Barcelona have already confirmed the signing of one Manchester City player, Sergio Aguero, however, they could go for another City player who is very unhappy with the current circumstances at the club and is looking for a move away. The player is an experienced center-back who joined the Citizens only a few seasons ago but he has already been kept out of the limelight too many times.
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27-year-old Aymeric Laporte joined the Manchester side after the club had their historic 100 points season, beating out every record set by any other English club. The Spaniard was meant to replace their captain and their leader, Vincent Kompany, and his first season was exceptional. In his second season, he missed a lot of matches due to a knee injury and could only complete 20 matches.
He was affected by the coronavirus this season however, it was not because of the virus that he missed a lot of games. Pep Guardiola just did not find him consistent enough and now he has been replaced by John Stones. The former Everton center-back has taken the spot beside Ruben Diaz and Laporte even missed the match against Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League Finals.
In a recent interview with the independent, he said that he does not know whether he wants to remain at City or not and that the future is up for speculation. He said in the interview,
"“When you asked me that in this period I was playing more I think or maybe less but I don’t know, the situation is very different now. I will not say nothing here, it’s something personal.” Source Independent"
This shows us clearly he is not happy with the treatment he is receiving at Manchester City and he wants to play more. This could be a very good chance for Barcelona to sign him up as he is an experienced center-back and could bring a lot to the team. Here are five reasons why the club should sign Laporte if they have the chance to do so.
#5 Experienced center-back
Aymeric Laporte is not a young center-back who does not know what he is doing. He is a 27-year-old professional who has been in the top division of English football as well as Spanish football and he has the ability to play for any top club in the world. The player has made 111 appearances for Manchester City in all competitions and that is an achievement in itself considering the fact that City have been the best club in the world for a few years now.
He has the ability to lead the backline and captain the whole team. He would be perfect for Barcelona as the club is filled with youngsters now and they could use some guidance at the back. Players such as Ronald Araujo and Oscar Mingueza would be able to benefit a lot from Laporte’s experience. On top of that, Barca’s experienced players such as Samuel Umitit and Gerard Pique might leave next season so they would need a solid experienced center-back to fill up their boots.
#4 Previous stint in the La Liga
Should the Catalan Kings sign the wantaway superstar, then it would be Laporte’s second run in the La Liga. He was previously in Athletic Bilbao and his amazing performances in the Spanish club is what perked the interest of Guardiola in the first place. The Spaniard made a total of 222 appearances for the La Liga side and scored 10 goals as well as provided six assists. In all his seasons with Bilbao, he kept his goals conceded per 90 minutes, under 1.50, and in his first season with City, it was only 0.62.
This shows us that he improved a significant amount under the guidance of Guardiola and that his second run in the La Liga can be much more fruitful. With a better team around him to support the back lines and a better midfield to hold the play, Laporte can become a sensational player for the Catalans.
#3 Physical nature from the Premier League
The Premier League has been known for many years to be the most physical league in the entire world. Many world-class players have admitted that the most challenging part about the English league is the physical nature. Thus for Laporte, it must have also been a huge culture shock however, he adapted to the scene very well and he had his best season in his first full season with the Citizens. He conceded only 37 goals in his 53 appearances across all competitions and this just shows how well he understood the English league.
This will be a huge bonus for him if he comes back to the Spanish league now, as the Spanish league is considerably less physical and more technical. His physical prowess will make him a formidable defender in La Liga and he can use his knowledge from the Premier League in La Liga. Barcelona need a solid and sturdy center-back to replace Pique and Laporte seems to tick all the boxes.
#2 A serial winner
Laporte has proven himself to be a serial winner during his stint with the Manchester side. In his first full season with the club, he managed to win the domestic treble with the side and he has already won 10 major trophies with City in just four years. He showed his winning mentality with Bilbao as well when they won the Supercopa de Espana 5-1 against Barcelona. Laporte played a huge role in keeping a clean sheet in the second leg 4-0 victory over the Catalan side.
Laporte has proven time and time again that he is capable of winning trophies and Barcelona needs to win more trophies now. An elite club such as theirs will not be happy with just the Copa del Rey, they would ideally want to win the La Liga or the Champions League every season or at least go deep into the latter tournament. However, for the past few years, Barca have lost their grip over European football. Laporte can help the club regain some stability and once again challenge for these trophies.
#1 Trained under the very best
Finally, the main reason why the Catalans should sign this unhappy player is because the former Bilbao player has trained under arguably the best manager in the current generation, Pep Guardiola. The Spanish mastermind has outdone himself in Manchester city, making them the most formidable side in all of Europe and every player under him has become world-class players, capable of slipping into any elite team in Europe.
Laporte is no different, he had some amazing seasons under the Spaniard however, after his injury last season and the revival of John Stone’s form, he had been thrown down the pecking list. His stats still show us that he is a top center-back and he will be extremely useful at Barcelona. His solid form and ability to play out from the back matches with the Barca philosophy and he can share his experience with Guardiola with the younger talents in the club.
Would you like to see Laporte at Barca?