Pep Guardiola has likened Manchester City wonderkid Rico Lewis to Arsenal star Oleksandr Zinchenko, with the teenager replacing the Ukrainian international at left-back this season.
Speaking to the press via City Xtra, the Premier League manager lauded the Etihad Stadium academy graduate whilst praising Bernardo Silva’s versatility, with Lewis already showing a similar trait already despite being in the senior squad for little more than five months.
Guardiola said after City’s 3-1 win against Aston Villa: “He has the ability to play in 10 positions because he’s so smart. He’s not tall but he’s smart. I like Rico [Lewis] in these positions like [Fabian] Delph or [Oleksandr] Zinchenko in the past. Today, I wanted Bernardo to do it.”
Zinchenko’s departure has left a specific hole in City’s squad that Guardiola has found hard to fill this season. However, the emergence of Lewis has seemingly remedied this issue and then some, with the fullback one of the most exciting prospects in all of England.
Indeed, whilst Lewis didn’t feature this weekend against Villa, Guardiola’s praise for the defender cannot be understated, with the 18-year-old already playing four different positions for City this season per stats from Transfermarkt.
Whilst Zinchenko has flourished with Arsenal and has played a key role in Mikel Arteta side’s currently leading the Premier League, few City fans will argue that the decision to let the 25-year-old leave was a mistake, with Lewis filling in perfectly under Guardiola in the last few weeks.
Rico Lewis replacing Oleksandr Zinchenko has been a masterstroke
Zinchenko has been allowed to flourish at Arsenal in a star role the Ukrainian wasn’t granted at City. However, the decision to sell the versatile fullback to eventually bring in Lewis has been nothing short of a masterstroke from the Manchester side.
As we know, Lewis only turned 18 this season and has already established himself as one of Europe’s most exciting talents, with the defender firmly on his way to becoming City’s next superstar academy graduate after Phil Foden and Cole Palmer.
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