Pep Guardiola names three right-back solutions for Manchester City after Manuel Akanji’s 10-week absence | OneFootball

Manchester City have at least three solutions at right-back for the duration of Manuel Akanji’s 10-week lay-off through recovery from surgery on an injury.

The Swiss international was replaced at the half-time interval of Manchester City’s UEFA Champions League last-16 play-off first-leg meeting with Real Madrid last week, with Rico Lewis coming on in his place.

While the severity of the problem was not known at the time, there was little in the way of concern over the matter being a lengthy issue, however subsequent assessments and scans revealed the worst possible outcome for all involved.

Pep Guardiola would go on to reveal that Akanji had sustained serious damage to his abductor which would require surgery over the course of the weekend, ruling him out of action for the club for the next two months at least.

As such, Manchester City will once again be forced to search for alternatives to stand-in within the right-back role in particular, after it seemed as though Guardiola would have wanted the 30-year-old to become his mainstay in the position when fit and available.

Speaking during a recent press conference, Guardiola was quizzed on who he could turn to for the right-back position over the coming weeks in his Manchester City team selections in light of Manuel Akanji’s lengthy lay-off.

“Well I have Rico (Lewis), I have Matheus (Nunes), I don’t know if (Abdukodir) Khusanov can play there and help us – it depends on the shape we play and the way we attack and defend. We’ll see,” Guardiola told reporters.

On whether the club’s two new recruits in Khusanov and Vitor Reis are ready to assist immediately and more frequently, Guardiola continued, “They are central defenders.

“For the position that the reason why we go with Manu (Akanji) and maybe the other ones, they are unstable and doubts, but someone is going to play there.”

Manchester City’s UEFA Champions League last-16 play-off second-leg tie against Real Madrid this week will present Pep Guardiola with his first real test of a solution in the right-back role, having looked towards Rico Lewis at the weekend against Newcastle.

Abdukodir Khusanov has been raised as the preferred option by some Manchester City supporters, although it remains to be seen whether his disrupted travel plans on Tuesday due to visa problems accessing Spain will affect Guardiola’s thinking.