Manchester City’s defensive issues continue.
Last Sunday’s 2-0 defeat at the hands of champions-elect Liverpool was the 19th time the Sky Blues have conceded multiple goals in the same game this season.
Thus, Pep Guardiola’s team have let in almost exactly 1.5 goals per game so far this season, which would represent the Citizens’ highest ratio since being relegated in 2000/01.
However, Man City do have a highly-rated teenage defender currently out on loan who could help ease these issues when he returns to the Etihad next season.
John Stones, watch out…
John Stones' decline at Man City this season
When Stones joined Manchester City from Everton for a reported fee of £47.5m, becoming the second most expensive defender in the world at the time, there were certainly doubts.
Well, this has certainly proven to be a worthwhile investment, with former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand describing him as the “best in the world” on his way to winning six Premier League titles, two FA Cups and a Champions League.
However, more recently, this season in particular, he has struggled with injuries throughout this campaign, sitting out 16 matches already due to various issues, with Guardiola confirming his defender will be sidelined again, this time for up to ten weeks due to a thigh injury suffered at the Bernabéu last Wednesday.
Jonathan Wilson of the Guardian wonders if Stones’ inability to stay fit is a ‘perpetual state’, not helped by the fact that, as noted by Joe Bray of the Manchester Evening News, he was ‘rushed back’ in December, as a result of Man City’s ‘never-ending injury cycle’ at the back.
Thus, according to some reports, Stones could leave in the summer given that Man City have been investing in younger defenders to take them into the future, notably Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis.
But, could another of their young investments, currently out on loan, be the England defender’s successor?
Man City's new teenage defender
In January, as part of their spending spree, Man City signed 18-year-old defender Juma Bah from Real Valladolid, paying his €6m (£5m) release clause, before immediately loaning him out to Lens, a deal that has proved to be controversial.
As recently as last season, Bah was playing for Freetonians SLIFA in his native Sierra Leone, before making a surprise move to La Liga side Valladolid.
Following, as Reuben Pinder of the Athletic put it, his ‘rapid rise’, Blanquivioletas wanted to increase Bah’s release clause, which stood at just £5m, and have accused Man City of ‘tapping up’, encouraging Bah not to sign a professional contract at Valladolid so they could snap him up a cut-price rate, with the Spanish club ‘threatening legal action’ according to James Ducker of the Telegraph.
Jamie Jackson and Sid Lowe of the Guardian cite a Valladolid statement that alleges Bah ‘decided not to show up’ later informing the club of his ‘intention to unilaterally break his contract’.
So, why were Man City so desperate to secure the 18-year-old’s signature, after he made just 12 appearances in La Liga?
In The Pipeline
Football FanCast’s In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.
Well, Mario Cortegana and Tomás Hill López-Menchero of the Athletic describe him as ‘commanding’, while data analyst Ben Mattinson labelled him a “powerhouse”, whose “aerial ability makes him a threat on set-pieces”.
In that sense, he could well be similar to Arsenal’s Gabriel, who scored at the Etihad in September and tends to have an almighty habit of causing chaos from corners and free-kicks.
So, let’s see how the duo compare, as well as where they rank across Europe’s top five leagues.
Stats
Bah
Top 5 leagues rank
Gabriel
Top 5 leagues rank
Aerials duels won
71.1%
37th
58.8%
277th
Pass completion
81.4%
583rd
90%
94th
Tackles
10
738th
23
114th
Clearances
61
231st
77
135th
Interceptions
12
593rd
14
492nd
Blocks
16
585th
37
34th
Ball recoveries
36
1,122nd
52
793rd
Of players who’ve been involved in 30+ aerials duals across Europe’s top five leagues this season, only 25 have won a higher percentage than Bah, which is particularly impressive considering he’s spent the majority of the season playing for Valladolid, who former Manchester United and Wimbledon striker Terry Gibson described as ‘hopeless’ on the La Liga weekly podcast.
Also worth caveating that Bah has played just 879 minutes across La Liga and now Ligue 1 this season, the most some players have racked up is 2,430, making it all the more impressive that he ranks 37th for aerial duals won, the most noteworthy section of the above table.
Thus, the teenager is certainly talented, and a player Man City supporters should be excited to see in a sky blue shirt soon.
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