Manchester City manager Josep Guardiola has named the “incredible” midfielder as one of his main targets in central midfield.
Guardiola aims to sign new midfielder as Gonzalez struggles
Nico Gonzalez has yet to establish himself as a key first-team player for Man City and has often been limited to substitute appearances in the Premier League so far this season, with the midfielder facing criticism for some of his performances.
City’s first major setback of the season came in August when they lost 2-0 at home to Tottenham Hotspur, with former Chelsea striker Frank Leboeuf claiming Gonzalez was responsible for the visitors’ second goal.
A commentator said: “Yes, Trafford made a mistake in giving away the ball, but what about Nico (Gonzalez)?”
“Why did Nico ask for the ball? And you see that again when he actually asked for the ball and there were two people behind him and he tried to give the ball to the goalkeeper.”
Since then, the Spaniard has continued to struggle, conceding a 90th-minute penalty from Eric Dier in the 2-2 Champions League draw against AS Monaco.
A report in Spain claims that Man City are currently looking to strengthen their midfield options, with fellow midfielder Rodri struggling with an injury, with Bayern Munich’s Aleksandar Pavlovic named as one of Pep’s main targets.
City manager is looking to revamp his midfield and Pavlovic is said to be his ‘favourite’ target after his outstanding performance at Bayern, who are reluctant to let him leave.
It would therefore take a “significant offer” to sign the 21-year-old from the German club, with it previously revealed the Blues could be willing to offer more than £43m.
‘Incredible’ Pavlovic could become ‘the next Toni Kroos’
The central midfielder has been highly rated by journalist Manuel Bess, who suggests he could emulate the former Bayern Munich and Real Madrid star.
It is important that the midfielders playing under Pep are able to pass the ball reliably, and the Bayern star certainly fits the bill, having shown an uncanny ability to identify his team-mates over the past year.
statistics | Average per 90 people (past year) |
Number of pass attempts | 97.42 (99th percentile) |
Pass completion rate | 92.6% (98th percentile) |
progressive path | 8.39 (95th percentile) |
It is clear that Pavlovic could be the perfect player for Man City, given his similar characteristics to Rodri, who attempted 95 passes in just 60 minutes in the 2-0 win over Napoli, and the young German could be the ideal successor.