Man City face defensive woes as Guardiola eyes transfers

The club have been struggling with defensive issues, compounded by a spate of injuries that have left them vulnerable.

At the end of October, all four senior centre-backs were unavailable, and Ruben Dias and John Stones have remained sidelined in recent weeks.

Nathan Ake, despite not being fully fit, has been called upon to step in and cover, but his efforts have not been enough to prevent a slump in form.

In response to the issues at the back, City have agreed to a 33.5m-pound deal with French club Lens for young defender Abdukodir Khusanov.

However, the 19-year-old is not expected to secure a starting position immediately.

Furthermore, the club are in discussions with Palmeiras over a potential move for Vitor Reis, another promising talent, though he, too, is unlikely to feature in the first team straight away.

"From what I expected at the beginning of the season, Rodri to return is impossible but everyone else back is what I wanted," said Guardiola.

"If it had happened, we would not have gone to the transfer window and we would not be in the position that we are but we struggled a lot all season. People say Rodri but it's not just Rodri.

"We have had a lot of problems in the back four and still we have and that is why the club is thinking about what we are going to do in this window or maybe the summer.

"Where we are from the beginning of the season, it was the back and the middle. In terms of positions up front we are more or less okay but at the back, all season we have struggled."

Amidst these defensive concerns, there is speculation surrounding the future of Kyle Walker, with reports indicating that the English right-back has submitted a transfer request and could leave the club this month.  

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