Josko Gvardiol has proved to be a difference maker in the run-in for Man City… the £77m summer signing’s brace against Fulham means he now has five goals in his last seven games

Josko Gvardiol was telling people last summer that it may take him a little time to understand Manchester City.

Not only has he moved into a Treble dressing room, as a £77m defender with huge expectations on him. Not only because of the boy who hands out the instructions and his nuances. Not only because of the power of the Premier League and because of his own inexperience.

There was also acceptance about their position and how that could be problematic. Very early in his City career it was learned that Gvardiol would be used almost exclusively as a left-back. For now at least. He had not played there since his days at Dinamo Zagreb in 2020 and in that period he had become one of the best center backs in Europe at RB Leipzig.

He talked about having to remind himself what it means to play out there. Pep Guardiola’s previous signings have proven that the first year is quite difficult to figure out in their preferred positions, so a slightly new one can only up the ante considerably, especially with the lateral movements expected of this team’s full-backs.

The Croatian’s potential versatility, which was largely seen through the way he carried possession in the Bundesliga, was partly down to why City had identified him in the first place.

And it took some time for Gvardiol, who during the first months of the season looked like a central defender playing wide. “There was such an uncertain period that wasn’t really good,” Guardiola said last week.

The City manager could regularly be seen barking at Gvardiol during matches, patrolling his technical area, sighing and pointing at the youngster who turned 22 in January. He constantly micromanaged Gvardiol’s positioning. It must have been a relief when he was on the other side, to tell the truth.

Although now it seems like a long time ago. The two had productive conversations after the new year, focused on what to expect within Guardiola’s structure while studying clips together. “He arrived and in some moments he was confused,” Guardiola said of his slow start. “He lost a lot of balls. Every time he had the ball, he wanted to make exceptional things (happen).”

Something clicked immediately, although City would not have imagined it would manifest in him becoming a goal machine. Keeping things simple has allowed him to produce something exceptional.

Five in his last seven games. Two at Craven Cottage, which puts him level with Gabriel Jesus in the league. One at the Bernabéu, spectacular, followed by a similar one against Luton a few days later. The Gvardiol that Txiki Begiristain saw advancing carelessly and piercing the rival had arrived, now making it a little wider than ever before.

City are using him as a substitute man high up the pitch. Phil Foden, excellent again against Fulham and now on 25 goals in all competitions, is getting into very central areas on the left and allowing Gvardiol to take up space.

It allows the defender to enjoy himself a little more, while giving the attackers a little more grass to play on. Guardiola called him a winger for the way he took on the first game at the Thames, latching onto Kevin De Bruyne’s laser pass and cutting in, before taking a brief look at reality.

“In the second half he didn’t play well,” Guardiola said. “He lost a lot of balls. With defenders, the most important thing is to be safe; playing simple is the most difficult thing in football. And then, if he scores goals, he will be more than welcome, but that is not his job. His job is to be a defender and play safely.”

Guardiola is not wrong. But even he, the mega-perfectionist, must smile at how his left-back would have had the chance to become the first defender in Premier League history to score a hat-trick if he had been a little more forceful in the conversations about the goal by Julián Álvarez. late penalty. Not bad for a center back.