Speaking to Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli via Napoli Magazine, Italian journalist Francesco Modugno has claimed that Man City boss Pep Guardiola is a huge fan of midfielder Fabian Ruiz – with the reporter stating that the Spaniard sees him as an ‘absolute prospect‘.
As David Silva nears the end of his time with the Sky Blues, bringing the curtain down on a near decade-long stay at the Etihad, Guardiola could be on the look out for replacements who fit the bill and play to his lofty Tiki-taka standards.
Should Fabian Ruiz replace David Silva?
Yes
No
According to journalist Modugno, Guardiola is a fan of Napoli midfield man Ruiz who has become a key player for the Serie A side – starting 21 games whilst registering two goals and two assists in that time according to WhoScored.
As well as this, a few of our fans could be shocked to find out that Ruiz has also averaged a superior pass accuracy to star playmaker Kevin De Bruyne – with the Spaniard racking up an impressive 90.5% total.
You could make the case that De Bruyne, debatably more often than not, attempts to play the ball forward as a creative attacker and therefore is more at risk of losing the ball in his efforts to open up opposition defences – but the numbers could definitely highlight Ruiz’ tidy nature when in possession.
Judging by Guardiola’s emphasis on passing, this could be a quality that attracts the City boss into a potential future swoop – with Modugno stating that our manager is a huge admirer of the 24-year-old.
Whether or not we manage to land Ruiz remains to be seen, but one thing is certain, it will definitely be interesting to see how we fill the void left by Silva following his departure.