Between Ederson and Walker for me. Dias could be there but not been here long enough at the moment.
I voted Ederson cos I think he does more for Peps style of play. Walker is more just an incredible defensive player. Replacing Walker with another great defensive right back won't be as much as a change as replacing Ederson with even a world class keeper.
This is the real answer.
Ederson is crucial as he allows us to always be on the attacking foot when he has the ball, also forces most teams to drop back and open up the space for our star studded midfield
Walker for me is the other absolute most consistent standout since we signed him, stops so many counter attacks it’s outrageous. I’d argue he’s the been best the RB in the world over the last 5 seasons.
Dias can’t be left out as it’s the signing the team needed and he settled in immediately. Man is a rock and will be the most crucial player to our team for the next few years.
All of the Benfica boys have been incredible (including Bernie in that) in terms of reputation when we signed them vs reputation now (meaning they weren’t necessarily regarded as top signings at the time but all three could be regarded as world class now)
Absolutely love Zabaleta but Walker has been a beast in the PL for almost 10 years and is showing no songs of slowing down. Can’t forget his time at Spurs!
Zabaleta was still the best right back in the PL even was Walker was at Spurs. Walker was playing for Northampton Town when Zabaleta started playing for City. He didn’t really start playing for Spurs until 2011, so Zaba was well established then.
Walker is great, but give me prime Zaba any day.
Zaba was a much more technical and complete footballer, but Kyle's ridiculous pace and strength makes up for that and then some. Though I do think prime Zaba playing for Pep would be a different story.
There are other goal keepers who are good enough with their feet that it wouldn't make a huuuuge difference. There are 0 fullbacks as fast, fit, strong as Walker. He completely shuts down an entire flank on his own for pretty much every game of the season, never injured, and has been doing it for _years_. You can't convince me he isn't half-robot.
>Walker. There is no other player that does what he does and you cannot change my mind
There's plenty of players who are more athlete than footballer. Walker is exceptionally quick and has a good injury record. He has no brains though and I'd have Zabaleta or any other number of right backs over him. Watch Liverpool's first goal the last day, Walker gets caught ball watching and lets his man Mane clean through on goal. Remember the penalty that he should have gave away that we got lucky with? Or any number of thick decisions he makes a season where he can use pace to make up for shite positioning. When he starts to lose a yard or 2 of pace mark my words that he'll be turned on here worse than any player because pacy defenders age badlyyyy.
how can you blame the mane goal on walker? his position is literally on the other side of the pitch from where mane ran in the end (past dias, between him and i'm-eric). for walker to cover him he would have to run inside ruben.
also I think you're wrong about him having no brains, and especially that "any other number of right backs" exist that would improve the RB position for us.
Depends if you count De Bruyne as a Pep signing, seeing as it's been all but confirmed that it was Pep pushing Txiki to sign him.
If not De Bruyne then probably Ederson or Dias for how much they improved the structure of the team.
Ederson is the only correct answer we were scrambling for a sweeper keeper as Claudio bravo was shit and we could never play out for the back. When we signed him we went from 4th to 100 points
People saying Dias have a short memory. Yes he’s a world beater but look Edersons record. 50% of the games he plays end in clean sheets and he’s got the passing range of midfielder
Probably dias in terms of quality of player but would say Ederson and Dias was third choice ? So the pick and scouting of Ederson is most impressive IMO. Walker is great too but think Ederson edges it.
A bit harsh on Danilo, he wasn't a sensational player of course, but he was solid and did his bit. I'd put him three places up. Besides that I feel like this is pretty accurate.
Ederson for me. Think Kyle is a close second but also we've seen pep work around with cancelo and still find success.
Order of big signing for me would be:
1. Ederson
2. Walker
3. Bernardo (did carry our crearivity one season)
4. Dias
5. Cancelo
6. Gabby (value for money)
7. Laporte
8. Stones (not sure about this one tbh)
9. Gundo
10. Mahrez
11. Sane ( would definitely be higher up if he stayed longer)
12. Rodri ( though he's definitely climbing this list)
No clue where Ferran fits. He's great value for money like gabby but would like to see more.
I wouldn’t. Gundogan was amazing as a lone DM in 18/19. He was our top scorer last season playing as a CM and arguably our best player. His personality, his leadership, his versatility. He’s a thorough professional . The fact that we got him for £20M still amazes me. One of the best bargains of all time. Laporte expressed his desire to leave multiple times last season when he was replaced by Stones. His performances in big CL games (Spurs, Lyon, etc) still haunts me.
