We’re sure that many Manchester City fans have never even heard of Pablo Marí. Signed from Gimnastic on a €200k deal in 2016, the defender has never made a single appearance for the club.
The Spaniard had loans at Girona, NAC Breda and Deportivo La Coruña, until finally agreeing a permanent move to Brazil, where he joined Flamengo for €1.7m deal this summer.
It’s just been a few months since Marí arrived in Rio De Janeiro, but his impact at Flamengo has been huge. He’s become a regular starter under Jorge Jesus, and despite speaking a different language, he quickly became one of the leaders of their defensive system.
Flamengo are on top of the Brazilian league table, and have just qualified for the Copa Libertadores final after a 5-0 win over Grêmio, with a goal scored by the Spanish defender.
Now with Pep Guardiola struggling to find defenders for Manchester City, it makes you think it Marí didn’t deserve a place in the squad this season.
The Catalan manager had to adapt Fernandinho and Rodri to central defense for a couple of matches, and last weekend, the Brazilian ended up being sent off in the clash against Aston Villa.
Brazilian journalist Mauro Cezar Pereira writes on his UOL blog today that Flamengo are using Marí as a role model for transfers for the next season.
Perhaps Manchester City should take his case as the opposite of that.
