Josko Gvardiol has been one of Manchester City’s best players this season.
The 2024/25 campaign has been an underwhelming one for Pep Guardiola’s men having gone from winning four Premier League titles in a row to fighting for a place in next season’s Champions League with City currently sitting in fourth position after a big win over Aston Villa last week.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 2 |  ArsenalArsenal | 34 | 18 | 13 | 3 | 63 | 29 | 34 | 67 |
| 3 |  NewcastleNewcastle | 34 | 19 | 5 | 10 | 65 | 44 | 21 | 62 |
| 4 |  Man CityManchester City | 34 | 18 | 7 | 9 | 66 | 43 | 23 | 61 |
| 5 |  ChelseaChelsea | 34 | 17 | 9 | 8 | 59 | 40 | 19 | 60 |
The season may be salvaged by achieving this, in addition to winning the FA Cup and FIFA Club World Cup, which will add to the very few positive outcomes from the current campaign.
One success story has been Gvardiol, who has impressed at Man City this season playing at both left-back and as a centre-back. Ahead of the 2025/26 season, fans of the Manchester club will love what Guardiola has planned for the Croatian defender.
Pep Guardiola has plan for Josko Gvardiol at Man City
Gvardiol headed in Man City’s second goal in their 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest at the weekend, which was the centre-back’s sixth of the season.
Man City fans called for Gvardiol to play at centre-back ahead of the Manchester Derby at the start of April and since the emergence of Nico O’Reilly, Guardiola has only used the 23-year-old in that position.
The Croatian star has thrived in the role alongside Ruben Dias, and according to the Manchester Evening News’ Simon Bajkowski, there is a strong chance the Man City boss will keep that partnership heading into next season.
“Yet there is undeniably a quality to the Gvardiol-Dias partnership that may be hard to beat with any other combination,” Bajkowski wrote.
“Guardiola likes his defenders to be fluid, able to play multiple positions so that he can adapt for whatever opposition they face. At the same time, he has not been averse to sticking with the same central partnership if he thinks it is what the team needs.
“Akanji is already back in the matchday squads and the others will look to follow, so there is a good chance the partnership gets broken up before the end of the season.
“What City will have to work out is whether Gvardiol could yet oust his teammates and keep the centre-back role that he looks most comfortable in.”
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The latest on Man City’s search for a left-back
Gvardiol staying at centre-back could depend on who Man City bring in for the left-back role in their team as Guardiola plans to use O’Reilly as a midfielder going forward.
The Manchester club have several options they are looking at, with it being reported this week that Liverpool have joined the race for Juventus’ Andrea Cambiaso, who is one of City’s top targets.
The Reds are also interested in bringing Milos Kerkez to Anfield, who emerged as a target for Man City recently, as it looks like both Premier League giants will be battling each other for full-backs this summer.
When it comes to recruiting a new left-back, there has been no standout candidate that the hierarchy at the Etihad Stadium are pursuing, however, fans of the club will hope that they bring one in as it will likely result in Gvardiol remaining at centre-back.
