When both Joško Gvardiol and Rúben Dias were forced off due to injuries in Manchester City’s Premier League clash against Chelsea at the beginning of January, it put the club in a tricky situation.
With Dias out multiple weeks, Gvardiol potentially for the rest of the season, and with John Stones already on the injury list, Pep Guardiola was left with Nathan Aké and Abdukodir Khusanov as his centre-back options.
It didn’t take long until The Citizens got linked to Marc Guéhi, Crystal Palace’s much-talked-about central defender, who also has drawn interest from Liverpool and Arsenal.
However, a deal seems difficult to finalise this transfer window as Guéhi’s contract expires in the summer, which puts him in an advantageous situation both professionally and financially: a situation he likely wants to explore.
This data analysis article, in the form of a recruitment analysis, aims to identify alternatives to Marc Guéhi for Manchester City amid their hunt for centre-back reinforcements.
With the help of various key performance metrics for the position, we’ll have a look at 10 of the most interesting potential targets who could give the team much-needed quality and depth.
Without inside information on how much Manchester City are willing to invest in this transfer and the selling club’s valuation of their own player, it’s difficult to know whether the deal is viable at the moment.
However, it goes without saying that the 10-time English champions are, in general, one of the most financially strong clubs in the world, and if they really want a player, they usually find a way.
Nico Schlotterbeck Pizza Chart At Borussia Dortmund 2025/2026
One of the stand-out centre-backs in Europe this season has undoubtedly been Nico Schlotterbeck.
The 26-year-old German has been one of Borussia Dortmund’s best players and is a pillar both in and out of possession.
By being in the 85th+ percentile in both progressive carries and progressive passes for Bundesliga centre-backs this season, it’s hard to find a better ball-playing profile in that position anywhere.
Defensive stats will always be more difficult to conclude from, not least for centre-backs, but what we can say is that he’s an active defender who likes to engage in duels.
His high number of tackles won is an indicator of that.
Whether Schlotterbeck is realistic to acquire in January remains to be seen, but given some reports circulating, it seems unlikely.
He prefers to wait until the summer, it says.
And Real Madrid are, reportedly, in the lead.
Still, Manchester City should test the waters.
If Manchester City prefers a Premier League-proven option, they could look in southern England.
Jan Paul Van Hecke Pizza Chart At Brighton 2025/2026
Brighton’s Dutchman Jan Paul van Hecke has not only been an impressive Fantasy Premier League asset (everyone who plays that game knows what I’m talking about), but he has performed in a brilliant way in general.
His numbers in possession are outstanding, and he’s unarguably one of the Premier League’s best centre-backs in that regard.
Defensively, he’s smarter than most, and his reading of the game is great.
If Manchester City isn’t the destination, he’s going to end up in another European top club sooner rather than later.
Ousmane Diomande Pizza Chart At Sporting CP 2024/2025
In Portugal, Sporting CP has a tradition of refining top talents and turning them into high-quality footballers.
One of them is Ousmane Diomande, the 22-year-old Ivorian who has been a given piece in Sporting’s starting XI ever since he arrived in the winter of 2022.
(His numbers below are from the 2024/2025 season, since he only has 507 league minutes to his name this season due to an injury and participation in the Africa Cup of Nations).
He has an aerial presence that is difficult to match, and his 190cm tall body frame certainly helps in that regard.
His ground duelling is also great, and he has a speed that’s well-above average for central defenders.
In possession, his last season was the worst since he joined Sporting by far.
With that said, the numbers are still quite good.
Not least, they’re likely to bounce back to his normal levels (75th+ percentile) again.
In short, they’re nothing to worry about, and Diomande has to be on Manchester City’s list.
With “only” 18 months left on his contract, Sporting need to sell within the next two windows to get a significant transfer fee.
Jérémy Jacquet Pizza Chart At Rennes 2025/2026
Another young player who has been well-discussed in the football sphere lately is Rennes’ homegrown talent Jérémy Jacquet.
The 20-year-old is already on his second full season as a starter at the club, and his development has so far gone in the right direction.
The numbers below hint at a player with strong physical presence and good defensive qualities, and they certainly match the game footage.
Jacquet is strong in duels, on the ground and in the air, and is difficult for opponents to bypass.
His ball-playing skills are not outstanding, but they’re also not bad.
Even though he doesn’t rack up a huge amount of progressive passes, he tends to switch sides with long, sweeping, diagonal passes, which is a good asset for his team in possession.
If Manchester City wants to acquire his services anytime soon, it’s likely to be an expensive deal.
Castello Lukeba Pizza Chart At RB Leipzig 2025/2026
If Schlotterbeck has been the most talked-about centre-back from the Bundesliga, Castello Lukeba falls into another category.
Yes, there have been some loose rumours about interest from both Premier League clubs and Real Madrid, but he’s far from a household name when it comes to transfer speculations.
Maybe he should be.
The 23-year-old Frenchman has put up impressive performances for Leipzig in the Bundesliga for three straight seasons now, and before that, he was a given starter for Lyon during two seasons.
So, despite his young age, he has five full seasons of experience from top-five league football.
His numbers from the current season are good and encapsulate him as a player.
He’s good in possession, can both carry and pass the ball forward with regularity, and he’s a bit more passive in his defensive actions rather than the opposite.
Something that isn’t visible in these numbers is his physical profile.
Despite his slightly short height for a centre-back (184cm), he’s strong in duels and rarely looks out of place against bigger opponents.
He’s also well-above average in terms of speed for other centre-backs.
His aerial game needs improvement; the numbers are, frankly, horrible, and he looks awkward at times when anticipating those situations.
But overall, he would be a solid option for Manchester City, although Leipzig are not in a rush to sell.
Marcos Senesi Pizza Chart At Bournemouth 2025/2026
If City really need to look at budget options, Bournemouth’s 28-year-old Argentinian Marcos Senesi stands out as one of the better options.
He has been an impressive performer for the Cherries, and with a contract that’s running out in the summer, he will be available for a cheaper fee.
In Senesi, Manchester City would get a left-footed centre-back who excels with the ball at his feet.
But he’s also relentless in duels, where he recovers a lot of ball but also fouls a lot.
However, his aerial game needs improvement.
Joel Ordoñez Pizza Chart At Club Brugge in 2025/2026
If it’s one U21 option Manchester City should monitor, and are doing according to some recent reports, it’s Joel Ordóñez.
The 21-year-old Ecuadorian international is a perfect blend of speed, duelling strength, aerially and on the ground, and is a great passer.
However, if Manchester City want him, they have to move fast.
Liverpool have seemingly shown the strongest interest and could be in the lead of the Ordoñez race.
Conclusion
There are many routes Manchester City can take.
In the end, it all depends on the budget they have for this particular transfer and how the selling club evaluates their player.
If we suppose that Manchester City do have the finances to pull all these off in this window, my ranking would be as follows:
- Nico Schlotterbeck
- Jérémy Jacquet
- Ousmane Diomande
- Jan Paul van Hecke
- Castello Lukeba
- Joel Ordoñez
- Marcos Senesi
They all have different qualities, and some are prospects for the future (alongside adding quality immediately, of course), while others would be expected to perform from day one.
All things considered, I believe Schlotterbeck is the best Manchester City can do now, but the rest are also very good options.
