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What's the rumour?
An ageing Fernandinho isn't great news for Manchester City who have already recognized the need to find cover for him. As a result, Pep Guardiola has sent scouts to watch Borussia Dortmund's young defensive midfielder Julian Weigl, according to The Sun.
In case you didn't know...
Pep Guardiola's search for a new defensive midfielder has been well documented. They were in the race to sign Fred from Shakhtar Donetsk. However, the Brazilian joined cross-city rivals Manchester United earlier this season.
Manchester City were also heavily linked with Jorginho. However, Jorginho decided to accompany Maurizio Sarri to Chelsea and left the Cityzens hanging.
Fernandinho is 33-years-old and Manchester City do not have a like for like replacement for the defensive midfielder.
The heart of the matter
Fernandinho was as crucial to City's exhilarating run in the 2017-18 season as anyone else. However, he is not growing any younger and the exact problems that he would face against younger, pacier players were posed against him in Brazil's World Cup match against Belgium where Fernandinho was overrun in midfield.
And Pep Guardiola has also attested to the fact that the club is indeed looking to sign a replacement for Fernandinho.
Speaking after their 2-0 victory over Chelsea in the FA Community Shield, Pep Guardiola said,
"We are trying [to sign someone]."
"We would like to find maybe one more because we don’t have two specific players to substitute Fernandinho.
"But, if he doesn’t come, there will not be anyone else. I was focused on the final today, so we will just see what happens."
Julian Weigl is already a regular first-team player at Borussia Dortmund and is a bright young prospect.
Rumour rating/probability: 8/10
The report doesn't state that anything official has happened. The fact that Pep sent scouts to watch Julian Weigl seems like a practical thing to do.
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What's next?
This could be a great move for Julian Weigl if Pep is satisfied with what his scouts feed him. There is a great system at work at the Etihad and Weigl can fit right in. And Borussia Dortmund will miss him dearly.
