5 players Manchester City could sign in January

#1 Virgil van Dijk (Southampton)

Van Dijk may prefer the smooth operations at City to the chaos that is Liverpool

This is likely to be an expensive transfer with £70m being the potential price tag according to some sources.

There are also other Premier League clubs after him such as Arsenal and Liverpool, but this is the same situation as was in the summer. The benefits of this transfer are that van Dijk is already accustomed to the league, so it would just be Guardiola's methods which he would have to get used to.

He hasn't impressed this season, but last season he was the heart of the defence as Southampton reached the EFL Cup final as well as finishing eighth in the league.

The transfer saga in the summer is probably to blame for his lack of consistent form over the past few months, though.

A January move would allow him to move to a bigger club and end the uncertainty over his future while also giving the Saints significant resources to find a replacement.

His physical presence and aerial ability mean that van Dijk thrives in the traditional attributes of a central defender. However, he is also intelligent with his positioning which allows him to cover for others.

His passing would have to be worked on because his current pass success percentage of 85.8% is too low. The centre-back position is key in Guardiola's system due to the amount of time they have on the ball as well as the occasional need to break the lines with their passing.