Sam Lee of The Athletic gave an update on Ruben Dias’ situation at Manchester City as he’s ‘barely featured’ in recent weeks, but the Man City correspondent and transfer expert says Pep Guardiola is ‘not concerned’ about losing the 25-year-old, “Has barely featured for City since coming back from the World Cup with a hamstring injury but is not on Guardiola’s list of concerns.
“A key voice in the dressing room, too.”
Dias has made 20 appearances in all competitions for City this season but hasn’t had much playing time of late due to a hamstring injury. The Portuguese international has amassed just two minutes of Premier League football since October, but his future reportedly isn’t uncertain.
Dias does have four-and-a-half years remaining on his deal at the Etihad Stadium and was a regular under Guardiola (10/11 PL starts between August and October) before his injury, so there’s every chance he claws his place back. Lee called the centre-back a ‘key voice in the dressing room’, so Pep won’t be without his leader for long.
John Stones and Manuel Akanji are ahead of the Portuguese international in the pecking order and haven’t put much of a foot wrong, so Dias will have to be patient for an opportunity.
The 25-year-old missed City’s EFL Cup win over Liverpool (December 22), their FA Cup win over Chelsea (January 8) and the EFL Cup defeat to Southampton (January 11) due to injury while being an unused substitute in City’s FA Cup win over Arsenal (January 27), so he’s likely too rusty to be handed a start.
In other news, how an ‘attitude’ shift fixed Riyad Mahrez’s season
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