When I read things like Doku is not that bad and other similar things about other players I really think we have to try and look at it differently these days.
Yes Doku isn't that bad and can play at a certain level. No disrepsect to those other teams but he could be a stand out player at the likes of Wolves for instance. Maybe like Nunes was. But here at City we are chasing every trophy every season and to do that we really need elite players that can play to the highest standard for 2 or 3 games every week. They are not easy to find and its part of the reason the drop off has been so bad.
I don't believe the likes of Doku, Savi, Rico, Nunes, Phillips can do this every week and its exposed the likes of Akanji and Gvardiol a little more who can perform more consistently with better players around them. Throw in the ageing and tired players like Gundo, Bernardo, Walker and KDB and we end up with monotonous pedestrian performances.