Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola will reportedly be handed a £20m budget to sign a left-back in January with Gael Clichy free to leave.
The Frenchman is out of contract at the end of the season and it appears as though Guardiola is ready to move on and look for a long-term replacement.
The Daily Mail claim that he will handed £20m to sign his preferred target, albeit after director of football Txiki Begiristain was initially reluctant to spend more money in the January transfer window.
Nevertheless, it looks as though Guardiola will be given the opportunity to spend again and he will hope to bring in the right individual to fill the left-back spot and buy into his philosophy.
It’s a key area of the pitch for the Spaniard and ultimately City haven’t been good enough defensively across the board so far this season, as witnessed in their defeat at Leicester City on Saturday.
Benfica’s Alex Grimaldo and Schalke star Sead Kolasinac have been noted as potential targets by the Mail, although it’s added that there are reservations over whether or not they can fit straight into the team midway through the season.
It will be difficult for Guardiola to solve his defensive issue with the problems noted above, but it will be a disappointment for Clichy to finally see his time in Manchester draw to a close.
The 31-year-old joined City from Arsenal in 2011 and has gone on to make over 100 Premier League appearances for the club while adding two titles to his collection along with two League Cups.
Unfortunately for him though, he simply doesn’t tick the boxes required moving forward and will have to be replaced sooner rather than later.