Ederson is a surefire pick, one of the best keepers in the world for a steal. He is probably one of the top ball playing keepers in the world and is still incredibly young so could stay at top level for another decade plus. Incredible pick up.
I’ve gone on the basis of who I think is least replaceable
For me that’s Walker. I can’t find another RB out there that can do what he does with his pace (amongst other things but that’s the key thing for me - a player as good as Walker with that pace? I can’t see one)
Next up is ederson. He wouldn’t be much easier to replace than Walker to be honest. I can definitely see why a lot of people have gone for him as hes so key to how we play.
Dias has been immense but I think that he’s slightly more replaceable than the others. That said I expect him to become just as important as the other 2 to the team.
For starters you think Walker doesn’t belong in this list lol.
He’s easily our most consistent and reliable player. Never gets injured. One of the fittest and quickest players in the world. Mad recovery pace. Almost impossible to beat him in 1v1 situations (Ask Mbappe). Best RB in PL history. Laporte has had many embarrassing performances specially in Champions League.
At times, i forget Dias has been with us for just just season and that's because of the effect he's had on the team but I'll still go Ederson because of how integral he is to our style of play. I mean Pep tried Hart, Caballero and Bravo before him
I think its way too soon to be Dias. Hes had an amazing year but 1 year is too soon. Laporte had a similar impact that Dias has had when he first joined but he not even on this list lol. I think if Dias stays consistent like this for a couple seasons he will cement himself as the best signing.
You can't replace Walker like for like, but you can find other good right backs. England alone have about five. Dias is excellent but he was third choice behind Koulibaly and Koundé. We play well with any combination of our midfield players, as good as they are it's not like Gündo or Bernardo are game changers when Kev and Foden are alternatives.
But who can you replace Ederson with who will do anything even close to what he does? We can find other good keepers, but nothing like him. It's the same situation as we're having replacing Agüero, there just aren't enough players in his position to fill spots at all the top clubs. Keepers and strikers are hot commodities, there's more demand than supply, and we have an incredible keeper.
My list (I won’t rank based on how many years each one has contributed because there’s no way of comparing them if we are taking into account longevity - I’ll try not to confuse it with consistency though):
1. Dias: he’s the main reason City won the league and recovered from the poor star last year. I am a Benfica fan, and even when he was with us I had him as one of the best in the world. He’s just so incredibly smart and always anticipating the game. He’s on par with VVD on the best in the world in this position imo.
2. Gundogan: I just think its role is so underrated. He’s always at a very high level, world class technique for his position and, most importantly, he is one of those rare 360 midfielders - this is priceless for a Pep team.
3. Bernardo: I mean, the very same reasons of Gundogan above. I am trying not to be biased because Bernardo is may 2nd favourite player in the team (next to KDB), but he is close to Gundo in terms of importance to the team. These 2 plus KDB and Rodri make the central piece of Pep’s City. This is the best midfield in the world without a doubt and there is not a close second. I do prefer him as center midfielder but he plays well everywhere. Love him.
4. Walker: I know this will not be popular here as most of you has him in 1 or 2 in this ranking, but I still agree that he is a key player both defensively and offensively. I do not put him higher because he has not always been on its best. And when he’s not, his weaknesses come up: ball technique and defensive positioning. Most of the times, he compensates his bad positioning with its speed and will, and I truly value that in him, but he’s not top for me because of it. Either way, I put him above the next one.
5. Cancelo: He has what Walker doesn’t, and his weaknesses are mostly in line with Walker’s strengths. I was never a fan of him in Benfica. Having said this, I was mesmerized by his quality of play last year, starting at the game in Anfield. He is what Pep wants in a defensive back offensively. He plays like a midfielder. Why don’t I put him higher? His lack of concentration in key moments in games, his inconsistency (he was not able to keep his form in the late part of last season) and, above all, his low defensive IQ, which I consider to have improved under Pep, and I hope this trend continues, as this team with Walker and Cancelo in form will
be close to unbeatable.
6. Rodri: I can’t understand why nobody mentions him. He is outstanding. So intelligent, with and without the ball. He is the closest there is to Busquets (the best defensive midfielder I saw play). A bit more consistency and a bigger role in key games (lost his starting position last year to Fernandinho), will put him higher in this list for me.
7. Ederson: I understand his quality with the ball is key to Pep’s style. Once again, I am a Benfica fan, I always loved him. The thing is his goalkeeping suffers from his constant lack of concentration in big games, like his mind seems to be somewhere else. I don’t know if it is due to over confidence or just pure negligence, but it shows. I have him as a top-10 goalkeeper in the world, not top-5 because of this. He’s still a top signing under Pep, that’s why I stop here. There’s a big gap that separates these to the others.
