Janusz Michallik had his say on Josko Gvardiol after Manchester City suffered a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace.
The pundit admitted that he is unsure about how Gvardiol fits in as a makeshift left-back on ESPN FC.
The former USMNT international clearly believes the Sky Blues’ defence is a huge worry this season, also pinpointing how Ruben Dias has underwhelmed so far.
Janusz Michallik unconvinced about Josko Gvardiol as a left-back after Manchester City dropped points against Crystal Palace
After City’s 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa, Pat Nevin also said that the £200,000-a-week (Sport Rac) man is simply “not a left-back”, questioning Pep Guardiola’s decision to deploy him in the role.
It seems like there is a belief at City that the youngster will reach the top, with a report in August claiming that the club believe he is the best centre-back in the world out of players in his age group.
But at left-back, Janusz Michallik is yet to be sold about Josko Gvardiol after Manchester City shared the spoils with Crystal Palace.
“He continues to tell me that [Josko] Gvardiol is a good left-back, I’m not 100 per cent sure”, he told ESPN FC.
Josko Gvardiol does not deserve any criticism after Saturday’s game
Whether Josko Gvardiol is at his best as a left-back is debatable but after Manchester City capitulated against Crystal Palace, Janusz Michallik, in our view, should not be focusing on him whatsoever.
The Croatian international was impressive against Roy Hodgson’s side, bombing down the flank, holding the width which allowed Jack Grealish to play more centrally, creating and almost scoring a goal and largely, keeping Michael Olise quiet.
After Gvardiol looked much more comfortable as a left-back against Luton Town, he seems to have taken another step forward in his adaptation to an unnatural position.
To lay too much emphasis on the 21-year-old’s inadequacies in the role after the treble-winners’ fourth league draw of the season would be unjustified.
