#centre-backs

#centre-backs

Pep Guardiola's side have suffered a real injury crisis of late, particularly at centre-back, and that has been a factor in their falling off the pace in the Premier League title race. City are now six points adrift of league leaders Arsenal at the top. They are without three key central defenders - Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol and John Stones - with the trio all ruled out long-term.

Everyone loves a bargain and the potential pool of free agents whose current deals are set to expire at the end of the 2025/26 campaign will be constantly assessed in the coming months. Once January comes around, any players in the final months of their contracts will be able to talk to overseas teams and there are a number of big-name players for whom the clock is ticking.

We know Chelsea don't mind spending big and it'll be the case again in January. From what I hear, the manager isn't completely happy with his squad if you can believe it after how many player they've brought in already. There are still positions he wants to improve because they're still not ready to challenge for the title. There's a clear weakness in the team, there have been questions asked about the centre-backs and the goalkeeper, that tells you where their problems are.

Choosing the best centre-backs in the world is a difficult task. Often, the best defenders do the least amount of work. And that in its own right is a skill.