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Olympique Lyonnais began the season with only three central defenders in the squad: Moussa Niakhaté, Clinton Mata, and Ruben Kluivert.
Although defensively solid, the centre-back unit still presents several major off-pitch concerns: the first two are ageing — Mata is about to turn 33 — while the latter attract a lot of interest from the Premier League and will be sold. Moreover, Noham Kamara arrived during the winter and will get time during the next seasons to show his potential and talent, but isn’t experienced at all for European competitions.
Moussa Niakhaté is highly reliable and has rarely suffered injuries throughout his career. He is also capable of playing game after game. A key player this season — both on the pitch and in the dressing room, where he serves as a role model — the second-highest earner at the club retains my full confidence to hold down the left side of the central defence almost single-handedly.
I would therefore recommend recruiting a right-footed central defender to compete with Clinton Mata and eventually take over from the Angolan in the coming seasons. Noham Kamara would then be relegated to a rotation role.
Our target profile is therefore almost clearly defined, as we “simply” need a younger version of Clinton Mata. Let’s take a look at the Lyon centre-back’s profile: