5 players Manchester City should sign this summer
By Harvey Cruz
2. Danny Rose
Out of all the tactical maneuvers Guardiola made during the season, converting Fabian Delph from defensive midfielder to left-back is one that doesn’t get mentioned a lot.
The Englishman was superb in that role, blending his range of passing with his pressing. He proved his versatility by playing as a left-back for the majority of the season. He and Oleksandr Zinchenko both shared the left-back spot while Benjamin Mendy — bought from Monaco to play that position — recovered from a ruptured ACL.
This is why Manchester City should go all in on buying Danny Rose. On his day, he’s the best left-back in the Premier League. His crossing ability is great, he knows how to press under the tutelage of Mauricio Pochettino and keeps up a relentless pace through 90 minutes.
There are two major reasons to do this move. First, the Danny Rose-Kyle Walker full-back pairing. During their years at Tottenham, these two were the best full-back pairing in the league, do you know who was happy to play with them? Harry Kane, because he knew he would be on the end of great crosses.
Aguero and Jesus will both be the biggest beneficiaries from Rose coming to the club. And so will Pep Guardiola since he won’t have to plug players out of position, even if it works. The second reason to buy Rose is so Manchester United don’t.
It’s been reported that the Red Devils are monitoring Rose and could come in for a move. Bidding wars between rival clubs is nothing new, but no one wants to lose this one. It’s a position of need, as very rarely are there high-quality full-backs on offer.
Let’s be honest, Luke Shaw may never play under Jose Mourinho again. Plus, he may not tell anyone but he wouldn’t want to play Ashley Young at left-back for another season. So for City, they should go hard for Rose and compound United’s misery.