City need to look to the future after the Belgian suffered a serious injury and the Brazilian midfielder is shaping up to be a potential successor
Manchester City waved goodbye to two modern greats after the Champions League final as Ilkay Gundogan and then Riyad Mahrez departed. The club have been considering how to replace them all summer, but they might now have to think about a succession plan for another player – arguably their best ever.
Kevin De Bruyne was as crucial as any player in City’s run to the treble, but he admitted he had spent the last two months of the season carrying a hamstring injury. In the first half of the Champions League final, that same hamstring snapped. Two months later, 22 minutes into City’s first game of the Premier League season against Burnley, it gave way again.
And now the Belgian could be out for up to four months after Pep Guardiola confirmed he had suffered a "serious injury" and revealed that the club have to decide whether or not he has to undergo surgery. It means that City are likely to be without their most consistent and inspirational player until the start of 2024.
It is a huge blow for City and leaves them with a huge void to fill immediately. But even before City's worst fears were confirmed by Guardiola, they were beginning to realise that De Bruyne's magnificent career is starting to wind down.
The 32-year-old showed last season that he still has plenty to offer, having contributed to 42 goals last season and providing more assists than anyone else in the Premier League. But he is now only set to play half of this season. And even if he returns from injury as good as new, will he be able to play 45 games per season again?
The key to City’s success under Guardiola is their aptitude for forward planning, their ability to think three or four transfer windows ahead. And after enjoying one of the greatest playmakers the Premier League has ever seen for eight years, City must now confront an eventual future without De Bruyne, as well as looking to fill the immediate voids left by Gundogan and Mahrez. So step forward, Lucas Paqueta.
Getty ImagesMoving away from traditional wingers
When news of City’s interest in Paqueta emerged earlier this month, it came as a big surprise. Even after losing Gundogan, Guardiola still has a plethora of central midfielders to work with: Rodri, Kalvin Phillips, Bernardo, Mateo Kovacic, James McAtee and also potentially Phil Foden, who thrived in De Bruyne’s role when he replaced the Belgian in the Champions League final.
What he does not have in abundance is right wingers, however. Bernardo has played on the right plenty of times but he does not have the incisiveness of Mahrez and in the Community Shield he was kept under wraps by Jurrien Timber.
Cole Palmer came off the bench to give City the lead in that game, scoring a goal reminiscent of Mahrez, but the England Under-21 international was used sparingly last season and there are doubts over whether Guardiola trusts him enough to give him a regular spot in the team.
What the interest in Paqueta suggested was that, rather like he did last year by playing centre-backs at full-back, Guardiola is moving away from traditional wingers. That process had already begun with Jack Grealish, who holds on to the ball for long periods and is far more patient in his dribbling than most wingers, and with phasing Mahrez out of the team (the Algerian started fewer than half of City’s league games in the last two seasons).
AdvertisementGetty ImagesAn ordinary campaign but a soaring price
Paqueta might not have been top of City fans' list when it came to replacements for Gundogan or De Bruyne. He has had a down-and-up career trajectory, having a disappointing spell with AC Milan – his first European club.
He then started to realise his potential with Lyon, scoring 21 times and getting 13 assists in 80 games, which prompted West Ham to pay a club record £54 million ($68m) to sign him in the summer of 2022.
Paqueta did not exactly pull up trees in his first year with the Hammers, ending the campaign with five goals and seven assists in 42 games. The idea that City were willing to bid £70m ($89m) for the Brazilian after a fairly ordinary campaign was hard to believe.
The suggestion that they are willing to even meet West Ham’s valuation of £95m ($121m) is even more baffling, especially after they turned away from a deal for Declan Rice after his price went beyond that same figure.
Getty Images'He has so many different tools'
City ultimately have the financial muscle to make such a move and even if the price might sound high, it is easy to see why Guardiola is attracted to Paqueta. He is wonderfully versatile and can play in a variety of positions, either as a No.8, which he usually occupies for Brazil, or as a No.10, where he spent the majority of last season with West Ham. But he can also play out wide and for Brazilian giants Flamengo he played on the right and left wings.
“He always had the talent. The thing I always liked was that he was extremely versatile. He can play in a number of positions. With me, he played as a No 10, on both flanks. When we faced defensive opponents, I sometimes played him deeper in midfield,” Paqueta’s former Flamengo coach Ze Ricardo told .
“He even played up front on occasion after stepping up to the first team. He has this big capacity to adapt. He has so many different tools, which allow him to find a way out of any difficult situation on the pitch.”
Paqueta could comfortably fit into Gurardiola’s vision for his midfielders, who he likes to see drift all over the pitch and interchange places in order to become less predictable.
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(C)Getty images'Dancing on the Copacabana'
One of the Brazilian's main assets is his ability to play precise through balls, releasing attacking team-mates on the counter, often in the middle of the pitch. Just take his assist for Jarrod Bowen’s winning goal against Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final, his most important contribution for West Ham.
Paqueta threaded the ball towards the forward just before crossing the halfway line, setting Bowen free towards goal unchallenged. Bowen's finish restored West Ham's lead and sent David Moyes charging down the touchline in an instantly iconic celebration.
City played more on the counter last season than in previous campaigns and the dart Bowen made behind the defence is the type of run that Erling Haaland loves to make. If Paqueta does eventually move to City, it is easy to see him having a productive partnership with the Norwegian.
The Brazilian also has breathtaking dribbling ability. Witness his assist for Manuel Lanzini in the 3-1 win against Leeds, when he danced his way past four different defenders while making his way along the byline, dragging opponents all over the place to tee up the Argentine. After that goal, team-mate Vladimir Coufal said Paqueta was “playing football like he’s dancing on the Copacabana”.