Over the last few years Manchester City have been solid at the back as they been fluid in attack – and one big reason for that is Ruben Dias.
City landed the Portugal international in £65 million deal from Benfica in 2020.
Nicolas Otamendi was moving the other way, and City also just needed a dominant player at the back again following the departure of Vincent Kompany in 2019.
Dias very quickly endeared himself to the City faithful, showcasing his aggressive defending but also his cultured style in possession.
Arguably, he’s been one of the most important signings the club have made since the 2008 takeover.
Dias has always been fantastic for City. But today, there was an interesting line about Dias in a report from The Athletic…
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People at Manchester City did not expect Ruben Dias to be so good
The Athletic have reported today about new signing Jeremy Doku.
The focus of the piece is why City have moved to sign the Belgian.
Doku is a huge talent. But he is also fairly raw right now.
Towards the end of the piece it is stated that Doku wasn’t City’s first choice winger this summer in the transfer market.
But it is then added that Dias was actually only the third choice option for City when the club signed him in 2020.
And the publication states that one well-placed Etihad source said that ‘nobody expected Ruben Dias to be so good’.
Ruben Dias has been exceptional
After the departure of Kompany, a lot of City fans were worried about the future of the defence.
The Belgian had been a colossus in the backline, and would not be easy to replace at all.
But City found a gem in Dias.
He is an incredible, ‘aggressive’ defender and leader, and without doubt one of the best and most important signings the club has made in recent times.
It is really interesting that a source has said people at City didn’t really anticipate him being so good.
That is why fans should trust in the club’s decision to sign Doku from Rennes.