Joleon Lescott believes Ruben Dias is more of a leader for Manchester City at his age than Vincent Kompany was and has backed him to emulate the Belgian’s legacy at the Etihad in the long-term.
The 24-year-old has made a huge impact since joining City in a club-record £65m deal from Benfica last summer, playing a key role in the club’s Premier League and Carabao Cup wins and run to the Champions League final where they will face Chelsea.
Dias’ exploits received further recognition when he was named the Football Writers’ Association’s men’s Footballer of the Year this month, becoming the first defender to claim the award in 32 years.
“For someone that’s so young and never played in the Premier League before, he plays with so much maturity,” said former City defender Joleon Lescott.
“He’s come in seamlessly. I know he’s a massive part of the dressing room. Having been to games with no fans it’s allowed me to hear how vocal he is and that’s not an easy trait to have.”
Dias has belatedly filled the huge void vacated by the talismanic former captain Kompany, albeit signing a year after the City legend’s departure to join Anderlecht as a player-manager in 2019.
“Vinny [Kompany] at his age wasn’t the leader that we all came to know by the end,” Lescott added. “He had Kolo Toure who was an invincible, Carlos Tevez, Gareth Barry, an experienced captain in the Premier League, so Vinny was learning from them and then developed into the leader.
“In terms of a comparison long term, only time will tell but he’s definitely on the right lines.”
Although the Spanish national team’s newest recruit Aymeric Laporte is fully fit after a stop-start couple of years, Dias is expected to be partnered by John Stones against Chelsea in Porto.
Stones’ career appeared to have reached a crossroads after he slipped down Pep Guardiola’s central defensive pecking order, but he has rediscovered his top form and flourished alongside Dias this season.
Lescott praised Stones for transforming his fortunes for both club and country and believes that having a settled partner in Dias has helped him iron out the mistakes that had previously held him back.
“I think he’s been exceptional and he deserves a lot of individual credit for that,” said Lescott. “At the start of the season, he was fifth choice and his opportunity might not have come had Laporte performed as we expected him to. Laporte and Dias were going to play and they brought Nathan Ake in to plug the gap.
“Stones was potentially leaving the club, so the fact that he kept himself fit and ready for an opportunity if it came – he took it with both hands. That is a tough ask as a player, hoping that you’ll get an opportunity. He’s definitely performing at the peak of his powers.
“I think the age he is now, he’s more mature. He’s making better decisions, in and out of possession and he’s reaping the benefits of playing alongside a settled partner. I don’t think [Nicolas] Otamendi helped him in previous seasons. When he was a younger player trying to learn his trade, I think Otamendi could have used his experience to guide Stones a bit more.
“But Dias plays with so much maturity that John is benefiting from that.”
BT Sport will show Manchester City vs Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League final live from 6:00pm on Saturday 29th May. Whoever you watch the final with, watch it together with BT. For more info go to btsport.com/final
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from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3c1ZWvy
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