Man City offered chance to sign left-back for just £15m in 2022, now he’s ‘one of the best in Europe’
Pep Guardiola has always struggled with the left-back position as Man City’s manager since arriving in 2016.
Nico O’Reilly has emerged as a starter in the 2025-26 campaign, but at just 20 years of age, the youngster is still very inexperienced and comes with his weaknesses.
Other than him, though, Josko Gvardiol is required to play out of position, while Matheus Nunes has become a makeshift full-back on the opposite flank.
Guardiola is clearly very selective when it comes to his full-backs, and he might still be regretting his decision not to push for Chelsea‘s Marc Cucurella back in the summer of 2022.
Nico O’Reilly’s development could have been blocked by Man City
Man City fans would not have it any other way right now, though, with the lack of options giving O’Reilly the perfect opportunity to make him one of the first names on the teamsheet.
However, the club may still regret one of their missed transfers, especially given how well this player is currently performing out of his skin and what he has gone on to achieve in the Bundesliga.
With 25 goals and 34 assists in 119 appearances, Alejandro Grimaldo has been one of the most impressive full-backs in Europe over the last few seasons, but don’t just take my word for it.
In 2020, Benfica‘s sporting director, Tiago Pinto, described Grimaldo as “one of the best five full-backs in Europe,” and in 2025, that remains true of the 30-year-old [Be Soccer].
Alejandro Garnacho would have thrived under Pep Guardiola
According to iNews (July 2022), multiple Premier League clubs, including Man City, were offered the chance to sign Grimaldo for just £15million, an absolute steal in today’s market.
This was after the Citizens failed to secure Cucurella’s signature for more than double that cost, and while the Chelsea man often starts over him for Spain, there is no doubt over the Bayer Leverkusen star’s talents.
To think that supporters missed out on the chance to see Grimaldo and Kevin De Bruyne in the same team is incredibly disappointing, and for such a bargain as well.
He already has nine goals and five assists across all competitions in the 2025-26 campaign, and compared to the Citizens, he would be among the top three for the most goal contributions right now.