Manchester City plan to meet Barcelona player’s release clause

City have been linked with Sergi Roberto who has a £40 million release clause in his contract.

According to reports, Pep Guardiola is seeking to reunite with his former player. His versatility would be useful for City because of the limited number of full-back options that they have; Benjamin Mendy’s injury has shown the lack of depth they have in this area. At Barcelona, he has played as a right-winger, central midfielder, right-back and a left-back. Guardiola’s willingness to use players in a variety of positions means that Roberto would be an ideal squad player for him.

Roberto would provide an alternative type of full-back compared to Kyle Walker, Mendy and Danilo. Similar to how Guardiola used Fabian Delph, Roberto could act as an inverted full-back on either flank. This gives the team additional control in midfield because they act as another option in the centre of the pitch rather than staying wide. The match against Chelsea was a great example of this because City constantly had a man advantage in the midfield.

The pursuit of Roberto is an example of the wider recruitment strategy which Guardiola has utilised in his time in charge at City. He has preferred having a variety of different options throughout the squad rather than a depth of similar players. The signing of Bernardo Silva, in the summer, is an example of this because he offers a completely different kind of threat from the wings than Raheem Sterling or Leroy Sané due to his willingness to drift inside and attack central areas.

Why would he move?

Currently, Barcelona are a bigger team than Man City based on results, fans and quality of players. However, under Guardiola, City are an exciting project which is sure to attract players. This alone is unlikely to attract Roberto because he is playing for his local club, so he is living the dream. Therefore, what could persuade him to join City?

There are two main reasons why he might consider moving to England. Firstly, his lack of consistent game time at Barça could persuade him. At right-back, Barcelona have Nélson Semedo who is much more suited to that role. They also have a plethora of options in midfield, so there is fierce competition in the areas that he plays.

He is an ambitious player as evidenced by his desire to get in the Barcelona and national sides with a mixture of determination, work rate and technical ability. Patience could see him become a starter, but at 25-years-old he might start to consider the importance of consistent game time in another top league for his career progress.

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The other reason is that it is Guardiola who is chasing after him. He gave Roberto his first team debut for the Blaugrana and knows him well from his time there. Having that understanding and connection may be enough to persuade him that this is the right time in his career for a move. Guardiola is more likely than any other manager, outside of Barcelona, to get the best out of him.

This will be a major test of Roberto’s loyalty. Barcelona fans would be sad to see him go, but it would be an understandable move.