Abdukodir Khusanov to Man City: ‘Tank’ of a Centre-Back Will Bring Speed, Power and Aggression

A defensive injury crisis has troubled Manchester City this season. In an attempt to ease their worries, 20-year-old Lens defender Abdukodir Khusanov looks set to join.

Manchester City’s dismal – by their standards – first half to the 2024-25 season has necessitated decisive action in the January transfer window, and it looks likely they’ll be bringing in several new faces to replenish a side in need of a helping hand.

The defending champions have at least managed to avoid losing any of their last three league games, but they find themselves down in sixth with 34 points, just one more than Bournemouth a place below them.

Considering what we’re used to seeing from Pep Guardiola’s City, “languishing” would be an appropriate term to describe their unusual position in the table, with their six league defeats already double the amount they suffered in 2023-24.

But while most people probably expected City to prioritise reinforcements in midfield to cover for the loss of the nonetheless irreplaceable Rodri, who is out for the rest of the season, it would seem Guardiola has identified other areas to initially bolster.

Chief among them, it would appear, is centre-back. Not only are City supposedly locked in talks to sign Palmeiras defender Vitor Reis, but Abdukodir Khusanov – also a central defender – is expected to be the club’s first arrival of the window from Ligue 1 side Lens.

Khusanov would become the first Uzbek to play in the Premier League should the deal come to fruition and he isn’t immediately loaned back to Lens. City are rumoured to have agreed a deal in principle worth £30 million, and while a temporary return to France has been reported as a possibility, nothing official has been communicated.

Although the absence of Rodri has been huge for City, it is also fair to say that centre-back has been a problem position for them this term as well.

Their eight different centre-back partnerships is the fifth most in the Premier League in 2024-25, while their most-common pairing – Manuel Akanji and Rúben Dias – have only started together five times, the most recent occasion being the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest on 4 December.

Jonny Whitmore / Senior Data Editor

The only club to have seen their most-used centre-back partnership start less often than that are Wolves, who were able to name Craig Dawson and Yerson Mosquera in the same lineup just three times before the latter sustained a serious injury.

While City’s interest in Khusanov had been reported as early as October, it wasn’t until the early days of January that stories suggesting they were accelerating their plans in light of an injury crisis began to build momentum. The 20-year-old Uzbekistan international quickly emerged as the primary target.

But, given he’ll be something of an unknown quantity to a lot of City fans, many will be asking, why him?

In some ways, Khusanov’s profile may not immediately make him stand out as the kind of centre-back Guardiola would ordinarily opt for. As reflected by his statistical output, he’s not a high-volume passer nor is he a prolific progressor of the ball via carries out from the back.  

Among the three Lens centre-backs who’ve played most often in 2024-25, Khusanov has recorded comfortably the fewest carries (movements of at least five metres with the ball), with his 100 paling in comparison to the 178 and 226 tallied by Kevin Danso and Facundo Medina, respectively.

Similarly, he’s touched the ball 64.7 times on average per 90 minutes in Ligue 1 this term, whereas Medina (74.8) and Danso (79.9) see the ball considerably more often. Both players also average at least 10 more passes on a per-90 basis.

That doesn’t necessarily mean anything negative on Khusanov’s part. He’s the inexperienced one of the three for starters, while he’s also played a reasonable amount as the most central of the three centre-backs – it’s not uncommon for the wider centre-backs to have more progressive responsibilities in a back three. Additionally, Danso and Medina are very well established at the club and in a back three.

So, although he’d almost certainly see a lot more of the ball at City and feature mostly in a back four, both of which would be changes, Khusanov is generally reliable with his passing, his 89% pass completion being the third-highest in the Lens squad. He’s also completed 91.6% of those in his own half.

Furthermore, the eye test firmly supports the idea that, even though he isn’t as active as perhaps your archetypal modern-day centre-back, Khusanov’s hardly a bumbling buffoon on the ball. He’s clearly comfortable and assured with the ball at his feet, meaning there’s potentially significant room for growth with respect to how he operates in possession.

Lens coach Will Still has on more than one occasion noted Khusanov’s calm nature on the pitch, and that will be an asset in the Premier League, which is essentially the de facto home of the high press these days.

What’s really stood out about Khusanov during his fledgling career, then, is his pure defensive attributes. He is a defender’s defender, ranking in the 94th percentile for defensive actions this season in Ligue 1.

Khusanov marries genuine athleticism with raw physical power, making for an extremely handy combination. He’s tall, extremely quick once he gets moving, and aggressive without being especially dirty.

“Kodir is a tank,” Still said of Khusanov in September. “He’s impressive physically and athletically.”

Khusanov’s speed, strength and aggressive mentality can be seen in his almost ravenous approach to trying to win possession back. The 20-year-old seems to live for physical battles, meaning he’ll harry and barge attackers for as long as he needs to, or he’ll step out from the back to put the squeeze on forwards playing with their back goal.

As such, his anticipation has been praised regularly since establishing himself in the Lens starting XI this term, with it a common sight to see Khusanov darting in front of forwards to intercept passes or overpowering them as they try to pin him.

Below are two prime examples of the latter scenario, where Khusanov uses his strength to outmuscle the centre-forward and prod the ball away.

Similar can be seen in the next example, albeit in a slightly different context, as Khusanov’s recovery pace helps him catch up to the Strasbourg forward before getting in front of him and heading away the incoming cross.

And here, Khusanov spots the danger and bursts across the box before performing an inch-perfect sliding tackle to clear the danger.

In fact, his 26 interceptions this season is the second most of all Ligue 1 defenders. This reflects especially well on him because the only player with more, Dylan Batubinsika (29), plays for a Saint-Étienne side used to spending much more time under pressure, and he’s been on the pitch for almost an additional 340 minutes compared to Khusanov.

His power and tenacity also help make Khusanov a considerable adversary in the air, putting him in the 85th percentile among centre-backs for aerial duels won in Ligue 1 this season. And it’s also unlikely he’ll be intimidated by much, with his robust display for Uzbekistan against Spain at last year’s Olympics a brilliant example of him refusing to show too much respect to more glamorous opponents.

Nevertheless, there’s no escaping some of the elements that make Khusanov’s signing a risk.

Some will perceive Khusanov’s aggression and penchant for a last-ditch slide tackle to be evidence of a rash approach to defending – granted, he’s only been booked twice this term, but he was sent off against Paris Saint-Germain after going to ground and catching Achraf Hakimi with his studs.

He is also very inexperienced at the highest level, having only played 24 times in Ligue 1 since moving to Lens from Energetik-BGU of Belarus in 2023. Further to that, his breakthrough as a starter materialised just this season when Danso was forced to spend time out due to the detection of a heart condition, which also scuppered the Austrian’s switch to Roma in August.

A move to City could also provide something of a culture shock in several ways. Firstly, Lens teammates and Still have commented on how Khusanov “doesn’t talk” – while it’s been insisted that this hasn’t been a problem, the language barrier will remain in England and a lack of communication on the pitch may be less acceptable in the pressure-cooker environment of the reigning Premier League champions.

And then there’s the playing style. Lens certainly aren’t a team who try to play without the ball, but Khusanov would have to adjust to a more dominant system while simultaneously getting used to having much more of the ball himself because he’ll be playing in a back four, not a back three.

There’s no such thing as a guaranteed success when it comes to transfers, however; only once Khusanov is given the opportunity to feature for City will we truly know if he’s up to the task.

Clearly, though, his physical attributes look as though they’ll give him a solid foundation when it comes to adjusting to the Premier League, and his front-foot, uncompromising defensive style will earn him a lot of admirers if he adapts to the other rigours of life at City and in English football.

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