Man City’s new undroppable has given Pep Guardiola major headache

Manchester City have possibly discovered a new undroppable this week and he has left Pep Guardiola with a major headache.

When the final whistle blew on Manchester City's 2025/26 Champions League campaign, there was a mix of emotions inside the Etihad Stadium. There was obvious disappointment in losing to Real Madrid again, but fans could be proud of the fight shown by this group of players.

Despite going a man down and 4-0 behind on aggregate after just over 20 minutes, the Blues were not discouraged from attacking and sustained an onslaught on the Real defence. Committing such numbers to attacks meant the defence needed to be at their best and one man exemplified that more than anyone else.

Abdukodir Khusanov could have easily been disheartened when Marc Guehi arrived in the January transfer window. City's first Uzbekistan international barely played in the first half of the season due to injury - adding Guehi to the mix was only going to harm his chances. But Ruben Dias' misfortune gave Khusanov a glimmer of hope.

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Since then, the former Lens defender has missed just two Premier League matches and has excelled at centre-back. In the first leg against Real, he was an unfortunate casualty of Pep Guardiola's full-back experiment. While he can play at right-back, it is clear his strengths lie in the middle of defence.

On Wednesday, Khusanov was nearly faultless back in the centre. His blistering pace kept Los Blancos' forward line at bay for much of the game. His recovery tackles were superb and he proved Guardiola was right to show his faith in him. A performance of that quality means his name should be on the teamsheet this Sunday when City travel to Wembley.

But City have a long-term headache. Dias will partner Khusanov against Arsenal this weekend with Guehi cup-tied.

Whether that partnership remains after the final is another question. Dias is the experienced head in the City defence, part of the leadership group and a player who Guardiola trusts fully.

Guehi is new to this team and the pressures that come with it. He struggled in Madrid and that was perhaps the reason Khusanov was preferred in the return leg. However, City did not spend £20m on a player who would have been free in the summer just for him to sit on the bench.

Guardiola said this City team had a bright future in the wake of the Real defeat. But what that future looks like is unclear.

After January, the defence was expected to be Dias and Guehi with Khusanov a capable back-up. That plan was clear after the Carabao Cup victory over Newcastle when Guardiola urged the EFL to reverse their ruling on cup-tied players.

"Hopefully in March, we can arrive with the players fit and hopefully you can convince the Carabao Cup that Marc Guehi can play in the final," he said. "It's difficult to understand that the club who make a big investment to pay one player who belongs to us and I don't understand why he cannot play the final.

"So, hopefully we write a letter, and hopefully the Carabao Cup can understand. He's not able to play for a rule that I don't understand why. Hopefully, they can change it."

Guardiola may be glad the EFL stuck to their guns in the end. This weekend, City do not have to worry about keeping Dias, Guehi and Khusanov happy.

After the international break, though, Guardiola has a selection dilemma: do City stick to the original plan of Dias and Guehi or do they find a way to fit Khusanov into this defence?

Playing him at right-back and starting all three defenders does not work - as the Bernabeu proved. On current form, Khusanov cannot be overlooked but how Guardiola keeps all three defenders happy will be the true test.