Nearly time for Pep Guardiola to play Rico Lewis in Man City’s midfield? | OneFootball

Near-ever present to start their Premier League title defence, Rico Lewis is making a difference in Manchester City‘s midfield rather than at his usual position, and that should help offset Rodri’s absence and further cement himself as the ideal Pep Guardiola player.

“I think I am most effective in midfield in the small areas and tight spaces where we can draw players in and then give it to the attackers with more time and more space,” Lewis told reporters this week.

Having graduated from City’s esteemed youth setup, Lewis broke into his boyhood club’s first team in 2022, making 30 league appearances before the 2024/25 campaign. However, most of those came at the backend of Guardiola’s championship-winning seasons and with him often utilized at full-back. But something has since changed.

Being the experimental tactician that Guardiola is — one who places universality above the traits he seeks in his footballers — Lewis, who often finds himself in a defensive or holding midfield role (an area of the pitch he’d be no stranger to even when starting in his nominal right-back berth), is a Swiss Army knife and could go down as his manager’s perfect footballer: someone without a fixed position who can play everywhere at once.

Take the last time out against Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League, when City lined up in a 4-2-3-1 formation. That didn’t mean it was a fixed, rigid shape as the game was being played. Indeed, the England international found himself in the central area of the field when the English champions were in possession, a place where he’s started in four prior Premier League games this season.

To say Lewis put in a shift would be an understatement. He completed the full 90 minutes, during which, while in possession, he played close to Haaland and constantly found Jérémy Doku out wide or even got to the byline and cut back for the Norwegian marksman. If needed, he swept up possession back at number eight or showed awareness at number six, where inverted full-backs are meant to help out. His defence-splitting assist for Haaland’s goal, after meandering into the centre circle before quickly changing tempo, was out of Kevin De Bruyne’s playbook. He would then quickly get back to right back whenever Slovan attacked.

“The way Rico [Lewis] is playing, there are no words. He does everything,” Guardiola told post-match reporters. “He made an assist, and defensively strong, and in small pockets he’s really good. Of course he has to improve a few things, but he’s playing at the highest level.”

Lewis started his ninth game of the season in Slovakia and is firmly ahead of Kyle Walker in the hierarchy this season — partly because he can do much more than Walker, plus Guardiola often prefers to start with a back three. However, with Fulham visiting on matchday seven and Marco Silva boasting one of the league’s most attacking left backs in Antonee Robinson, this does pose the question of whether Lewis should feature at right back if Guardiola fields a back four.

Another option is for centre-back John Stones to move into midfield. This would leave Lewis with the options of being on the bench or starting at right-back if Guardiola chooses to remain orthodox.

But that decision may have already been made if Guardiola reverts to a tried-and-true 3-4-2-1 shape. Lewis’ stellar performance could not have come at a better time. Already familiar with Guardiola’s instructions for his defensive midfielders, Lewis could be thrust into even more responsibility after Rodri was sidelined with a severe knee injury. He may not be a direct replacement, but he offers his manager something different to compensate for it.

Coming from an unconventional athletic background, since his father is a kickboxer, has aided the young athlete, who recently mentioned using kickboxing training to get fully fit during the preseason. The mental and physical resilience required to compete in such a fierce sport can quickly transfer to the beautiful game. He’s stated that he sees himself as a number eight rather than in the fullback role, where he emerged from City’s academy immediately after the 2022 World Cup.

Guardiola has often praised Lewis for his awareness and ability to adapt. “To find a player like him playing in the pockets, how he has to move as a holding midfielder, moving in the spaces, he is one of the best I’ve ever trained by far,” he said last October. His clever positioning and his speed in handling counter-attacks make him a strong candidate for a deep midfield role. His unusually safe distribution is seen as an asset in helping Guardiola to control possession during games.

Last season, he was deployed in midfield alongside Mateo Kovačić against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium for this reason: “The fact we didn’t have Rodri, I wanted to put more protection with the ball, players who are really good with the ball.” This is a plan he should consider using again.