The shock signing that could fix one of Manchester City’s biggest faults – if Spurs don’t get there firstplaceholder image
The shock signing that could fix one of Manchester City’s biggest faults – if Spurs don’t get there first | Getty Images
Manchester City have been linked with a seemingly improbable deal for a rising star of Brazilian football - is he the answer to their January prayers?
There aren’t too many glaring flaws in Manchester City’s squad, but Pep Guardiola plainly believes that they can be better – and the £65m that’s soon to be spent on Antoine Semenyo (pending formalities) may only be the start of a busy January transfer window at the Etihad.
Guardiola spent the final weeks of the summer window complaining that he had too many players and needed to thin out his squad a little, but has now come to the conclusion that he doesn’t have as many tools as he might want, or at least that those currently at his disposal aren’t quite sharp enough. Semenyo solves one problem, but another is waiting to be dealt with at right-back – and new reports suggest that City could go back to a summer transfer target to resolve it.
Why Manchester City could be targeting Wesley França this January
The stories concerning Manchester City’s interest in Brazilian wing-back Wesley França began to emerge on Wednesday this week but have now appeared on several media platforms, not that they won’t sound rather familiar to City fans who kept up with the club’s transfer activity over the summer - Wesley was widely reported to be a major target in the last window, with some stories suggest that they were in active negotiations over a deal which, evidently, fell through.
Since then, however, Guardiola appears to have become disillusioned with his options at right-back. Mateus Nunes has established himself as the first choice but is out of position and often uncomfortable, while City’s coach doesn’t seem to trust either Abdukodir Khusanov or Rico Lewis in that role. Throw in a few injuries elsewhere along the back four and suddenly the right-back role has become a position of concern.
Wesley, for his part, would be a very aggressive option for the position. He’s played much of this season not as a full-back but as an out-and-out winger, and can operate on the right or left, which means that he offers versatility but also hints at a player who plays an attacking interpretation of the right wing-back position.
He plays that role very effectively, however, and his skillset lines up with Guardiola’s gradual tactical shift towards a more direct system in which passing and ball retention are no longer the priorities.
A fine dribbler with pace, technique and exceptional off-ball movement, Wesley shines when stretching opposing defences and taking on defenders and is a superb outlet for quick counter-attacks, but that gameplan often involves sacrificing defensive positioning – although a perfectly solid one-on-one defender, it’s not uncommon for him to be caught in more advanced areas when playing at full-back. He’s a player you would sign when your fundamental plan involves scoring more than the opposition, and when you trust your centre-backs to cover any positional holes he might leave.
He would certainly be a more aggressive signing at wing-back than Nunes, and a more direct (and less pass-focussed) option compared to Nico O’Reilly down the left. He’s closer in many ways to players like Savinho and Jérémy Doku than he is to the kind of technicians that fans might initially think of when they bring Guardiola’s football to mind.
Still, whether he’s the right type of player for the club or not – and if not, he would certainly be an entertaining signing – there is plenty of evidence that suggests that City are very keen on him indeed. So how likely is it that they do indeed bring him to the Etihad this January?
Will Manchester City sign Wesley this winter – or can a side like Spurs get there first?
The biggest barrier to Manchester City when it comes to signing Wesley França is simply that when they missed out on him over the summer, he didn’t stay put – he moved to AS Roma for a fee worth an estimated €25m (approximately £22m).
Few players leave elite teams so soon after their arrival unless everything has gone badly wrong, which is certainly not the case for Wesley. His form has been impressive, his work on both wings eye-catching, and he has three goals in his first 16 league starts.
Roma, as such, aren’t exactly keen to sell him and aren’t in a financial position in which they may be forced to sell, but they are keen to make some attacking upgrades of their own and a big enough offer – the kind which a team like City could make if they wanted given their wealth and comfortable PSR position, admittedly.
Still, it would all feel a little unlikely were it not for the fact that most of the same sources claiming that City are interested in a winter bid also suggest that Tottenham Hotspur are keen, too, another club who could be in a position to pay through the nose to get the player they want.
It’s not clear whether Spurs see Wesley as a right-back – a position well-covered between Pedro Porro and Djed Spence – or as a winger, where they are looking for reinforcements quite urgently, but if they are also in the market then it suggests that the two teams have been given reason to believe that an offer wouldn’t be thrown out instantly by Roma.
Or, of course, it could be exactly the kind of baseless speculation which is rife at this time of year. When legitimate rumours are thin on the ground, it’s not uncommon for online gossipmongers to rehash unfulfilled stories from the summer and this could well be another example. City, however, are cash-rich and free to spend a lot this winter if they so choose – so if any team can make a seemingly implausible deal happen, it’s likely them.
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