Manchester City are interested in the highly-rated defender Boubacar Kamara, who currently plays for French side Marseille. Kamara has come through the ranks at the French club, making his debut in 2016.
As per Le 10 Sport, Manchester City could make a bid of around £28 million to try and avail the services of the Frenchman. The French club have to sell players in the summer as per the report, and Boubacar Kamara could be one of the players that could be sold for the right price. Premier League sides Arsenal and Manchester United are also rumoured to be interested in signing the 20-year-old defender.
Since making his debut in 2016, Kamara has made 79 appearances for the club in all competitions. His current contract with the club will expire in 2022, with the player having signed an extension to his contract last year.
Boubacar Kamara: Will He Solve City’s Problems?
Manchester City will need to spend big in the summer to buy a top-quality centre back. The injury to Aymeric Laporte severely hurt Pep Guardiola’s side in the 2019-20 season and the likes of John Stones and Nicolás Otamendi made too many errors at the back thus exposing the brittle nature of the club’s defensive options.
Guardiola’s side miss the experience, leadership and defensive ability of Vincent Kompany, whose exit has hit City hard.
A player like Kamara could potentially be the bedrock of the Manchester City defence for years to come if he indeed signs for the club. The 20-year-old is a versatile player who can play at centre back, as well as further forward as a central midfielder.
Kamara has been likened to PSG defender Thiago Silva, thanks to his ability to pass the ball from the back, put in tough challenges on opposing attackers, as well as bring the ball out from defence. These are all qualities that Guardiola requires in his central defenders, which makes Kamara a good choice to partner Laporte at the back for City in the long-term.
The Frenchman averaged 2.8 tackles and 2.1 clearances per game in Ligue 1 in the 2019-20 season. His passing from the back – short and long – was also good, averaging 54.4 passes per game, including 3.5 long balls per game.
But…
Boubacar Kamara is a player with tremendous potential and one that could make the City defence stronger than what it is now. But there will be some reservations about moving for such a young prospect now, especially as an immediate option. New Guardiola signings have traditionally failed to hit the ground running from the start and need around a season to grasp the dynamic of the structured teams.
There is far too much pressure and there will be intense scrutiny on City’s next ‘saviour’ in central defence and the club might be better off trying to lure a more established option as of now.
In case there are any exits in the said position for Manchester City, Boubacar Kamara will be a good option to complete the quota of defenders as he does have the traits to be a success, but not just yet as a regular option for a Pep Guardiola side.