If Manchester Metropolis supporters predict Nico González to be a silver bullet in midfield, they might need to calm their hopes. The 23-year-old Spaniard has arrived from Porto for £50m to assist fill the massive gap left by his compatriot Rodri in entrance of the defence however the former Barcelona man is a really completely different participant. Metropolis might want to adapt to him, slightly than the opposite method spherical, if they’re to resolve their gaping drawback.
Pep Guardiola’s and Metropolis’s difficulties have been manifestly obvious since Rodri tore a cruciate ligament in September. They’ve lacked physicality and mobility in midfield, leaving them to endure a dreadful run and arguably the most effective coach of his technology has been unable to discover a answer with what was obtainable to him. González’s welcome to England, and the primary take a look at of his capabilities and La Masia upbringing, might come at League One Leyton Orient within the FA Cup on Saturday.
Discovering somebody to interchange the irreplaceable was an unattainable job, so Metropolis searched for somebody who might complement Rodri sooner or later, whereas having the ability to soothe ills slightly than eradicate them. González will want somebody alongside him, whereas Rodri typically coped alone.
González was born in Galicia and moved to Barcelona’s La Masia academy aged 11, aided by having “soccer in his blood”, in line with his former coach Franc Artiga, in reference to his dad Fran, who was a Spain worldwide alongside Guardiola. “Nico is a really good participant and a really intelligent boy normally,” says Artiga, who coached González for 5 years. “He was a great pupil at school and labored onerous on his training. He developed bodily late on; earlier than then he wanted to depend on his intelligence. He was all the time asking the coaches quite a lot of questions on completely different subjects. He wished to be taught from the coaches – it’s not regular that you’ve got somebody of that age who had such a thirst for data.”
After breaking by at Barcelona, González was unable to change into an everyday and was loaned to Valencia earlier than being bought to Porto in summer season 2023, typically dealing with criticism for not being a carbon copy of the ageing Sergio Busquets. Many might need anticipated the midfielder to thrive in Portugal however a stuttering begin virtually resulted in him being allowed to depart on a brief foundation after six months. Ultimately he discovered his place within the XI and have become a mainstay .
“His development has been spectacular,” says Artiga. “He has every part you need from a central midfielder: he can play extra defensively in a double pivot or in a extra offensive place. He all the time had the ambition to be a extra attacking participant than the place he performed at Barcelona. He was by no means a participant who might solely play simply within the model of the Barcelona academy. When he left Barça, he needed to find out about a distinct model of soccer that has allowed him to develop as a footballer and is rather more full, changing into somebody that performs increased up and might help and rating targets.”
González’s physicality was engaging to Metropolis after months of opponents operating by them. His 6ft 2in peak is one other profit as Metropolis search a approach to be extra imposing however for the previous Spain under-21 worldwide will not be somebody who essentially sits. Being schooled at La Masia could have influenced Guardiola and the Metropolis hierarchy to spend a lot on somebody with out a full cap, figuring out he can be malleable on the subject of taking up his new coach’s concepts.
He has six targets in 24 appearances for Porto this season, a sign of his ambition to get ahead. “It’s onerous to beat him one-on-one,” says the Arouca midfielder David Simão, who has performed in opposition to him on three events. “He’s a bodily man but additionally has nice technical qualities. He doesn’t play quite a lot of vertical passes – he’s extra prone to go diagonal or to the aspect. At Metropolis he may have the standard to provide quick passes. One among his nice qualities is his eye for objective. When he will get into the field, he’s a hazard within the air. He’s a tall man for a midfielder and he’s nice at timing his runs. I confronted him a couple of video games when Porto weren’t in a great second and he nonetheless wished loads of the ball. He had the persona to ask for the ball, to take the ball, to attempt to put Porto on the entrance foot. He likes to go box-to-box. He’s not as intense in his operating as Matheus Nunes however Nico has extra technical high quality.”
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The common mixture of Ilkay Gündogan and Mateo Kovacic has provided little consolation, regardless of their expertise. Nunes is getting used at right-back as a result of he has by no means totally earned Guardiola’s belief, leaving them gentle on choices. Gündogan has did not repeat the type of his first spell in Manchester, his lack of mobility an apparent flaw, and Kovacic is an everyday person of the self-destruct button when attempting to take the ball up the pitch. González is a counter-balance of these two points due to his operating and talent on the ball however he can even learn play to chop out hazard and is completely happy to battle to win possession.
“He can exchange Rodri,” says Artiga. “The issue he had earlier than was that he was regularly in comparison with Busquets and gamers can’t be cloned. Busquets was one, Nico is one other and Rodri is one other. What is obvious is that Nico is likely one of the greatest in his place and I feel that he can slot in completely. The error could be to strive once more to check him with Rodri as a result of he’s a participant who can play in his place however with completely different traits from Rodri and he can do it very effectively for Metropolis.”
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