$300 million later, Man City still striving to fix backfield

Manchester, England — Manchester City has spent more than $300 million in an effort to improve its defense since last winning the English Premier League in 2014.

It’s a staggering amount of money — and still the problem is not fixed.

One of the most surprising moves in the summer transfer window emerged this week when City offered £18 million ($23.2 million) for Jonny Evans, the former Manchester United defender who is club captain at West Bromwich Albion.

West Brom rejected the bid but is braced for another offer from the richest team in England.

“It would be crazy to say a team like West Brom won’t sell if a team are going to put a huge amount of money in front of you,” West Brom manager Tony Pulis said.

The fact that City manager Pep Guardiola feels he still needs to bolster his defense at this late stage of the window highlights the concerns he has about this area of the team. It also underscores the recent failings by those in charge of City’s recruitment.

Eliaquim Mangala arrived from FC Porto for a reported £42 million (now $54.1 million) in 2014. Nicolas Otamendi arrived from Valencia for £32 million (now $41.2 million) a year later. Another center back, John Stones, cost an initial £47.5 million (now $61.2 million) in the summer of 2016 before City turned to signing full backs this offseason.

Kyle Walker, Benjamin Mendy, and Danilo joined in the space of 10 days in July, for around £120 million ($155 million) in total.

There’s still a wide-held belief that a player signed nine years ago, captain Vincent Kompany, is holding the defense together. For City fans, that is a worry — given the 31-year-old Belgium center back has been ravaged by injury over the last three years.

Kompany was fully fit in only the final two months of last season — he played six games in all competitions before April — and City lost just one of nine league games in that period. Without the captain, the 23-year-old Stones looked lost at times and Otamendi was often out of position and impetuous in the tackle.