see where they go. These next few weeks will be crucial in terms of injuries and squad size.”
Man City need at least one new face in January
We don’t see City act in the January transfer very often, but the way this season has gone suggests they might need to get busy.
Guardiola could really do with someone to solidify the holding midfield position, and he may also require another forward since Julian Alvarez wasn’t replaced.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  LiverpoolLiverpool | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 6 | 13 | 25 |
| 2 |  Man CityManchester City | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 21 | 11 | 10 | 23 |
| 3 |  Nottm ForestNottingham Forest | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 19 |
| 4 |  ChelseaChelsea | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 20 | 12 | 8 | 18 |
| 5 |  ArsenalArsenal | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 18 |
| 6 |  Aston VillaAston Villa | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 15 | 2 | 18 |
Guardiola likes to work with a small squad. But the long-term absence of Rodri surely means the manager needs to do something in January.
The issue is that clubs demand big fees in January as nobody really wants to lose players mid-season.
It wouldn’t come as too much of a surprise if City got to the end of January having brought nobody in. We have seen the club quite happy to walk away from deals where other clubs have set a valuation that simply doesn’t match up with City’s.
It would be nice to see fresh faces. But City never operate unless they’re sure something is absolutely right for them.
