Manchester City splash the cash on mega defensive line-up

With their 56 million euro signing of John Stones this week, Pep Guardiola's Manchester City made headlines by converting the Everton centre-back into the most expensive defender in English football history.

However, this shelling out of major cash is merely the evolution of a trend at City, who are currently under the reign of highly-rated coach Guardiola, whose spell at Bayern Munich yielded Bundesliga dominance but no European silverware.

Buying Stones brings the Sky Blues' spending on their back line over the last decade to the whopping sum of over 300 million euros.

No less than 19 players have come to the club for the purposes of defending the Man City goal, many of whom have become forgotten names.

Nicolas Otamendi, Eliaquim Mangala, Martin Demichelis, Maicon, Aleksandar Kolarov, Gael Clichy, Jerome Boateng, and Joleon Lescott are among the notable mentions in this illustrious list, which despite all the resources dedicated to it, has yet to produce a solid defensive identity.

This season, the Catalan boss' priority has been shoring up that problem area, with his eyes on Spaniards Dani Carvajal and Aymeric Laporte to fill in some important gaps.

Nonetheless, those prospects withered and Guardiola's attention became fixed on Stones, who is his kind of defender: one who can play the ball.

The former Barcelona coach's teams are known for being stingey with the ball and rarely allowing other teams a chance to score; while known for their possession play they have always featured high-line defending.

Certainly, a change will be welcome, as last season City's goals against tally was the worst of the top six Premier League clubs.

Manchester City Must Solve Vincent Kompany's Calf Problem

Manchester City defender Vincent Kompany has withdrawn from the Belgium squad for their games against Italy and Spain because of a calf problem.

It’s the latest setback for the 29-year-old, who has suffered 26 muscle injuries in the last three and a half years—11 of which have been calf issues.

It is thought to be a minor problem, but it offers yet another reminder of his susceptibility to muscle complaints—a huge concern for ManuelPellegrini who continually has his influential captain taken from him during his periods on the sidelines.

It comes on the back of last month’s club vs. country row that sawKompany play for an hour of Belgium’s win over Israel despite having missed City’s previous five games.

Belgium manager Marc Wilmots chose to ignore the letter City sent advising him not to pick Kompany, a move that clearly angered Pellegrini who chose not to select the defender for the subsequent games against Bournemouth and Sevilla.

Kompany’s importance to City has been underlined further this season with a string of excellent displays. The Blues have kept seven clean sheets in their 12 league games and Kompany has been involved in all of them.

He brings organisation and leadership, as well as remarkable athleticism, pace and strength. When he’s been absent this season, City’s defence has, at times, looked poor, but with him they have looked solid.

Kompany has been building up a superb partnership with NicolasOtamendi, the club’s summer signing from Valencia, with their performances against Manchester United, Norwich City and Aston Villa catching the eye.

The Argentinian had looked somewhat shaky in his first few games, butKompany’s return to the side saw the £32 million signing begin to show his best form.

Both play in an aggressive manner, with some suggesting they are perhaps too similar in style to complement one another, but the early signs have been extremely positive for Pellegrini.

The City boss finally has some strength in depth at centre-half, withEliaquim Mangala and Martin Demichelis also fighting for a first-team place.

But solving Kompany’s tendency to contract muscle injuries should be a priority for City medical team.

It’s been a continual problem for City, and Pellegrini appears to have little in the way of detailed explanation as to why it keeps happening.

“Vincent plays with 100 per cent intensity, not just every game but every training session,” Pellegrini said prior to City’s recent match with West Ham United. 

“That’s the way he always works.

“It’s difficult [for him to ease off]. It is not easy for him. He tries sometimes not to be always 100 per cent intensity, but you cannot change.

“It is always important [not] to have injured players, especially the captain and especially in a moment when we didn’t concede any goals in the first five games. I think it is important to carry on playing with the same names, but I always say we have a squad.”

With City making progress on three fronts this season, and with the FA Cup set to be added to their schedule in the new year, they need a healthy squad with their best players fit and available if they want to compete for silverware. 

So far this season, Pellegrini has coped well with the debilitating injury list he's faced, but he needs his captain to remain fit. 

He is vital in ensuring defensive stability, and something must be done to get to the bottom of his calf troubles. 

Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and will be following the club from a Manchester base throughout the 2015/16 season. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter RobPollard.