Now worth 413% more: Man City must rue selling their own Trent for just £7m

A huge night for Manchester City awaits.

3-2 down from the first leg at the Etihad, the Sky Blues will take on reigning European champions Real Madrid at the Bernabéu, needing to produce a ‘remontada’ of their own against the comeback kings.

Defeat would condemn Pep Guardiola’s team to their earliest Champions League exit since 2013, while this is simply part of a crucial week for the Sky Blues, who also face Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday.

So, ahead of a meeting with the Spanish champions and then the English champions elect, will Man City rue selling a Premier League star they had on their books, now being compared with Trent Alexander-Arnold?

Manchester City’s right-back issue

For so long, Kyle Walker was Man City’s undisputed first-choice right-back but, following last month’s 8-0 hammering of Salford in the FA Cup, Guardiola revealed that his club captain had asked to leave the club and “explore options abroad”, with the 34-year-old joining A.C. Milan on loan a week or so later.

Former Man City defender Joleon Lescott believes Walker is the “Premier League’s greatest right-back”, but the now 34-year-old has, unquestionably, been a waning force this season, with Oliver Kay of the Athletic noting that his ‘speed and athleticism’, attributes that had defined him for so long, are on the decline.

20-year-old Rico Lewis is the most natural heir to Walker’s throne, and earlier this season Guardiola praised the youngster, labelling him “so intelligent”, adding “he’s playing because he’s playing really good”.

Well, in more recent weeks, he hasn’t been playing quite so much, starting just one of the last eight Premier League or Champions League games, introduced at half-time of the first leg against Real Madrid, following Manuel Akanji’s injury.

Instead, having been repurposed as a left-winger earlier in the campaign, Matheus Nunes had been starting at right-back, with Guardiola claiming the Portuguese international is making a lot of progress as a full-back.

On the flip side, Michael Cox of the Athletic describes Nunes as an ‘uncomfortable… makeshift right-back’, while Graham Ruthven of Forbes adds that he ‘doesn’t have the defensive instincts of a natural full-back’.

In short, this position is a bit of a mess, an issue underlined further by the fact Man City had one of the Premier League’s best right-backs on their books not so long ago, but did not give him an opportunity.

Man City sold their own Trent Alexander-Arnold

If you weren’t aware that Pedro Porro spent three seasons on Manchester City’s books, we can hardly blame you, considering he didn’t make a single appearance in sky blue at either youth or senior level.

In 2019, the full-back moved to Man City from Girona, also owned by City Football Group, for a reported £11m fee, but was loaned out to Real Valladolid and then Sporting Clube de Portugal, before joining the Lisbon-based side permanently for £7.2m in May 2022.

Well, eight months later, Tottenham Hotspur activated his release clause, paying around £40m to secure the Spaniard’s services. As per Transfermarkt, his market value now stands at £37m, representing an increase of 413% since Man City sold him for that £7.2m fee.

That’s because, Charlie Eccleshare of the Athletic describes Porro’s performances for Spurs as ‘excellent’, while Ali Tweedale of Opta’s the Analyst adds he is the ‘perfect fit’ for Ange Postecoglou’s ‘inverted full-back’ role, given that he is very ‘comfortable’ in possession.

So far in Spurs colours, the 25-year-old has racked up nine goals and 17 assists, while the aforementioned Alexander-Arnold is deemed to be the most similar player to him among full-backs in Europe’s top five leagues, as per FBref.

With that in mind, here’s a look at how Porro compares to the Englishman, a player who Mark White of FourFourTwo believes to be the world’s best in this position.

Statistically, Porro has outperformed Alexander-Arnold for every metric included, in terms of possession, creating chances and defensively, with the caveat that he has played 656 more minutes.

Nevertheless, it is indisputable that Porro has been impressive for Spurs, with Eccleshare and Jack Lang of the Athletic describing him as both ‘improved’ and ‘outstanding’, while Oliver Young-Myles of the i Paper believes Postecoglou has turned him into an ‘Alexander-Arnold’ clone.

Thus, it’s undeniable that, had Man City given Porro a chance, he would be their starting right-back and would certainly improve this struggling sky blues side.

Related

Pep must unleash “inevitable” Man City ace as their answer to Mbappe

Man City will be looking to overturn the deficit