Manchester City are keeping one of their longest tenured defenders at the club by giving Rúben Dias a contract extension, a new report has claimed.
Dias has been a pivotal part of Guardiola’s Man City dynasty. The totemic centre back won the league in his first four seasons at the club, including a treble in 2022–23 with the club’s first Champions League trophy. He is a modern day defender comfortable with the ball at his feet while boasting defensive traits like physicality and strength in aerial duels.
The club have an agreement in principle with Dias regarding an extension of unknown length, The Athletic reports. The 28-year-old’s previous deal was set to expire in June 2027.
Interestingly, Pep Guardiola’s contract is set to expire in 2027. The Catalan coach has made it abundantly clear that he will be taking time away from the sport altogether once his stay at City concludes. “I don’t know if it’ll be two, three, five, 10, 15 years,” he mused. “But after City I’ll stop.” Dias is set to carry on in the post-Guardiola realm.
Injuries hampered the defender’s 2024–25 campaign as he was restricted to making 27 appearances in the Premier League during a rare trophy-less season for the Cityzens. Guardiola started multiple backline variations last term which led to defensive uncertainty at times, even shaking things up at goalkeeper between Ederson and the outgoing Stefan Ortega.
Getting Dias back fit could give Guardiola more stability at the back as they look to challenge once again for England’s top honour while improving on otherwise disappointing cup runs. The Cityzens lost the FA Cup final to underdog Crystal Palace, were bounced in the Champions League playoff round by Real Madrid and fell to Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup fourth round.
Man City have brought in the likes of Rayan Cherki, Rayan Aït-Nouri, Tijjani Reijnders and James Trafford this summer.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Man City ‘Reach Agreement’ With Star Defender Over Contract Extension.
