Douglas Luiz

no harm in leaving him another year at Villa and then deciding if we want to exercise the buy back clause or not.

Ferna will be about to leave at that point one would presume as well so if he is considered good enough it would all fit in nicely.
 
I’m making an assumption here and might be wrong.

Surely this is just to get around the player loan limit?

Sold for £15M with buy back of £25M minus wages we don’t have to pay.

Assuming he’d be on £100k a week it’s £5.2M if we get him back now instead of next year in wages.

Or an extra £5M in buy back clause.

If he was shit, we bank £15M, if he’s good Villa get a good player and make £5-7M, I assume that’s the risk Villa were willing to take.

Looks like a “different loan” to me. I like it though, bring him back next year if he kicks on this season I say.

I hadn’t thought about it be we clearly did this with Angelino too, I assume we’re going to see more “buy backs”.
 
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You may have a point but if there's one City player staying especially calm when pressed it's surely Gundo simply because he can rely on his excellent ball control and awareness -not Rodri (although he has improved on that since being here).
Pep would find a workaround in the squad. Or Aouar arrives.

As much as I love highly skilled players like Gundogan I would consider replacing him with Luiz next summer.

It’s not purely a question of calmness in possession, however. Rodri is aggressive and challenges for first balls, something Gundogan cannot do, and while Gundogan has good stamina, he has limited pace when chasing back. Luiz’s strengths are that he’s naturally aggressive, so more combative, and he likes to get the ball forward. Aouar’s abilities will be needed further up the park.

As you say, Guardiola will have to find a workaround, but we went into into last season with no cover for Mendy, and that didn’t fair well, and no natural cover for Laporte, cue injury. We should be learning from these experiences. If Rodri gets injured and we have to rely on Fernandinho/Gundogan/Ake/Zinchenko to patch the hole, then leaving Luiz at Villa will look like a missed opportunity.
 
You may have a point but if there's one City player staying especially calm when pressed it's surely Gundo simply because he can rely on his excellent ball control and awareness -not Rodri (although he has improved on that since being here).
Pep would find a workaround in the squad. Or Aouar arrives.

As much as I love highly skilled players like Gundogan I would consider replacing him with Luiz next summer.

Rodri makes more successful passes under pressure than anyone else in the Premier League.

Awareness, press resistance and protecting the ball are his biggest qualities, so it's odd to see City fans talking about him not being great at it.
 
I’m making an assumption here and might be wrong.

Surely this is just to get around the player loan limit?

Sold for £15M with buy back of £25M minus wages we don’t have to pay.

Assuming he’d be on £100k a week it’s £5.2M if we get him back now instead of next year in wages.

Or an extra £5M in buy back clause.

If he was shit, we bank £15M, if he’s good Villa get a good player and make £5-7M, I assume that’s the risk Villa we’re willing to take.

Looks like a “different loan” to me. I like it though, bring him back next year if he kicks on this season I say.

I hadn’t thought about it be we clearly did this with Angelino too, I assume we’re going to see more “buy backs”.
Doubt he'd be on anywhere near £100k, but your overall point is valid.
 
It’s not purely a question of calmness in possession, however. Rodri is aggressive and challenges for first balls, something Gundogan cannot do, and while Gundogan has good stamina, he has limited pace when chasing back. Luiz’s strengths are that he’s naturally aggressive, so more combative, and he likes to get the ball forward. Aouar’s abilities will be needed further up the park.

As you say, Guardiola will have to find a workaround, but we went into into last season with no cover for Mendy, and that didn’t fair well, and no natural cover for Laporte, cue injury. We should be learning from these experiences. If Rodri gets injured and we have to rely on Fernandinho/Gundogan/Ake/Zinchenko to patch the hole, then leaving Luiz at Villa will look like a missed opportunity.

Now that sounds as if you are talking about OUR active pressing, where I would agree.
I thought you said Gundo is weaker in possession 'when pressed',
where I don't agree.

Maybe I misunderstood your point.
 
Rodri makes more successful passes under pressure than anyone else in the Premier League.

Awareness, press resistance and protecting the ball are his biggest qualities, so it's odd to see City fans talking about him not being great at it.
Don't agree. Rodri is fantastic pressing actively, but not better being pressed in possession compared to Gundogan.
 
Now that sounds as if you are talking about OUR active pressing, where I would agree.
I thought you said Gundo is weaker in possession 'when pressed',
where I don't agree.

Maybe I misunderstood your point.

Just checked. Of the outfield players Rodri has played the most minutes this season after de Bruyne and Sterling. Aouar (if signed) and Torres should alleviate their workload, so that might be another reason for bringing Luiz back.
Maybe one for the winter window assuming Covid doesn’t interfere with the season
 

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