I remember how much we struggled in defense before Laporte joined the club. Vinnie was injured most of the time and we were only stable at the back the few games he played.
With him gone and Laporte now injured, we are back to the defense we had in 16/17 season where we were dependent on Stones and Otamendi, and conceding as hell.
It’s frustrating and a bit mind-boggling to see that we still have these problems three years later, but I think our defense will be fully sorted for next summer.
Mendy will have this season to prove he can become the man we signed, otherwise a new LB in the summer will definitely replace him. A third injury would also kill the clubs patience with him. We’ll see how he handles himself these upcoming month.
RB-position is finally sorted. Kyle has really upped his game since we brought in Cancelo and Cancelo himself will become a wonderful asset for this club in the future.
As for centre backs I wonder what Pep really thinks of Stones after these years. He looks pretty much the same guy as in 16/17, he still makes tons of mistakes. He is great driving the ball forward but he can’t fckng defend, that’s for sure. I can’t even remember the last time I saw him tackle anyone. He is a pushover, he is weak in duels, he is passive and overall seem to have a lousy reading of the game. I’m done with him. For me, he can be our third or fourth CB, but not a longterm partner to Laporte.
Dias, Skriniar and Caglar would all fit the bill for us but none of them will be obtainable in January, so he do we solve our defensive crisis?
This is the perfect season to go all out and get that UCL trophy but for that to happen, Laporte need a world class partner.