What's the price?We won't find a better deal for a LB. Pay it. Send Angelino on loan for a season then let it be Gaya and Angelino for the future.
I think it's a bit premature to dismiss Zabaleta on the back of an injury ravaged season (he missed 19 games, or 98 days, through injury), where the whole team played badly. He's had seven excellent seasons prior to his disappointing form last campaign. He's still "only" 31, so I wouldn't write him off just yet. I'm hopefuly Guardiola can get at least another season out of him.
Both full back areas have been our weakest quality areas two seasons running. I would have had them down as priority for immediate improvements.To challenge for the title, we need 2 new fullbacks. Zaba/Sagna and Clichy/Kolorov surely aren't good enough.
Let's hope Pep sees it
Both full back areas have been our weakest quality areas two seasons running. I would have had them down as priority for immediate improvements.
Kolarov has been poor for two years
Clichy is inconsistent
Zaba has looked knackered ever since the last title winning season running into the World Cup where he pretty much played every single minute of every game that season
And Sanga had a poor first season with us and while was very good defensively last season offers very little going forward (two good crosses at home and away to Watford aside I don't recall him doing much else in an attacking sense in two whole years)
I also wouldn't judge a full back on what we think a full back is. Pep has very different ideas of what a full back does. Half the time playing inside either side of his pivot, in which case Fernandinho and Delph may find themselves better suited. The other point is we will probably still have no height and often no Aguero in the box as we will have a fluid front 3 or 4. I think KDB or Silva will often find himself as the free man in the boxI wouldn't judge a full back going forward based on what we did last year. We had 0 height in there or most of the times we didnot even have Aguero in the box. Case in point see Sagna for France, provided some amazing crosses. I think he also got a assist and should have had at least two more bar France's poor finishing.
Think Pep playing Lahm in MF might have created a false impression that any of our fullbacks can play there too..Lahm is a one-off & brilliantly intelligent.
To challenge for the title, we need 2 new fullbacks. Zaba/Sagna and Clichy/Kolorov surely aren't good enough.
Let's hope Pep sees it
I also wouldn't judge a full back on what we think a full back is. Pep has very different ideas of what a full back does. Half the time playing inside either side of his pivot, in which case Fernandinho and Delph may find themselves better suited. The other point is we will probably still have no height and often no Aguero in the box as we will have a fluid front 3 or 4. I think KDB or Silva will often find himself as the free man in the box