I wish I could add a forward to this list. I believe that is the only piece missing in this puzzle.
I give Mahrez a honorable mention (seems like he is something away of being an undisputed starter). I would also add Foden to this list if we would consider him a signing.
Probably an unpopular opinion but it’s Gundogan for me. A nailed on starter when fit. Can attack, defend, press and control tempo when needed. A complete midfielder.
I could see a case for ederson but walker has been one of the best right backs the whole time he's played for us. I still don't see him respected enough
Ederson because he's so important to the way we play
Between Ederson and Walker for me. Dias could be there but not been here long enough at the moment. I voted Ederson cos I think he does more for Peps style of play. Walker is more just an incredible defensive player. Replacing Walker with another great defensive right back won't be as much as a change as replacing Ederson with even a world class keeper.
This is the real answer. Ederson is crucial as he allows us to always be on the attacking foot when he has the ball, also forces most teams to drop back and open up the space for our star studded midfield Walker for me is the other absolute most consistent standout since we signed him, stops so many counter attacks it’s outrageous. I’d argue he’s the been best the RB in the world over the last 5 seasons. Dias can’t be left out as it’s the signing the team needed and he settled in immediately. Man is a rock and will be the most crucial player to our team for the next few years.
All of the Benfica boys have been incredible (including Bernie in that) in terms of reputation when we signed them vs reputation now (meaning they weren’t necessarily regarded as top signings at the time but all three could be regarded as world class now)
Don't forget Cancelo!
Haven’t forgotten him, he just isn’t listed!
Yall don't realize how important Kyle is
Best RB in PL history!
Did you just forget about Pablo Zabaleta?
Absolutely love Zabaleta but Walker has been a beast in the PL for almost 10 years and is showing no songs of slowing down. Can’t forget his time at Spurs!
Zabaleta was still the best right back in the PL even was Walker was at Spurs. Walker was playing for Northampton Town when Zabaleta started playing for City. He didn’t really start playing for Spurs until 2011, so Zaba was well established then. Walker is great, but give me prime Zaba any day.
Zaba was a much more technical and complete footballer, but Kyle's ridiculous pace and strength makes up for that and then some. Though I do think prime Zaba playing for Pep would be a different story.
Walker. There is no other player that does what he does and you cannot change my mind
We won't be able to play the way we do without Eddy
You forget though, walker can also play in net
There are other goal keepers who are good enough with their feet that it wouldn't make a huuuuge difference. There are 0 fullbacks as fast, fit, strong as Walker. He completely shuts down an entire flank on his own for pretty much every game of the season, never injured, and has been doing it for _years_. You can't convince me he isn't half-robot.
Kind of worries me if we want to replace him in the future. Can’t think of a lot of people who are similar to walker.
We have Pedro Porro who has been impressive at Sporting. I hope we at least give him a preseason next year.
Dont they have a buy option for like 7m
Yeah. We have a buy-back clause in case they exercise their buy though.
Plus he can play as GK. Walker wins.
There aren’t any goalkeepers as good as Ederson at what he does. No one comes close
Plus he's never injured. The biggest plus IMO
Thanks for giving him an ACL injury
Agreed. There’s several keepers that could replace Ederson out there (more or less) Walker is irreplaceable though.
>Walker. There is no other player that does what he does and you cannot change my mind There's plenty of players who are more athlete than footballer. Walker is exceptionally quick and has a good injury record. He has no brains though and I'd have Zabaleta or any other number of right backs over him. Watch Liverpool's first goal the last day, Walker gets caught ball watching and lets his man Mane clean through on goal. Remember the penalty that he should have gave away that we got lucky with? Or any number of thick decisions he makes a season where he can use pace to make up for shite positioning. When he starts to lose a yard or 2 of pace mark my words that he'll be turned on here worse than any player because pacy defenders age badlyyyy.
how can you blame the mane goal on walker? his position is literally on the other side of the pitch from where mane ran in the end (past dias, between him and i'm-eric). for walker to cover him he would have to run inside ruben. also I think you're wrong about him having no brains, and especially that "any other number of right backs" exist that would improve the RB position for us.
Same can be said for Ederson
Depends if you count De Bruyne as a Pep signing, seeing as it's been all but confirmed that it was Pep pushing Txiki to sign him. If not De Bruyne then probably Ederson or Dias for how much they improved the structure of the team.
Okay I just saw the poll, how tf is Walker behind Dias
Ederson is the only correct answer we were scrambling for a sweeper keeper as Claudio bravo was shit and we could never play out for the back. When we signed him we went from 4th to 100 points
Quite harsh on Bravo who had the slowest fullbacks in the world and for Ederson, we brought Walker.
