Pep Guardiola reportedly knows what sort of player he doesn’t want to sign for Manchester City this summer.
So far in this current transfer window, the club have announced the departure of Ilkay Gundogan to Barcelona and the arrival of Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea in a four-year deal worth £30m.
Now though, some extra behind-the-scenes details have emerged regarding Guardiola’s intentions for another area of his squad that could see some changes take place throughout the remainder of the summer transfer window.
Guardiola not looking for full-backs
According to a recent report from The Athletic, City are not in the market for a traditional full-back that ventures up and down the pitch.
The report also adds that Guardiola’s plan is to stick with playing four centre-backs in the team at the back.
In terms of defensive players the Citizens have been linked with in this window, one figure that has been heavily mentioned with a move to the Etihad Stadium is Josko Gvardiol, who has apparently agreed personal terms over joining the European champions.
While predominantly featuring as a centre-back but occasionally playing in the left-back role, this makes him a valid option for Guardiola alongside some of City’s current defensive options that have the versatility to play in other roles such as Nathan Ake, Manuel Akanji and John Stones.
Bearing in mind how City ended their previous Premier League campaign with the joint-fewest goals conceded (33) in the division, as well as only conceding one goal in their FA Cup journey, it’s easy to see why the manager would be wanting to continue his defensive set up in the manner in which they secured the treble at the end of last season.
