City are blessed with so many riches and Sane could be the best of all
MANCHESTER CITY have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to players who can operate in the hole just behind the striker.
Kevin De Bruyne is the man currently in the No.10 position and arguably among the top two or three attacking midfielders in the world at the moment.
With David Silva, Raheem Sterling, and Bernardo Silva to call on, City are blessed with talented players who can all do a great job in that department.
But if I were Pep Guardiola, I’d be tempted to give Leroy Sane a couple of games there to see how he goes on.
Watching him closely at Wembley on Friday night – when he was the most exciting player in a Germany shirt, particularly in the first 25 minutes of the game – made me wonder how he’d get on through the middle in the Premier League.
I always thought his game was based on blinding pace – stick him down the left and watch him go past the full-back.
But every time he drifted inside for Germany he looked like he might be a source of danger – he had the confidence to take a big game by the scruff of the neck.
People will say, ‘Oh, it was only a friendly between two B teams’, but that’s unfair.
Because when you sit in those dressing rooms it doesn’t matter which players are on show. England versus Germany is always a major contest.
Even when England aren’t the opponents, every time a player pulls on the Germany shirt it’s a big game.
We’re talking about the reigning world champions here, not some two-bit nation with little expectation.
Yet there was Sane, playing lovely little one-twos, getting on the ball, lifting his head, and showing great vision.
Before you chime up with, ‘Oi, Collymore, Manchester City don’t need him there, they’re flying and he’s doing well down the left’, yes, I realise that.
But it’s a long old season and it wouldn’t hurt Guardiola to say: ‘Hey, I noticed what you did against England, we’ll give you a little go and if De Bruyne gets injured or has a little dip then you’ll get your chance.’ Even if it’s only for two or three games,
What surprised me was how comfortable Sane looked on the ball – it was nice to see someone who is known as a lightning-quick winger actually using his brain rather than just his legs.
Germany boss Joachim Low, a man who has won the World Cup, has obviously looked at him in training and said, ‘You know what, you’ve got more of a footballing brain than I’ve given you credit for,’ and that won’t have been lost on Guardiola either.
At 21, Sane has age on his side. If he can balance both roles then what a player he could become in the next two or three years. Down the middle he could be a genuinely world-class attacking threat for both Manchester City and Germany.