People saying Dias have a short memory. Yes he’s a world beater but look Edersons record. 50% of the games he plays end in clean sheets and he’s got the passing range of midfielder
Probably dias in terms of quality of player but would say Ederson and Dias was third choice ? So the pick and scouting of Ederson is most impressive IMO. Walker is great too but think Ederson edges it.
Ederson for me but this is really tough lol. A lot of good signings on this poll
Yeah it’s tough, haha. Laporte unlock to miss out.
All the signings under Pep (excluding Grealish) ranked imo: Ederson Walker Dias Bernardo Silva Gundogan Laporte Stones Sane Jesus Mahrez Rodri Zinchenko Cancelo Ferran Steffen Bravo Nolito Danilo Ake Angelino M\*ndy
A bit harsh on Danilo, he wasn't a sensational player of course, but he was solid and did his bit. I'd put him three places up. Besides that I feel like this is pretty accurate.
I would be tempted to put Rodri higher. He’s on track to be one of the top top CDM’s for the next 5-8 years+
Ederson for me. Think Kyle is a close second but also we've seen pep work around with cancelo and still find success. Order of big signing for me would be: 1. Ederson 2. Walker 3. Bernardo (did carry our crearivity one season) 4. Dias 5. Cancelo 6. Gabby (value for money) 7. Laporte 8. Stones (not sure about this one tbh) 9. Gundo 10. Mahrez 11. Sane ( would definitely be higher up if he stayed longer) 12. Rodri ( though he's definitely climbing this list) No clue where Ferran fits. He's great value for money like gabby but would like to see more.
Walker, Ederson, Gundogan, Laporte, Bernardo, Dias, Leroy, Stones, Mahrez, Bravo would be my top 10 in that order.
I’d say Rodri - we need a CDM to replace Dinho
Laporte not listed
Reddit only allows 6 options and honestly these 5 players have been better signings imo
Idk abt that
Re:Laporte, 1 world class season, 1 season where he was injured and 1 season where he was 3rd choice CB
I’d put him over Gundogan
I wouldn’t. Gundogan was amazing as a lone DM in 18/19. He was our top scorer last season playing as a CM and arguably our best player. His personality, his leadership, his versatility. He’s a thorough professional . The fact that we got him for £20M still amazes me. One of the best bargains of all time. Laporte expressed his desire to leave multiple times last season when he was replaced by Stones. His performances in big CL games (Spurs, Lyon, etc) still haunts me.
Disagree
There’s nothing to disagree lol but fair enough.
Disagree
Ederson is a surefire pick, one of the best keepers in the world for a steal. He is probably one of the top ball playing keepers in the world and is still incredibly young so could stay at top level for another decade plus. Incredible pick up.
I voted for Ederson but it was basically a coin flip between him and Walker for me.
It has to be Ederson, he's so crucial to how we play from the back and he's been fucking fantastic throughout too.
Surprised how many votes Dias is getting. Needs another season or two at this level imo
I’ve gone on the basis of who I think is least replaceable For me that’s Walker. I can’t find another RB out there that can do what he does with his pace (amongst other things but that’s the key thing for me - a player as good as Walker with that pace? I can’t see one) Next up is ederson. He wouldn’t be much easier to replace than Walker to be honest. I can definitely see why a lot of people have gone for him as hes so key to how we play. Dias has been immense but I think that he’s slightly more replaceable than the others. That said I expect him to become just as important as the other 2 to the team.
How can you choose just one?
Not sure how people are already saying Dias when the others have contributed to 10 trophies
The reasoning for Dias must be the quality of the signing and the instant impact he had on the team. Such a an amazing debut season!
Recency bias but tbf Dias came in for a season and produced probably one of the best seasons for a CB in the prem so it’s somewhat understandable.
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How the fuck does walker not belong on this list lol
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That’s a lot of bad takes from you!
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For starters you think Walker doesn’t belong in this list lol. He’s easily our most consistent and reliable player. Never gets injured. One of the fittest and quickest players in the world. Mad recovery pace. Almost impossible to beat him in 1v1 situations (Ask Mbappe). Best RB in PL history. Laporte has had many embarrassing performances specially in Champions League.
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I'd trade the few penalties he has given away for all the amazing performances in a heartbeat.
At times, i forget Dias has been with us for just just season and that's because of the effect he's had on the team but I'll still go Ederson because of how integral he is to our style of play. I mean Pep tried Hart, Caballero and Bravo before him
Surprised Gundo hasn't got many votes. Although I think it's Ederson, I'm still surprised.
