Gary Neville Insists Manchester City Must Buy in January to Compete With Liverpool

​Gary Neville has insisted that Manchester City must bring in a central defender in January if they are to keep up with Liverpool in the title race. 

City picked up their second successive league win on Saturday, overcoming Everton 3-1 at Goodison Park. However, they looked vulnerable at the back at times, facing the most shots on target in a league game since Pep Guardiola took charge, with Ederson having to produce crucial saves to ensure the side claimed all three points.

The champions were forced to play Fernandinho as a makeshift centre-half alongside Nicolas Otamendi due to the continued absence of Aymeric Laporte and John Stones. Having seen the combination struggle to keep Everton at bay, Neville claimed that City must dip into the transfer market to rectify their defensive issues.

"They bought Aymeric Laporte in January a year and a half ago, and I feel that they're going to have to do the same again. This won't be good enough for the Champions League or the Premier League. Guardiola will know it - he knows the standard more than anybody," he told Sky Sports.

Looking ahead to the type of player that City would need to bring in, Neville admitted that it will not be cheap for Guardiola to get his ideal defender, and claimed that the club are missing the leadership of Vincent Kompany, who was allowed to leave over the summer.

"They've set limits, and perhaps it's not so much the fee, but the wages that will be demanded to attract the right type of player, which is making the Manchester City hierarchy nervous and stay within a structure. But with Vincent Kompany going, it leaves a huge void, not just on the pitch but off it. There aren't too many players like him around, and he's difficult to replace."

Source : 90min