Is Pep Guardiola set to employ wing-backs for next season? | OneFootball

One of the bright spots of Manchester City’s recent performances has been the rise of Nico O’Reilly. The young midfielder has stepped in at left-back since halftime of City’s FA Cup quarter-final win over Bournemouth. He has made the role his own and his play has somewhat revitalised City’s play. But looking at how Nico O’Reilly, and to a lesser extent Matheus Nunes, are employed: Is Pep Guardiola set to employ wing-backs for next season?

Given that Nico O’Reilly is a midfielder he has added a different dimension to City’s play. But two pieces of play do stand out in O’Reilly’s recent performances. The first was the overlapping run he made to set up Erling Haaland’s equaliser at the Vitality Stadium. It was a run typical of the one you’d see from a wing-back. O’Reilly made a similar run during Manchester City’s 5-2 win over Crystal Palace last Saturday. His run and ball set up Kevin De Bruyne to tee up Mateo Kovacic to make it 3-2 just after halftime at the Etihad. Both pieces of play can be seen below.

Is the way Nico O’Reilly is being utilised a glimpse at what tactics Pep Guardiola may employ next season?

Pep Guardiola has already said that Manchester City need to sign a full-back this summer. In quotes relayed by 90min.com, the City manager said: “We will need a new full-back in the summer. Obviously. Nico O’Reilly is helping, but he’s not a left-back.”

So it’s clear that Manchester City will look to reinforce the full-back position this summer. That’s not a groundbreaking revelation. But the type of full-back that City may target this summer is an interesting topic to analyse.

Based on how Nico O’Reilly is employed, we could see Manchester City targets players who typically play as wing-backs. Fraser Fletcher has previously reported for TeamTalk that Jeremie Frimpong is a player City could look to sign this summer. David Ornstein has reported for NBC Sports that Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez is another potential target for Pep Guardiola’s side. Those two players could be employed as wing-backs if they to arrive at the Etihad this summer. If they were to arrive then we could get an indication of how Pep Guardiola intends to play next season.

If Pep Guardiola did employ wing-backs next season it would add a different element to Manchester City’s play. By having overlapping full-backs it could allow City to use a variety of options behind Erling Haaland. There is also the service that wing-backs could provide the Norwegian international. If nothing else it is an exciting possibility to ponder.

Summary.

Nico O’Reilly has seized upon the opportunity that has been presented to him in recent matches. But the way he has been employed does make you wonder if Pep Guardiola is set to employ wing-backs for next season. There is definitely merit to the idea. But it may take the summer transfer window to be completed for that picture to become clear.