Benjamin Mendy’s future at Manchester City is uncertain after struggling for consistency and fitness over the last four years. And despite having Oleksandr Zinchenko for cover, Pep Guardiola has preferred using Joao Cancelo in a makeshift role.
For months, we scoured the transfer market for a potential replacement and were linked with Ajax’s Nicolas Tagliafico, Juventus’ Alex Sandro, Ben Chilwell (who joined Chelsea), Everton’s Lucas Digne and Rayan Ait-Nouri (who joined Wolverhampton Wanderers), but one player who should be on our radar is David Alaba.
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The 28-year-old looks set to leave Bayern Munich at the end of his contract in 2021, so he could be available on a free transfer. And while he has been shifted to a centre-back in the last year, he’d still be effective as a left-back. He’s averaged a tackle (5) or interception (9) every 33 minutes in the Bundesliga this season – more tackles and interceptions than Aymeric Laporte (3 and 2) and Ruben Dias (3 and 4).
Alaba joined Bayern from Austria Wien in 2008 and has gone on to make 396 appearances in all competitions, scoring 32 goals with 49 assists. The Austrian international has won nine Bundesliga titles, six German Cups and two Champions League at the Allianz Arena, so he has a wealth of pedigree.
Alaba isn’t willing to sign a new contract at Bayern, so we should throw our name in the hat. We’ll no doubt have to battle a lot of clubs to procure his signature, but I think he’s worth it.