Man City expert risks sparking ‘meltdown’ with two transfer signings ruled out amid Guardiola ‘fear’

Manchester City expert Sam Lee has revealed that the struggling Premier League side are not currently trying to sign two reported targets in January.

Pep Guardiola‘s side are going through a major crisis as they have only won one of their previous eleven matches across all competitions.

Man City have been a shadow of their best selves as the majority of their squad have either run out of steam or past it.

The Premier League outfit’s issues have come to the surface quicker than they otherwise would as they are sorely missing Ballon d’Or winner Rodri, who has been ruled out for the rest of this season with a serious knee injury. They are currently 18th in the form table.

Without the world-class defensive midfielder, Man City have become easy to play against and have been poor defensively.

Since Rodri suffered his season-ending injury, Man City have been linked with several potential midfield targets. Newcastle United’s Bruno Guimaraes and Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi are among the midfielders mentioned as possible signings.

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A report from The Daily Mail claims ‘City will try to reignite their season by swooping for up to three players in next month’s transfer window, but Guardiola fears the club will not get value for money’.

‘The ailing Premier League champions want a central midfielder, a full back and a forward.

‘Newcastle’s Bruno Guimaraes and Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi are high on City’s list of targets. No 6 seems the ideal area for City to strengthen, with Rodri out for likely the season after sustaining an ACL injury earlier this campaign.

‘Mateo Kovacic has looked solid when deputising, but a natural replacement would be preferred with the issues clear to see when the former Chelsea star has also been missing.’

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However, a report from The Athletic’s Man City correspondent – Sam Lee – confirms Guimaraes and Zubimendi will not be pursued by Guardiola’s side in January.

Lee notes that this update could “cause a meltdown” and going off the replies to the journalist’s tweet, this has proven the case.

He tweeted: “At the risk of causing a meltdown before I go, City sources are indicating that neither Bruno Guimaraes or Martin Zubimendi are targets for January.”

Guardiola recently admitted they are “not big fans” of the winter window but they have “spoken about doing something”.

“We’re not a big fan of that (window) but the circumstances of this season have been special. We’ve spoken about doing something,” Guardiola said.

“In winter, it’s if we really need it, or if we can really find something. It is not easy to do. Clubs don’t want to sell and players are so expensive. It depends on the market, we’ll see.”