According to latest reports, Manchester City have retained their interest in Ajax fullback Nicolas Tagliafico. The Sky Blues had considered a move for him in the summer but decided against it after failing to offload Oleksandr Zinchenko in time. But now Sun claim that a bid is expected in January for the left-back.
The 28-year-old Ajax star was a subject of interest for a number of top clubs like Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal over the last year but his £35m price tag put off most of his suitors.
But the player is expected to be available for around £20m in January with 2 years remaining on his contract and given his eagerness to ply his trade in the Premier League, any firm bid by Manchester City is expected to be successful.
Nicolas Tagliafico to Manchester City: Solid Signing?
It is no secret that Pep Guardiola has failed to address his team’s defensive issues in a smart manner during his time at Manchester City. His decisions regarding player recruitment could be best described as hit and miss especially in the defensive department and another player veering towards the ‘miss’ category is Benjamin Mendy.
The Frenchman has simply failed to get going in England and has been a defensive liability for the Sky Blues in most of the games he has managed to feature in his injury-ravaged time here.
Pep had the option of retaining Angelino on his roster but decided against it which left out-of-favour Zinchenko and the defensively poor Mendy as his options. Joao Cancelo is someone who has impressed in patches over on the left but ideally, City shouldn’t have to rely on their second choice specialist right-back to be their go-to left-back.
Which brings us to their need for a specialist left-back who offers better balance than Mendy and who will not be burning a hole in the deep City pockets. Nicolas Tagliafico fits the bill. He is technically superior to what Pep has at his disposal now. His training and inculcation of Ajax’s tactics have made him a smart operator with good intelligence.
His experience on the European stage will also be welcome at the English club, who have traditionally struggled in the UEFA competition. Given that City have also spent heavily on a centre-back, and look to have 3/4th of the backline sorted, it could turn out to be a poor decision if they fail to address the left-back issue and get stuck with the defensively susceptible Mendy for the entirety of the season.
Hence, a January move for Nicolas Tagliafico certainly makes sense but City will hope that it does not turn out to be too late by that point.