There’s something almost poetic about Manchester City’s refusal to see what is right in front of them. They already have their anchor, their number six, their midfield metronome in Nico González — yet somehow, they continue searching elsewhere for the next £100 million solution. Look back at December: Nico started seven consecutive matches as City went on a magnificent winning run, beating Leeds, Fulham, Sunderland, Real Madrid, Crystal Palace, Brentford, West Ham and Nottingham Forest — eight straight victories in all competitions. (FB Ref) He wasn’t merely filling Rodri’s shoes; he was growing into the role, controlling the tempo, winning duels and giving the midfield the balance it had been crying out for. Then came January, the injury, and suddenly the rhythm disappeared. Guardiola himself once called him “mini-Rodri”, and yet City now find themselves looking beyond him, flirting with expensive replacements for a position where the answer may already be sitting in their own squad. Nico has never asked to be the next £100 million signing — he’s simply asking to be trusted. Sometimes, the most expensive mistake is overlooking what you already own.
“If you know all the languages of the world but don’t know your mother tongue, that is enslavement,” Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o told me in 2015.
“Tribalism is a colonial invention,” he added