Manchester City Transfers: 3 Right Backs City Could Realistically Target This Summer

On paper, Manchester City arguably have the best pair of right backs in the Premier League. In reality, however, neither have lived up to their lofty expectations.

Joao Cancelo and Kyle Walker are both excellent players, but Cancelo has struggled to adapt to life in the Premier League since his transfer from Juventus, while Walker’s eternal dip in form and regular off-field scandals have left him not only at serious risk of being shown the door by City, but also seen him drop as low as fifth choice right back for England.

The Sky Blues will surely be looking for a new right back when the window opens, as it seems likely one of Cancelo or Walker will leave, but also because they are lagging behind in the current trend of fearless wing backs who can do it all going forward.

Pep Guardiola has been spoiled in the past in the right back department - hello Dani Alves and Philipp Lahm - so don’t expect him to be happy with his current crop.

We, in our infinite wisdom, have decided to give him a helping hand with targets.

Elseid Hysaj

Albania aren’t traditionally a powerhouse footballing nation, but Hysaj is certainly a powerhouse full back. At 26, he’s arguably already his country's greatest footballing export.

Hysaj has been at ​Napoli since 2015 and has played practically every ​Serie A game for them since, being an important member of several title challenges and becoming one of the best right backs in the world in the process.

He's a strange type of full back in the modern game as he is actually a very accomplished defender. Please hold your shock, did you know he can play either flank as well? Madness, isn’t it?

Chelsea had a bid of £43m rejected back in 2018, but with just over a year left on his contract, together with the difficulties the Naples side are facing at the moment, they may be forced to cash in on their star full back or risk losing him for nothing next summer.

Potential Price: £20m - £30m

Youcef Atal

Pep previously turned ​Dani Alves into one of the best right backs of his generation, so Nice wing back Atal would seemingly fit the bill, seeing as he’s been dubbed the Algerian Alves in his home country.

Atal is the sort of player who is greeted with the clunk of seats rising when he gets on the ball, as fans stand to see what he’ll do next. A relatively unknown quantity outside of France, he’s been lighting up Ligue 1 for the last two seasons with a raft of exciting displays down the right.

He’s a very accomplished tackler, has a wealth of pace, and is one of the best dribblers in world football today. His final ball can be called into question at times, but working with a coach like Guardiola would sort that out in no time.

A move to ​City could mean ending up looking back at Dani Alves as the Brazilian Atal.

Potential Price: £25m - £40m

Max Aarons

​Norwich may have lacked quality this season, but what quality they did have was mainly in the right back position. Aarons has been excellent, following up his breakout season in the Championship last time out by putting in assured performances week in, week out in the ​Premier League.

It seems as though only the coronavirus could stop Norwich being relegated, but should they find themselves back in the Championship next campaign, they’ll more than likely be looking for a new right back.

The most talented member of the Aarons family - you may remember his older cousin Rolando at Newcastle a few years ago - Max is by no means the finished article, but with the right coaching and commitment, he could blossom into one of the best in the world.

He could even give Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate even more of a headache at right back in the process, should his development go swimmingly.

Potential Price: £18m - £25m