Manchester City: A midfield revamp

In the final of the Euros, when Rodri went off injured for Spain, Martín Zubimendi came on the eventual Ballon d'Or winner. So, why not repeat the trick again?

Rodri is essentially irreplaceable. It's not all down to him, but I can't remember the last time a player got injured and my estimation of him almost immediately skyrocketed. The Spaniard clearly covered up so many of Man City's weaknesses all on his own, and there isn't another player in the world who can do that. Frankly, their decline has been so sudden that I'm wondering if there has ever been another player, since the sport broke off from rugby and American football in the 19th century, who would've been able to replace him.

One of the clearest issues without Rodri is in transition. Whenever City turn the ball over, it's essentially a free run at goal for the other team. And I think, in turn, City are playing much more tentatively when they have the ball because they know what kind of disaster lurks behind any change in possession. Most of this can be pinned on the midfield, where the likes of Mateo Kovacic, Ilkay Gündogan, and Rico Lewis are just getting trampled, game after game.

The midfield needs a total revamp, and Zubimendi (25 years old, €60 million) feels like a good place to start. He's maybe a little older than you'd want, but his possession style fits the Guardiola mold and he has the kind of off-ball positional sense that is completely lacking from the current City midfield. As an added bonus, you'd be signing a player that Liverpool tried really hard to sign last summer. He opted to stay with his boyhood club -- living in San Sebastian instead of Liverpool ... can you blame him? -- but Real Sociedad are likely going to be stuck in the midtable for the rest of the season.