Man City shouldn’t extend ‘magnificent’ player’s contract yet, he’s been out of form for ages

manchester city are in a very strange and dangerous place right now you can feel it in the way people talk about them in the way fans argue online in the way the players themselves look at each other after matches this is not the city of old that swept aside everyone with arrogance and flair this is a team that just lost to al hilal in the club world cup in a match that felt like an alarm bell ringing so loud you could hear it all the way back in manchester

people are worried the season is starting in a month there is not much time to fix anything pep guardiola is restless you know how he is he cant sit still he sees problems everywhere some of them are obvious others are subtle but they all add up to the same truth city need to act fast they need to make decisions some easy some brutal one of those decisions is what to do about ruben dias

ruben dias was supposed to be the future the rock at the back the new company the man to lead them through battles and lift trophies he was so good when he arrived from benfica it was shocking how quickly he settled in people called him magnificent pundits said he was the best signing of the year michael dawson praised him fans fell in love because he played like a captain even when he was new he organized everyone yelled at them pushed them fought for every ball

that was then though now things feel very different city just finished one of their worst seasons in years they didn’t win what they wanted they got exposed by teams who used to fear them they looked slow vulnerable confused they got knocked out of the club world cup by al hilal with a 4-3 scoreline that flattered them because they were second best all game dias was on the pitch for that he was supposed to be the leader he was supposed to fix things but he couldn’t

pep guardiola watched that match on the sideline you know how he is he sees everything every mistake every moment someone switches off when al hilal went long over the top again and again he saw dias struggle he saw him misjudge the flight of the ball he saw him fail to mark koulibaly for the header that gave al hilal the lead again it wasn’t just one mistake it was a pattern that worried pep because this isn’t the first time it’s happened

people talk about injuries sure dias has had them he has been in and out of the team that matters rhythm matters confidence matters but the truth is when he has played he hasn’t looked like the same player he used to be his timing is off his decision making has cracks he used to be so good at reading danger now he reacts late

look at the real madrid match in the champions league city got beaten 3-1 in that game dias misjudged a long ball from asencio gave mbappe a clear run on goal mbappe doesn’t miss those he punished them instantly pep remembers that kind of error because it costs titles you cant make those mistakes at this level not if you want to be champions of europe again

it wasn’t just madrid it wasn’t just al hilal think about the aston villa match unai emery is a clever manager he saw what was happening he told his players to hit long balls over the top towards marcus rashford rashford gave dias a nightmare he ran into space behind him again and again city looked exposed dias couldn’t cope

when you put it all together you get a picture of a defender who isn’t what he used to be at least not right now city fans know it they argue about it online some defend him say hes still world class others say hes done hes finished hes a liability but the truth is more complicated

dias is only 28 hes not old for a centre back hes not past it but hes in danger of decline if hes not careful city know that too they know players can lose their edge very quickly especially in a team that plays such a high line with so much space to cover you need to be perfect mentally physically tactically any weakness gets punished

and now here comes the big question city are reportedly thinking about extending his contract hes under contract until 2027 already that’s two more years they don’t have to do anything but they like to reward their leaders they like to keep the dressing room happy and stable they want players to know theyre valued so theyre thinking about giving him more years more money more security

dias is reportedly open to it who wouldn’t be he loves city he feels like a leader he wants to stay but should city do it now that’s the real question because if they get it wrong it could hurt them badly

you see city aren’t a charity they cant just give out contracts for sentimental reasons they have one of the highest wage bills in the world they have to keep it under control with ffp with the new squad cost rules with competition getting tougher they cant afford to pay big wages to players who aren’t delivering at the highest level

they also have to think about the message it sends to the rest of the squad if they reward dias now after a poor season what does that say to the other players that you don’t have to maintain your standards that you can get comfortable that you can cash in on your past reputation city can’t allow that pep especially wont allow that hes ruthless this is a manager who has let go of club legends before he let yaya toure go he moved on from joe hart he sold sterling jesus zinchenko mahrez he doesn’t do sentiment he does what he thinks is best for the team if he thinks dias is slipping he wont hesitate

but hes not going to say it in public of course publicly hes going to defend dias talk about his importance his leadership his experience hes going to praise him because thats how pep is he protects his players in the media but behind closed doors you can bet hes making his analysis hes watching the videos hes counting the mistakes hes talking to his staff about what went wrong

dias knows this too hes no fool hes a serious professional he will know last season wasn’t good enough he will know he has to fix things he will know those long balls over the top have become a weakness that teams are targeting and he will know pep has no patience for passengers

so what should city do its simple they should wait they should not extend his contract now they should let him prove himself again next season they should make him earn it

that might sound harsh but thats football at the top level thats how city built this era of dominance they were smarter than everyone else they didn’t let emotions cloud their decisions they knew when to buy when to sell when to renew when to walk away thats why they won so much

look around the premier league everyone is getting stronger liverpool are rebuilding with arne slot theyll spend big arsenal are desperate to finally win the title theyre not going away chelsea united even spurs they all want to close the gap city cant stand still if they extend dias now without knowing hes still at the top level they risk standing still worse they risk going backwards because that contract would eat up budget it would make it harder to move him on if he declines further it would signal to everyone that standards are slipping

people will say but hes a leader hes a captain hes one of the voices in the dressing room true but leadership only works if youre performing on the pitch you cant be the guy yelling at everyone else to stay switched on if youre making the mistakes yourself that’s how you lose the dressing room

there is also the matter of the squad size city know they need to trim it down hugo viana is focusing on outgoings they have too many players they cant keep everyone happy they need to make space for new signings fresh blood younger hungrier players players who can carry the project forward for another five years

so they have to be clinical they have to make tough calls dias is one of them the best thing for everyone is to wait give him the season to prove himself if he comes back strong if he cuts out the errors if he shows hes still that magnificent defender then fine sit down offer him the new deal reward him for earning it but if he doesn’t if the mistakes continue if the decline is real then you know what you have to do you move on you thank him for his service you let him go

thats the way champions operate thats the way dynasties stay on top they don’t hold on to the past they don’t let nostalgia blind them they stay hungry they stay ruthless

for dias this is his challenge hes 28 hes not done hes not finished but hes at a crossroads he has to decide what kind of player hes going to be for the rest of his career does he fight back prove everyone wrong or does he fade away cash the checks and live on past glories

city fans will watch closely they want him to succeed they love him for what hes done but theyre not blind they saw the mistakes they know he cost them in big moments they want the old dias back the warrior the general not the hesitant slow error prone version that showed up too often last season pep will watch even closer hes obsessed with detail hes not going to let anything slide hes going to demand perfection because he knows the margins are so small one mistake one slip can cost a title a champions league a legacy

so yes city should think long and hard before extending dias they should put sentiment aside they should focus on whats best for the team for the future because they have to build a squad that can compete with the best not just in england but in europe they cant afford passengers they cant afford to reward past performance they have to pay for future performance

this is what made city great in the first place this is what they have to remember now its not personal its business its football at the highest leveand if dias wants that new contract he knows what he has to do prove it every single game no mistakes no excuses no more misjudged long balls no more letting strikers get in behind no more losing headers in the box no more being targeted by managers who see him as a weakness he has to fix it all and show hes still that magnificent leader city thought they were buying from benfica

only then should city sit down and talk about new contracts only then should they reward him with more years more money more responsibility because anything less would be an insult to the standards theyve se