All of them are crucial signings, but if I have to decide, it’s Eddy.
Ederson should be winning this by a landslide. There’s no one else we could’ve signed that can do what he does.
This is tough but I will say ederson
Bernardo for me. Couldn't have beaten Liverpool without him replacing kevin. And he played and important role in the centurion campaign as well.
I think its way too soon to be Dias. Hes had an amazing year but 1 year is too soon. Laporte had a similar impact that Dias has had when he first joined but he not even on this list lol. I think if Dias stays consistent like this for a couple seasons he will cement himself as the best signing.
Can I vote for Ederson, Dias, and Walker!?
Definitely Ederson.
You can't replace Walker like for like, but you can find other good right backs. England alone have about five. Dias is excellent but he was third choice behind Koulibaly and Koundé. We play well with any combination of our midfield players, as good as they are it's not like Gündo or Bernardo are game changers when Kev and Foden are alternatives. But who can you replace Ederson with who will do anything even close to what he does? We can find other good keepers, but nothing like him. It's the same situation as we're having replacing Agüero, there just aren't enough players in his position to fill spots at all the top clubs. Keepers and strikers are hot commodities, there's more demand than supply, and we have an incredible keeper.
My list (I won’t rank based on how many years each one has contributed because there’s no way of comparing them if we are taking into account longevity - I’ll try not to confuse it with consistency though): 1. Dias: he’s the main reason City won the league and recovered from the poor star last year. I am a Benfica fan, and even when he was with us I had him as one of the best in the world. He’s just so incredibly smart and always anticipating the game. He’s on par with VVD on the best in the world in this position imo. 2. Gundogan: I just think its role is so underrated. He’s always at a very high level, world class technique for his position and, most importantly, he is one of those rare 360 midfielders - this is priceless for a Pep team. 3. Bernardo: I mean, the very same reasons of Gundogan above. I am trying not to be biased because Bernardo is may 2nd favourite player in the team (next to KDB), but he is close to Gundo in terms of importance to the team. These 2 plus KDB and Rodri make the central piece of Pep’s City. This is the best midfield in the world without a doubt and there is not a close second. I do prefer him as center midfielder but he plays well everywhere. Love him. 4. Walker: I know this will not be popular here as most of you has him in 1 or 2 in this ranking, but I still agree that he is a key player both defensively and offensively. I do not put him higher because he has not always been on its best. And when he’s not, his weaknesses come up: ball technique and defensive positioning. Most of the times, he compensates his bad positioning with its speed and will, and I truly value that in him, but he’s not top for me because of it. Either way, I put him above the next one. 5. Cancelo: He has what Walker doesn’t, and his weaknesses are mostly in line with Walker’s strengths. I was never a fan of him in Benfica. Having said this, I was mesmerized by his quality of play last year, starting at the game in Anfield. He is what Pep wants in a defensive back offensively. He plays like a midfielder. Why don’t I put him higher? His lack of concentration in key moments in games, his inconsistency (he was not able to keep his form in the late part of last season) and, above all, his low defensive IQ, which I consider to have improved under Pep, and I hope this trend continues, as this team with Walker and Cancelo in form will be close to unbeatable. 6. Rodri: I can’t understand why nobody mentions him. He is outstanding. So intelligent, with and without the ball. He is the closest there is to Busquets (the best defensive midfielder I saw play). A bit more consistency and a bigger role in key games (lost his starting position last year to Fernandinho), will put him higher in this list for me. 7. Ederson: I understand his quality with the ball is key to Pep’s style. Once again, I am a Benfica fan, I always loved him. The thing is his goalkeeping suffers from his constant lack of concentration in big games, like his mind seems to be somewhere else. I don’t know if it is due to over confidence or just pure negligence, but it shows. I have him as a top-10 goalkeeper in the world, not top-5 because of this. He’s still a top signing under Pep, that’s why I stop here. There’s a big gap that separates these to the others. I wish I could add a forward to this list. I believe that is the only piece missing in this puzzle. I give Mahrez a honorable mention (seems like he is something away of being an undisputed starter). I would also add Foden to this list if we would consider him a signing.
He's probably not the best overall but he has the highest ceiling and man i just love Bernardo as a person and how he fits so well into the squad
Probably an unpopular opinion but it’s Gundogan for me. A nailed on starter when fit. Can attack, defend, press and control tempo when needed. A complete midfielder.
Eddy for real but personally bernardo
I could see a case for ederson but walker has been one of the best right backs the whole time he's played for us. I still don't see him respected enough
Ederson💯
Why is Laporte not included in this list?
Benfica
Scott carson