This summer, Pep Guardiola has the opportunity to bring the next iteration of Manuel Akanji to Manchester City by completing a transfer for Benjamin Pavard.
The Citizens acquired Akanji from Borussia Dortmund in September in a transaction reportedly costing £15 million.
The 27-year-old rapidly established himself as one of City’s most important players during their treble-winning season, and this swiftly proved to be a fantastic piece of business from the Manchester club.
We believe that the City manager has the chance to make history again not even a year from now by signing Benjamin Pavard, who might be considered their version of Akanji in the future.
The next Akanji for Guardiola may be Pavard.
The Frenchman, who might cost the club €30 million (£25 million) to sign, was reportedly identified earlier this week as a potential Kyle Walker successor should he decide to sign with Bayern Munich this summer.
Given that Akanji and Pavard are the same age and could be acquired without breaking the bank by City, a prospective move for Pavard may be compared to the acquisition of Akanji from a German club.
The France international, who Uli Hoeneß called a “outstanding” player, displayed his defensive prowess in the Bundesliga last season, finishing with the second-highest total of tackles and interceptions (114) and the second-highest number of clearances (83) in the Bayern team.
Guardiola may desire someone as defensively strong as Pavard in his squad in light of his comments about how crucial his team’s defence has been over the final few months of their previous campaign.
With all of that in mind, it will be clear that the Manchester club made a very wise decision if the Citizens manage to get a deal for the Bayern figure and he can have an impact on the team comparable to what Akanji had last season.