Man City midfield trio backed to emulate Rodri and Silva

Manchester City’s director of football, Hugo Viana, believes new midfield trio Enzo Fernandez, Elliot Anderson and Ayyoub Bouaddi can eventually match the impact of former City stars Rodri and Bernardo Silva.

The three midfielders joined City during the transfer window for a combined fee of £327 million as the club began rebuilding its squad following the departure of several key players.

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Rodri moved to Barcelona, while Bernardo Silva joined Real Madrid, ending a successful spell in which the pair won 10 Premier League titles between them as well as the Champions League.

Viana said City knew they had lost two highly important players but believed the new midfielders had the quality, character and mentality needed to fill the void.

He particularly praised Fernandez, who joined from Chelsea for a British-record fee of £125 million.

“He’s that kind of player with the mentality that we were looking for in that position because Rodri and Bernardo were really important in the last decade of the club,” Viana said.

He also backed Anderson, signed from Nottingham Forest for £116 million, to become an important player for City over the next several years.

Bouaddi, an 18-year-old Morocco international signed from Lille for a reported £86 million, is regarded by City as a long-term option in Rodri’s position.

Viana said the club had identified Bouaddi as a key target and believed he had the potential to become a very important player for the team.

“We all believe that Enzo, Bouaddi and Anderson can be as important as Rodri and Bernardo in the past,” he said.