Journalist Julien Laurens has suggested there have been some concerns about Josko Gvardiol’s performances for RB Leipzig amid rumours linking him with a summer transfer move to Manchester City.
Earlier this month, it was reported that the Manchester club had agreed personal terms with the centre-back over a potential transfer move to the Etihad Stadium.
This has since led to one journalist sharing some details on the matter, including some interesting points on what the defender has been doing recently on the pitch in Germany.
Laurens assesses City’s move for Gvardiol
Speaking in a recent video on the ESPN FC YouTube channel, Laurens said this about Gvardiol and his proposed move to City.
He said: “The price is around €100m we think, give or take.
“There have been a bit of inconsistency at Leipzig in terms of what he does on the pitch. In the World Cup, he was magnificent and I wonder if it’s more down to the environment at Leipzig and where they team was maybe more than himself.
“I think he can step up easily to a team like City, to a coach like [Pep] Guardiola and that kind of environment. But it is a lot of money still.
“I think if you lose a [Aymeric] Laporte, left-footed centre-back, you replace him with another left-footed centre-back and right now, there are not that many who are as good as Gvardiol is.
“So if you’re the best in Europe which City are, you go for what you can find, the best in Europe in that position that you want to strengthen, it makes sense.”
In terms of his performances in the Bundesliga last season, the Croatian earned himself an overall rating of 6.67/10 from WhoScored, making him the 11th-highest-rated player at Leipzig.
This could be why Laurens said there have been some inconsistencies in the way he played over the campaign.
However, with City apparently keen to strike a deal for the 21-year-old this summer, this suggests that they have seen enough in the player to want him in their squad.
In addition to that, as Laurens mentioned, the defender found himself on the end of some heavy praise for his efforts for Croatia in the previous World Cup.
In fact, he ended the tournament with the highest average of clearances (5.3) and interceptions (1.6) per game in the Croatia squad, highlighting the defensive capabilities he has and what he’d be able to offer Guardiola’s side if he makes his way there this summer.
