Pep Guardiola has secret weapon to fix £47.5m blackhole in Man City starting XI

There haven’t been many causes for celebration as far as Manchester City are concerned this season.

Sunday’s defeat at home to Liverpool was their eighth of the Premier League season - as many as they’d recorded across both of their previous two league-winning campaigns.

One of the issues for Pep Guardiola has been diagnosing the problem, with several factors having contributed to the reigning champions’ decline.

The decision to spend less than £30million in the summer transfer window appears to have come back to haunt them, as the Blues’ squad has stalled on the back of their fourth Premier League title in a row.

Then there’s the injuries. Oscar Bobb went down just days before the opening game of the campaign with a broken leg, while Rodri - who would be named the Ballon d’Or winner just months later - ruptured his ACL during an early-season meeting with Arsenal. Neither have seen the pitch since.

Bobb and Rodri haven’t been alone in the treatment room, with the likes of Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias, Nathan Ake, Erling Haaland, Jack Grealish, Jeremy Doku and John Stones having all spent time on the sidelines.

It’s the omission of the last name on that list which has been particularly problematic for Pep Guardiola, given Stones’ on-the-ball quality at the heart of the defence, as well as his ability to deputise for Rodri as an out-and-out holding midfielder.

According to Fbref statistics, the Englishman - who joined City for £47.5m in 2016 - attempts over 75 passes per 90, at a completion rate of 93 per cent. Take him out of the City team and it’s no surprise they’ve looked disjointed.

That could be about to change though. Introducing Abdukodir Khusanov.

The Uzbekistan international was signed as part of City’s mini-rebuild in January, arriving from Ligue 1 outfit RC Lens.

His start to life in the Premier League couldn’t have got off to a worse start, when he was at fault for Chelsea’s opening goal on his debut less than two minutes into the game, before picking up a yellow card just three minutes later.

Since that disastrous start, Khusanov has settled into a groove, earning plaudits for his performances in recent matches.

The latest was against Liverpool at the weekend, where Khusanov earned plaudits for his last-ditch defending and physicality in duels.

However, it was his passing ability that caught the eye the most. The 20-year-old completed the most passes of any player on the pitch (89) and boasted the highest pass percentage at 98 per cent.

Stones, who Guardiola revealed last week could need surgery following his latest injury setback, may be coming to the end of his City career.

But with Khusanov, Guardiola might have already found a ready-made replacement.